JIMMY WEBB LOOKS FOR RENEWED GLORY DAYS

“Too much too soon is hell on a young kid,” composer Jimmy Webb observed, putting the emphasis on hell . He should know. In the late ‘60s, when he was in his early 20s, he was the boy wonder of pop composing. Ballads like “MacArthur Park” and “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” brought him instant fame and fortune.

And he wasn’t a sober, sensible, shy star.

“I was wild and arrogant--a rebel who didn’t always know what he was doing,” recalled Webb, a minister’s son from Elk City, Okla. “I went through phases of using drugs and drinking too much and spending too much money. I was rebelling against the fact that my father was a Baptist minister and I had always been told what to do. But there I was in Hollywood making it big. Nobody was going to tell me what to do. I did some stupid things. I made some enemies. Some bad things happened to me, but I really had them coming.

“If I had been older I would have been able to handle fame differently. I feel sorry for any young kids who make it big too soon.”

From his table in a coffee shop he pointed through the window to Sunset Boulevard, rattling off another gilt-edged tale of his glory days: “In 1969 I was running up and down the Strip with $2 1/2 million dollars in my back pocket. I had the world by the tail.”

Naturally, the fame didn’t last. The market for his melodramatic ballads dried up. Writing hits has been a struggle for him ever since.

But this isn’t a story about a penniless, has-been songwriter. Though Webb was spending money wildly back in the ‘60s, he didn’t fritter away his fortune. He lives comfortably now with his family in New Jersey and works steadily--out of the limelight. Lately he’s been composing music for movies and television. A score for the coming feature film “Hanoi Hilton” is a current project.

Broadway is a possibility too. He’s worked on two musicals that seem promising. Both, however, are still in formative stages.

His latest project is the Columbia Records album of his moving cantata, “The Animals’ Christmas,” a version of the Christmas story performed by Art Garfunkel and Amy Grant. Webb wrote it four years ago, never expecting it to get beyond performances at his neighborhood church. But it’s been performed in concert several times, including shows in New York and London. Garfunkel, who records for Columbia, helped arrange the record deal.

Though Webb is proud of this album, it’s not enough for him. It’s a special project featuring other stars. Webb’s goal is to write and sing an album of his own pop songs. He’s candid about his desire for solo stardom.

“I could do a solo album that would work in today’s market,” insisted Webb, 40. “I’m still a young guy. I sing better than I ever did. I haven’t given up. I still really want to do this--badly.” Webb has had many chances--six solo albums--but no hits. There was always a problem, either with his songs, his vocals or the production. As a performer, he’s undistinguished. But he has had some prestigious engagements, such as opening for America when that band was at its peak back in the mid-’70s.

“I love performing,” he said. “I love the atmosphere, the big crowds, the acceptance. I’ve never gotten that out of my system.”

The reality, though, is that a recording career isn’t likely, since record companies don’t like to invest in an artist who will appeal primarily to the older, middle-of-the-road crowd.

But the success last year of “The Highwayman,” which he recorded nearly 10 years ago on a solo album, convinced Webb that his songs still have popular appeal. A recording of that song by Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash was a big country hit.

Webb still writes pop songs for himself, but occasionally gets requests to compose for other artists. “That doesn’t happen often enough,” he lamented. “But I’ll write somebody a song and 90% of the time they’ll turn it down. But I’m grateful to have somebody ask.”

Webb has written more than 500 songs. Some, he admitted, weren’t so good. “Sometimes I’m embarrassed by some of the songs I’ve written. Now they seem so casual, so offhanded. They sound like they were written by somebody who’s not very mature.”

But he’s quite proud of some others. “There’s a few that are damn good,” he said. “I listen to them and I know what I’m capable of. That keeps me going. I can write songs that will make it happen for me again. I’ll be back on top again. You’ll see.”