Song:Talkin' Baseball
Album:Passin' It On: America's Baseball Heritage in Song
Terry Cashman has had a long career as a songwriter and producer usually working with partner Tommy West. But he is best known for his 1981 single Talkin' Baseball which saw him honored at the 2011 Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. He was born Dennis Minogue July 5, 1941 in New York City. He was lead singer of The Chevrons who had a hit with Lullabye in 1960. After they split up, Cashman played baseball in the Detroit Tigers minor league system. In 1967 he formed Cashman, Pistilli and West with Gene Pistilli and Tommy West. They released an album but their song Sunday Will Never Be The Same was a top ten hit for Spanky & Our Gang. After Pistilli left to join The Manhattan Transfer, Cashman and West continued to record as a duo. They also produced Jim Croce who was very successful until his 1973 death. They also wrote and produced the Henry Gross hit Shannon. They started the label Lifesong in 1976 and Cashman and West released solo albums. Cashman released Talkin' Baseball as a single in 1981. As he says in the video, he recorded twenty different versions of Talkin' Baseball and he released American League and National League albums. The original recording of Talkin' Baseball has the "Willie, Mickey and The Duke" hook. And at the time there was a baseball strike. So the nostalgia of Talkin' Baseball really struck a chord with fans. Cashman has turned it into a cottage industry. He recorded a Talkin' Baseball parody for The Simpsons in 1992. And he was honored at the 2011 Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony. This 1995 CD is all baseball songs written by Cashman. It's available as a budget CD. Looking at his credits, Talkin' Baseball has been Cashman's life since 1981. I'm not sure if that was his intention but those royalty cheques keep rolling in. Here's a 1982 CBS Evening News report by Bernard Goldberg about the success of Talkin' Baseball. It's not the sort of thing I normally post but Cashman has never performed live or done a Talkin' Baseball video.
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