Fairy Tale Land

Album: Not Released on an Album (1992)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The first song that Kentucky-born coal miner's daughter Angaleena Presley learned to play on the guitar was "Mama Tried" by Merle Haggard. It was her father who taught the song at the age of 15 and within a year or so Presley was penning her own material.
  • This was the first ever song Presley wrote. She recalled to American Songwriter magazine: "It was so awful. I was a senior in high school and I wrote a song called 'Fairy Tale Land.' It was about me venturing off into the world and leaving my fairy tale life behind. My mom liked it and encouraged me to write more. About 20 songs later I wrote something that made me think, "hmmm … this one might be kinda good."
  • Presley told CMT News she wrote this when she was 16-years-old. "It was about me moving away and going to college and leaving your parents," she explained. "It was awful. I would die if anyone heard it."

    "It was no 'Honky Tonk Girl,' that's for sure," she added.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

P.F. Sloan

P.F. SloanSongwriter Interviews

P.F. was a teenager writing hits and playing on tracks for Jan & Dean when he wrote a #1 hit that got him blackballed.

Gary Lewis

Gary LewisSongwriter Interviews

Gary Lewis and the Playboys had seven Top 10 hits despite competition from The Beatles. Gary talks about the hits, his famous father, and getting drafted.

Terry Jacks ("Seasons in the Sun")

Terry Jacks ("Seasons in the Sun")Songwriter Interviews

Inspired by his dear friend, "Seasons in the Sun" paid for Terry's boat, which led him away from music and into a battle with Canadian paper mills.

"Stairway To Heaven" Lawsuit: A Timeline

"Stairway To Heaven" Lawsuit: A TimelineSong Writing

Untangling the events that led to the "Stairway To Heaven" lawsuit.

Tom Johnston from The Doobie Brothers

Tom Johnston from The Doobie BrothersSongwriter Interviews

The Doobies guitarist and lead singer, Tom wrote the classics "Listen To The Music," "Long Train Runnin'" and "China Grove."

Lou Gramm - "Waiting For A Girl Like You"

Lou Gramm - "Waiting For A Girl Like You"They're Playing My Song

Gramm co-wrote this gorgeous ballad and delivered an inspired vocal, but the song was the beginning of the end of his time with Foreigner.