Inducted:
2025
Category:
Musical Influence
Inducted By:
David Letterman
Warren Zevon was a songwriter’s songwriter, revered for the gallows humor, acid wit and candid tenderness of his lyrics. A classically trained pianist and skilled guitarist, he wrote jingles, pop ditties and masterpieces. His songs, covered by a wide array of esteemed artists, encompassed rock & roll, country, folk and blues. Critically acclaimed, he counted among his fans Dylan and Springsteen, and he expanded the boundaries of American popular song.
Impact
He was and remains one of my favorite songwriters.He saw things with a jaundiced eye that still got the humanity of things.
David Crosby
Signature Sound
Literate Rock, Sardonic Edge
Literate Rock, Sardonic Edge
Warren Zevon’s first musical forays included commercial jingles, mid-’60s folk-pop with Lyme and Cybelle, and songs for the Turtles. Session work led to his acclaimed solo albums – edgy roots rock that established him as a unique, darkly literate, and often funny California singer-songwriter. His later, sobriety-inspired work featured deeper vulnerability.
Poor, Poor Pitiful Me
Warren Zevon (1976)
Desperadoes Under the Eaves
Warren Zevon (1976)
Werewolves of London
Excitable Boy (1978)
Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner
Excitable Boy (1978)
Lawyers, Guns and Money
Excitable Boy (1978)
With gender references reversed, this was a hit twice: Top 40 for Linda Ronstadt in ‘78, No. 5 country for Terri Clark in ‘96.
Influence
Influences
Hunter S. Thompson
Igor Stravinsky
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Warren Zevon
ShopWarren Zevon
ShopWarren Zevon
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