| Steven Fromholz celebrates his 62nd birthday today.
Over the course of a 40-year career, Fromholz has worn many hats as an artist - poet, singer, songwriter, guitarist, playwright, author, actor and record producer. Add cowboy and whitewater river guide to his resume and the resident of Sugar Land qualifies for a multitude of jobs in the Lone Star State.
His latest position, though, was not something he applied for but was bestowed upon him by the Texas Legislature. Earlier this year Fromholz was named the poet laureate of the state of Texas.
Unlike most political appointees, Fromholz toes no party lines nor does he subscribe to any particular political school of thought. The terms “liberal,” “individual,” “populist,” “Texan” and “independent” all apply to him, he said.
“I'm not apolitical at all but I don't dwell on politics,” Fromholz said. “Being apolitical is counterproductive. I vote and I love to vote in this great democracy of ours.”
One of his missions in life is to encourage kids to get interested and involved in politics, he said.
Much of the subject matter encompassed in his body of work remains largely apolitical, though, at least in a contemporary sense. Ubiquitous in his poems and songs are cowboys, the West and “the wonders and goodness of (the state of Texas) and the people who made it great.” The unifying element in most of his compositions, regardless of subject matter, is the most universal human bond.
“It's all about love,” Fromholz said. “I've been in love all my life and I've been blessed.”
In 2004, Fromholz married his current wife Jenny, a woman he credits with helping him recover from a major stroke that left him incapacitated in 2003.
Of the many vocations he has visited in his varied career, Fromholz has been most prominent as a lyricist. Considered by many in the music industry as a songwriter's songwriter, Fromholz's songs have been recorded by a roster of superstars including Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Jerry Jeff Walker and John Denver.
Fromholz is best known for his songs “Texas Trilogy” and “I'd Have to be Crazy,” a double-platinum number recorded by Nelson. Recognized as a charter member of the Texas outlaw music movement, he has toured with Stephen Stills and has recorded for ABC Probe, Capitol Record, Lone Star, Tried and True and his own label, Felicity Records.
Asked to pinpoint the highlight of his storied career, Fromholz responded: “Being named poet laureate was right up there. Making two platinum albums with Willie Nelson was exciting, too.”
The highlight of his life, he said, happened less than a month ago when his grandson Zoe Esteban Fromholz was born.
Despite traveling and performing the world over, Fromholz's heart has always remained in the Lone Star State where he was born. At 62, he remains a prolific wordsmith with two books of poetry and a novel scheduled for release later this year.
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