Too Hot For T.V. Vol. 1 by Hog Man, Jerry Isham, is available for the first time digitally today. Known for frequently wearing long neck ties and funny hats on stage, Isham loved to make folks laugh and frequently thanked Goodwill for being his “clothing sponsor”. “Money is not the object”, says Jerry, “I just enjoy what I’m doing. I just want to make people laugh.” Hog Man loved writing songs during his days overlooking the shores of Watts Bar Lake, west of Knoxville. Known for saying he has no hog-sized ego, he often played shows in Gatlinburg, bordering the Smoky Mountains National Park. Jerry was once quoted saying he performed at a vacuum cleaner convention in that area, adding “my stuff fit in there too- it sucked.”
Wayne Bledsoe at The Knoxville Sentinel wrote Hog Man’s concert was “one of the most uncomfortable moments I have ever witnessed… Isham fired into a halftime set with a string of porcine-themed and politically incorrect jokes that went over like, well, something you never want to see in your punch bowl. It was a shame, because in the right environment, Hog Man is a corn-fed treat.” Hog Man was also cohost on the Channel 12 news with George Bove for more than 20 episodes, and remains to this day a legend in lesser-known Tennessee culture as a folk-comedian fixture in the area. Available below and on YouTube as well ad-free.