The group originally formed in 1985, playing its first gigs in Dallas's Deep Ellum neighborhood. Its current members are Jim "Reverend Horton" Heath on guitar and lead vocals, Jimbo Wallace on the upright bass, and Scott Churilla on drums. Through relentless touring and a manic stage show, they have established themselves as one of the most popular underground acts in America. Their sound is self described as "Country-fed punkabilly." Their music is a mixture of country, punk, big band, swing, and rockabilly, all played loud and energetically with lyrics that are often very humorous.
Jim Heath played in a cover band called Southern Comfort with friends from Corpus Christi Ray, his high school, before attending the University of Texas at Austin in the fall of 1977. At UT, he often entertained friends and dormmates and was often found playing in the stairwells at Moore-Hill Dormitory late into the night to avoid disturbing the sleep of roommate Harold Shockley, now a Corpus Christi banker. Jim left school in the spring to join up with a touring cover band by the name of Sweetbriar. Three years later, former dormmate David Livingston, now in his senior year of school and at home visiting family, saw a familiar face on stage and reunited with Jim. David told Jim stories of the punk music scene in Austin and the acts playing at venues like Raul's and Club Foot. Once, while home on another visit, David took Jim to a Dallas rock and roll venue, The Bijou, to see an act called The Cramps. After the show, there broke out a punks vs. rockers brawl in the parking lot. While Jim and David escaped any involvement in the scuffle, Jim later claimed to have had an epiphany on that evening. Always a fan of blues and honky tonk, Jim returned the favor by taking David and his wife, Ellen, to see The Blasters in Dallas at a venue known as the Hot Klub and Jim's love for roots rock took over from there.
Jim had married a former bandmate from Sweetbriar, and together they had a child. Together they decided that the rock-and-roll lifestyle was over and that it was time to have real jobs. Around 1985, Jim was known as "Jim the Sound Guy" by those who frequented two warehouses that by night became music venues, Theater Gallery and The Prophet Bar. Jim used the old Sweetbriar PA system to earn from $20-$50 per night for extra money, running sound for bands such as the New Bohemians, End Over End, Shallow Reign and Three On A Hill. One night during a lull, Russell Hobbs, one of the original Deep Ellum visionaries and proprietors of these venues goaded Jim into getting up to play. He played alone, tearing through a version of "Folsom Prison Blues" that is now so familiar to millions of Reverend Horton Heat fans around the world. Throughout the song, Hobbs hooted and shouted out, "Go Reverend". Jim decided then and there to form a band and came up with the name Reverend Horton Heat, as an ode to Johnny Horton, using the shortened version of his last name, Heath. The late nights and the fact the Jim was now playing in a band and his wife and former bandmate was not took its toll on the marriage and she soon left with their child and dog. Jim's feelings upon the loss of his family are well documented in the song, "Where In The Hell Did You go With My Toothbrush?". The Jimi Hendrix poster mentioned in the song was on the back of a door that Jim used for a practice room in the house he shared with his wife and child. The dog's name really was Smokey.
About this time, David and Ellen moved back from Oklahoma City, where they had been since graduating from UT. David began to book gigs for Jim and his new band, and their refeshing sound and raw live performance quickly won over the local music scene. Jim drew crowds to brand new music venues, playing three nights a week at Froggy Bottoms in the then brand new West End and assured a quick start to Club Dada, the first "for profit" bar in Deep Ellum by playing every night for the first two weeks that it was open. David continued to work with Reverend Horton Heat until 1989, when his own new family and day job required all of his attention, and Jim needed a real manager who could get him out on the road and into the studio. Jim and David remain close friends today, and a song that they co-wrote together back in the '80s, "Liquor, Beer and Wine", appeared on 1994's "Liquor In The Front".
Check out the [url=http://[officialsite]www.victorymerch.com/store/reverendhortonheat]Reverend Horton Heat merch store.
This artist is also on Last.fm as: 'The Reverend Horton Heat'
The Tiny Voice of Reason
Reverend Horton Heat Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With barrets in her hair of gold
Everyone ignores little questions she'll ask
Bout your grand deals tasks so bold
buddy little girl
Out playing in the sun
The tiny voice of reason
everyone ignores little games she'll play
Little prayers she'll pray at night
Everyone ignores the trees of greed
Cause they're stuck in a scene alright
buddy little girl
Loves God and dad and mom
The tiny voice of reason
Is louder than your bomb
everyone ignores the girl in the chair
With barrets in her hair of gold
buddy little girl
Out playing in the sun
The tiny voice of reason
Is louder than your gun
everyone ignore the girl in the chair
With barrets in her hair of gold
The lyrics of Reverend Horton Heat's "The Tiny Voice of Reason" are about the little girl who is being ignored by everyone around her. She sits in a chair with barrets in her hair of gold, watching the people ignoring her, and asking little questions about their grand deals and tasks so bold. The tiny voice of reason is a symbol of the girl's wisdom that is louder than their gun. She plays little games and prays at night, yet everyone still ignores her. People ignore the trees of greed because they are stuck in a scene that is the result of their greed. The girl, however, loves God and Dad and Mom, and her tiny voice of reason is louder than their bomb.
The message behind the lyrics of "The Tiny Voice of Reason" by Reverend Horton Heat is that we should not ignore the innocent and pure-minded individuals around us. This song reminds us that even children can have a powerful and influential voice if we take the time to listen to them. Additionally, the lyrics suggest that we should be more introspective and question the actions we take and the deals we make, or we will end up getting stuck in a scene of our own creation.
Line by Line Meaning
Everyone ignore the girl in the chair
People tend to ignore the presence of a young girl sitting in a chair.
With barrets in her hair of gold
Her blonde hair is decorated with golden barrettes.
Everyone ignores little questions she'll ask
People ignore the curious questions she may ask about their important tasks.
Bout your grand deals tasks so bold
She inquires further about your daring business deals.
Buddy little girl out playing in the sun
She is a kid running outside and enjoying the sunny weather.
The tiny voice of reason is louder than your gun
Despite her diminutive size, what she says makes more sense than using violence to solve problems.
Everyone ignores little games she'll play
People disregard the small games she likes to play.
Little prayers she'll pray at night
She says her prayers every night before sleeping.
Everyone ignores the trees of greed
People intentionally overlook the consequences of their excessive desire for wealth.
Cause they're stuck in a scene alright
They are confined in a situation that makes them forget the gravity of their actions.
Buddy little girl loves God and dad and mom
She adores her parents and has deep faith in God.
The tiny voice of reason is louder than your bomb
What she says has more impact on others than causing destruction with explosives.
Everyone ignores the girl in the chair
Again, people tend to disregard the girl sitting in the chair.
With barrets in her hair of gold
Her golden hair barrettes are still visible despite the ignorance of the people around her.
Buddy little girl out playing in the sun
Once more, she is happily playing outside under the sun.
The tiny voice of reason is louder than your gun
The last line is repeated to reiterate the theme of the song, that her small but reasonable voice carries more weight than violence.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind