Tag: 5+5

BGS 5+5: Sideline

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Artist: Sideline
Hometown: Raleigh, North Carolina
Latest Album: Ups, Downs and No Name Towns

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a band?

It wasn’t really a realization of “wanted to” as much as a realization that we “should be” a band. We had been playing a small handful of shows for a couple of years while still with other groups (hence the name “Sideline”). We started to see a style developing, as well as a demand from certain areas. We came to the realization that we were starting to develop a following, and we had to either commit to the new endeavor or back off. In mid-2013 we made the decision to go for it. We’ve been a full-time group ever since.

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

We appreciate music from many different artists, spanning a wide variety of genres. Bluegrass standards like Flatt & Scruggs, The Bluegrass Album Band, and The Johnson Mountain Boys, as well as great artists like Journey, Ronnie Milsap, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. All having great talent and musical approach to learn from, and all having great success stories to be inspired by.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

What we do relies heavily on us being a solid unit or “team” of players. While some may not call it an art form, I would say that the art of teamwork would be the biggest influence on our music and our lifestyle. Taking time as a group to attend concerts, live sporting events, or any recreational activity as a group, really adds to morale and team spirit, which then carries over into our musical creativity and stage performance.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

We have recorded three separate projects, along with a few compilation projects for the Mountain Home Music Group out of Arden, North Carolina. Every time we have a session scheduled at Crossroads Studio we always come in the night before and go to the Wild Wing Cafe. It’s tradition, a great way to bond before we head into the session, and blesses the session with good luck!

If you had to write a mission statement for your career, what would it be?

Sideline was founded on the idea of having fun every time we step out on stage. As many musicians will agree, 2020 showed us all how much we took full-time musician status for granted. Now more than ever, we reach back to why we started and why we do this: To be entertaining, leave everyone with a smile, and kick as much musical butt as possible with every show.

Photo credit: Sideline

BGS 5+5: The Delevantes

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Artist: The Delevantes
Hometown: Rutherford, NJ… then Hoboken, NJ… and now Nashville
Latest Album: A Thousand Turns
Rejected band names: “The band was originally named Who’s Your Daddy. The name came from the Zombies song, ‘Time of the Season.’ The lyric reads: ‘What’s your name? Who’s your daddy?’ but very few people ever got it. In fact I think maybe one person did. And it eventually made a list of top ten bad band names. Eventually Mike and I decided to go with our last name. It was easy and simple (for us) to remember. But it’s hard to count how many times it was misspelled in ads or on marquees. One of our faves was ‘The Deldinkos’! Probably should’ve gone with that.” — Bob

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

I had played guitar since I was about 4 years old and I enjoyed it. Our family was very musical. But I don’t think I understood its full potential until I was a teenager and got together with friends and played as a group. Even just in casual circles. That’s when I saw what it can do and how it can bring people together. Our music began in friendships and it grew out from there. — Mike

In high school after lunch my friend Matt and I would pull out our acoustic guitars and play some songs in the auditorium. A little Simon & Garfunkel, Jackson Browne, or maybe something from Will the Circle Be Unbroken. As we played some of the football players’ girlfriends came over and sat down to listen. We realized guitars and harmonies, not helmets and shoulder pads, was the way to go for us. — Bob

Which artist has influenced you the most… and how?

There are so many, but I would probably choose Bob Dylan. Lyrics, folk music, rock ‘n’ roll — there are so many layers and I love that. And he just turned 80 and has released what I think as some of his best work! – Bob

Probably the Beatles. The combination of both amazing lyrics and some of the most incredible melodic lines. I don’t think anyone has come close. — Mike

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

Being asked the day of the show to back up Levon Helm at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame show in Cleveland. Rehearsing for about an hour that day and performing “Rag Mama Rag” and “Atlantic City.” — Mike

There are quite a few but two really stick in my mind: The first, we were playing an outdoor festival in Holland and it started to rain. There was large crowd on the hillside. I think the attendance was around 10,000 people and when it started to drizzle all these different colored umbrellas opened up. It looked like a field blooming. The second is the first time we opened up for John Prine and he asked us to sing on the encore, “Paradise.” Won’t forget that one. — Bob

Since food and music go so well together, what is your dream pairing of a meal and a musician?

Sitting down for a dinner of baked ziti and a beer with Frank Sinatra at Ricco’s in Hoboken, NJ, around 1941, just as his career was taking off. — Bob

Hearing the E Street Band play on the boardwalk in Asbury Park with a slice of NJ pizza. — Mike

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

I’m a designer, photographer, and illustrator as well as a songwriter. All these different disciplines feed each other. They’re all ways of telling stories and I work in all of them. My favorites are probably looking at other artists’ photographs and watching films. They probably affect me the most and inspire my work. — Bob

Going to art school in NYC opened my eyes to how a particular time and place with different art forms can be combined to create a story. The act of creating art alongside other artists — and being fully immersed in galleries and seeing bands in clubs at a certain time — created a story in my head that I can still see. A film with a soundtrack. That time inspires me to find similar moments in how you can imagine a song or say a painting can take on meaning for other people. Part of it is freeing in a way… you don’t have to control every aspect because they will put their story into your art and make it their own. — Mike

Photo credit: Emma Delevante

BGS 5+5: Brad Kolodner

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Artist: Brad Kolodner
Hometown: Baltimore, Maryland
Latest Album: Chimney Swifts
Personal nicknames: B-rad, Dadley, BK

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

My father Ken, hands down. As long as I can remember, my father’s music has been the soundtrack of my life. To be fair, I didn’t have much choice in the matter. The living room in our house was filled with the sounds of his hammered dulcimer and fiddle playing (along with the scores of students who banged away on their dulcimers and scratched out tunes on fiddle). I’d be lying if I said my sister and I always loved the ruckus. In all seriousness, the music must’ve been seeping in all those years. When I finally picked up the banjo as a teen, old-time music clicked and it felt right.

My father quickly became a musical mentor and eventually a bandmate and musical peer. His experience playing a multitude of traditional folk music styles through his years with his band Helicon has informed how I approach music with a creative, open mind while respecting the traditional roots of the music. His musicality and sense of dynamics are captivating. He really feels every note and it’s something I strive for in my playing. While piecing together material for my new solo album Chimney Swifts, it was a natural choice to include my father on the project as I wanted to highlight both the groovy and mellow sides of his playing. It’s always a joy to make music with him and I’ll treasure that feeling as long as I can.

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

Singing “I’ve Been Everywhere” for the student talent show at the Meadowlark music camp in Maine back in 2007 was a catalyst for my love of being on stage sharing music. I had just wrapped up my very first week learning the basics of clawhammer banjo in a workshop with Richie Stearns, who ultimately became a banjo hero of mine. I could only play a very clumsy “bum-ditty” so I wasn’t quite ready to show off my newfound love of the banjo. However, I was eager to share the one song I had memorized in my life up to that point for the student talent show.

Years earlier, I spent weeks memorizing all the places in “I’ve Been Everywhere,” which caught my ear when I heard Johnny Cash’s version in a commercial. Suffice to say, I didn’t do too well in school for those few weeks. With my tail between my legs, I hopped up on stage and sang the song. As a relatively shy kid at that point in my life, I emerged from my shell after belting out each verse with the crowd roaring along the way. I can’t say I knew I wanted to be musician at that moment but it’s certainly the first time I tasted that high performers can get on stage in front of an electric audience. There’s actually a home video of that original performance.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

I’ve been fortunate to have some incredible experiences performing with my father Ken at venues like the Kennedy Center, Winfield, and Clifftop and with Charm City Junction at Grey Fox, IBMA, and the Charm City Bluegrass Festival. However, there is one night that really jumps out: the opening concert at our inaugural Baltimore Old Time Music Festival in 2019. After moving back to my hometown in my early 20s around 2012, I made it my mission to reboot the local old-time music community. I cofounded our biweekly old-time jam with my dad, started the Baltimore Square Dance with some pals, and hosted a monthly house concert series with the long term goal of putting together an old-time music festival someday. Well, that dream became a reality in 2019 when I, with Baltimore Old Time Music Festival in partnership with the Creative Alliance, cofounded an arts organization here in town. I’ll always treasure the memory of standing on stage during the kickoff concert in a packed concert hall rocking out during the encore playing “Tennessee Mountain Fox Chase” with the biggest smile on my face. This year, we’re hoping to have our “2nd” Annual Baltimore Old Time Music Festival in mid-November.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

There’s really nothing more nourishing or magical than the time I’ve spent deep in the dense woods on top of a mountain in Clifftop, West Virginia, at the Appalachian String Band Festival. As an artist, I spend much of my time making music in the context of my work — playing a show, teaching lessons, leading a local jam, etc. While I’m deeply grateful for this lifestyle, I need those soul-nourishing experiences in which I play music simply to play music. Clifftop provides that space. It’s a gathering of thousands of old-time musicians who huddle under soggy EZ-ups ’til the wee hours playing fiddle tunes. The natural beauty of the setting adds to that magic.

There’s something about the shared experience trudging through the mud, square dancing in a dusty dirt road, and watching the sunrise with your buds grooving out on fiddles tunes that can’t be matched anywhere else. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten lost meandering through the woods with sounds of far-off old-time jams swirling around the forest. There’s a hike next to the campground that weaves through a rhododendron grove amidst rock formations atop a ridge before descending to a little mountain stream. It’s the quintessential West Virginia swimming hole and it’s a hike I look forward to every year. Most of all, I’ve made some dear pals at Clifftop who have become my closest musical collaborators including Alex Lacquement and Rachel Eddy who are featured on my latest album, Chimney Swifts. While the music is what draws me in, it’s the people who keep me coming back year after year.

Since food and music go so well together, what is your dream pairing of a meal and a musician?

Well, since you asked… Before I played music, I was (and still am, sadly) a diehard Baltimore Orioles fan. The earliest musical memory I have, besides listening to my father’s music, is seeing John Denver hop up on top of the Baltimore Orioles dugout during the seventh inning stretch to sing “Thank God I’m a Country Boy” back in 1997 just a couple weeks before he tragically passed away in a plane crash. After that performance, my parents gifted me some John Denver CDs and I listened to them more than anything else as a kid — really. I would fall asleep to his albums on repeat and my parents would have to come in and turn them off after I dozed off. So, it would be my dream to sit with John Denver at an Orioles ballgame on a warm summer night while eating a Boog’s BBQ sandwich and drinking a Natty Boh beer (a classic Baltimore combo). Oh, and an Orioles win would be nice, but I don’t want to ask for anything unrealistic…

Photo credit: Joanna Tillman

BGS 5+5: Martin Sexton

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Artist: Martin Sexton
Hometown: Syracuse, New York
Latest album: 2020 Vision
Personal nicknames: Wolfman (band and crew would call me that on the walkies)

Which artist has influenced you the most…and how?

There are just so many of equal importance. Everyone from Black Sabbath to Pavarotti, from Mel Tormé to Mel Blanc (voice of every Looney Tunes character and then some). And The Beatles to… The Beatles.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

My favorite memory on stage would have to be performing live with Peter Frampton playing “Do You Feel Like We Do” in Madison Square Garden. When he said my name with his voice box through the PA, I had to pinch myself.

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

Sneaking up to the attic as a 9-year-old to listen to my older brothers’ records. I would put the headphones on and put the needle on Frampton Comes Alive. The sound of the opening licks of “Do you Feel Like We Do” and the howling of the audience in stereo was the spark that lit my flame and fueled my dreams.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

The ritual I have before every show is to have some quiet time alone, think about what I’m going to do in a show as I do some vocal warm-ups and say a prayer to my higher power for the strength to give the best performance I possibly can that night. And to say thank you for the opportunity.

If you had to write a mission statement for your career, what would it be?

I stated this years ago and try to stay true to it today: “My mission is to utilize the power of music to foster a sense of unity connecting people of all kinds to each other. With this strength and joy I advocate always being true to one’s heart and chasing your own dreams.”

Photo credit: Jo Chattman

BGS 5+5: Suzanne Santo

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Artist: Suzanne Santo
Hometown: Cleveland > NYC > LA > Austin
Latest album: Yard Sale
Personal nicknames (or rejected band names): Suzanimal, Lewis, Soozanto

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

I get really sucked into cinema. I’ve written whole songs after being emotionally altered from watching a movie or TV show. Deadwood was a big one for me. I truly believe that David Milch channeled God through the world he created on that show and I feel it every time I watch it.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

It’s not so much a ritual as a way of life these days, I guess. I just want to enjoy this. I mean, what a fucking great life, getting to play music! When I’m able to release the things I can’t control and celebrate my hard work and embrace the gifts I’ve been given, the shows become magical and the studio work becomes fluid and beautiful.

If you had to write a mission statement for your career, what would it be?

Art is long. It can be a lifetime and longer if you’re good enough and lucky enough. The most substantial and purest form of reward for this particular way of life comes from within… If you search for external relief, it tends to be fleeting and most certainly temporary. Don’t forget to live. Chasing the dragon of art will consume you and opportunities of great love and joy will be missed if you forget to exist outside of the chase.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

I take long walks a few times a week and try to do four to five miles if I can help it. I live in Austin, so there are some great neighborhoods and a good amount of trails around the lake to utilize. I work on new songs sometimes, catch up with friends, listen to podcasts and genuinely feel rejuvenated every time. If I neglect to walk or get too busy I start to get sad.

Since food and music go so well together, what is your dream pairing of a meal and a musician?

Man, playing/singing with Willie Nelson would be a dream. Considering the fact that he’s an Olympic-level stoner, the paired cuisine for this fantasy has no limits. I think a buffet of the highest quality BBQ and fixin’s, homemade lasagna, fried rice, tater tots, an array of pies, mochi, Golden Grahams cereal, hot pretzels with cheese, and some popcorn would suffice… also hot chicken and biscuits.

Photo credit: Cameron McCool

BGS 5+5: Della Mae

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Artist: Della Mae
Hometown: The United States
Latest Album: Family Reunion
Nicknames: Celia = Squawkbox; Kimber= Fiddler, Kimby, Auntie, Nimmers (Grammy only); Vickie = VV, Double V, Wickie
Rejected Band Names: Big Spike Hammer

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

Thanks to my good friend and mentor Rickie Simpkins, I played a show on electric guitar with Emmylou Harris a few years ago. My favorite memory from the gig was actually the soundcheck and rehearsal. It was a really special thing to get to experience how an artist I deeply admire prepares for a performance and then get to be part of how it all came together. — Avril Smith

In 2012, we had the opportunity to go on a six-week tour of South and Central Asia with the State Department. The first show we played was in Islamabad, Pakistan at a women’s college. It was the most incredible energy we’ve ever felt in a room. They’d never heard bluegrass before and erupted in cheers and Beatles-worthy shrieks when we hit the first three-part harmony chorus. — Kimber Ludiker

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

“The Way It Was Before” took Mark Erelli and I six hours to write (three Zoom sessions). Half of that time was spent talking, looking up stories, getting really emotional about the state of the world. We wanted to make sure that every word counted, so we took our time and tried to honor each of the characters (who are actual people). The pandemic isn’t even behind us, and yet I keep hearing people say that they can’t wait to get back to “the old days.” There’s so much about “the old days” that needs changing. After everything we’ve been through in the last 18 months, I found that writing a song like this felt impossibly huge. I may not have finished it if it hadn’t been for Mark. — Celia Woodsmith

Which artist has influenced you the most…and how?

Missy Raines has influenced me the most. For obvious reasons, but let me explain: I was 14 years old watching Don Rigsby and Josh Williams play at my hometown venue, the Kentucky Opry. I saw her up on stage playing upright with them, so cool and beautiful and a master of her instrument. She was hanging with the boys and giving them all a run for their money. Then and there I decided that I wanted to do that for the rest of my days. When it comes to harmony singing, however? One hundred percent Diamond Rio. — Vickie Vaughn

If you had to write a mission statement for your career, what would it be?

We actually do have a mission statement as a band — to showcase top female musicians, and to improve opportunities for women and girls through advocacy, mentorship, programming, and performance. Our hope is that our music inspires more women and girls to pick up an instrument and use their voices to create art and work together to affect the kind of change they want to see in our world. — Avril Smith

What was the first moment that you knew you wanted to be a musician?

FROM BIRTH. 😉 I’m a fifth-generation fiddler. I could play my first tunes at age 3. My earliest memories are playing fiddle tunes with my grandpa and brother. However, it wasn’t until my last year of college that I decided to make it my life. I saw how people struggled as musicians, and honestly, my brother was a bit of a child prodigy and I didn’t think I was good enough for a long time. I began to realize that everyone has their individual skills and talents, and I had something to contribute. — Kimber Ludiker

Photo credit: Kimber Ludiker

BGS 5+5: Jason Eady

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Artist Name: Jason Eady
Hometown: Stephenville, Texas
Latest album: To the Passage of Time

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

Merle Haggard. No question about it. I have learned from him in every way. His effortless style of singing, the simplicity in his writing style, the way he covered different genres, the way he managed his career, all of it. Everything I do is in some way influenced by Merle Haggard, whether I’m aware of it or not. I think he was the best all-around country artist who has ever lived.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

I’m very into photography lately. I got into it about four years ago as a way to have a hobby on the road and it really took. I didn’t realize when I started that it would affect my music the way it has. It has changed the way that I see the world, specifically in looking for more details. After a while with photography, like songwriting, you realize that you’ve exhausted everything that you can see on the surface and you have to start looking deeper for details. Seeing those details through photography has definitely expanded my imagery in my songwriting.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

Quiet. That’s the most important pre-performing ritual. I need time to focus and center. If I go straight from noise and commotion to the stage, it can take a while for me to relax into what I’m doing. I always try to set aside the 30 minutes prior to performing to just be quiet and get centered and ready.

Which elements of nature do you spend the most time with and how do those impact your work?

When I’m on the road I try to make an effort to stop every day and just walk, preferably in nature. This job can be very chaotic at times, and intentionally stopping to walk and look around is a great exercise. If I can walk somewhere quiet then that’s even better. I’m very aware when I come across places where there is no noise. It’s crazy that when you start looking for that you realize how hard it is to find. Just complete silence. But when I find it I try to stop and appreciate it, and what a rare moment it is.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

Almost always. Every character I write has some version of me in them. It’s not always 100 percent true, and usually isn’t, but there’s always some truth about me in there somewhere. I honestly don’t know if I’d be able to write a character that is completely separate from me.

Photo credit: Brandon Aguilar

BGS 5+5: Darrin Bradbury

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Artist: Darrin Bradbury
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
Latest Album: Artvertisement

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

It’s not from being on stage, but this one time, my tour manager Josh and I broke down an hour outside of Charlotte, North Carolina, on the way to opening for Robert Earl Keen. The van just up and died. We were on the side of the highway wondering what to do when we called AAA. It turned out that we were just below the amount of miles that AAA would tow — making our arrival to open for Robert Earl Keen, pulling up right behind the tour bus in a tow truck, jumping out of said tow truck, running on stage, plugging in and playing.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

Unfortunately, I find that often characters hide behind me, making me speak for them as they cower behind me, quite frankly it’s exhausting. I wish they’d just speak for themselves, I just keep collecting them, as voices in my head.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show

Before every show I’m usually pretty antsy. Offstage I’m fairly introverted. One of my best friends from back in New York wrote this song about a decade ago on a road trip we were on through the Midwest called “Moon in the Blue Sky.” I always find a quiet spot to sing it to myself.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

Abstract expressionism, gestural painting, de Kooning, Pollock, Picasso, as well as authors Kurt Vonnegut, Charles Bukowski, John Fante. I also dance when no one’s looking.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

Every song is the toughest, roughest, most pain in the ass, shit kicker, tooth knocker, sock rocker, and you don’t always win.

Photo credit: Weston Heflin

BGS 5+5: Matthew Fowler

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Artist: Matthew Fowler
Hometown: Orlando, Florida
Latest album: The Grief We Gave Our Mother (September 10, 2021)
Rejected Band Names: Fatts Mowler. Although, I honestly still kinda love it.

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

Glen Hansard, for sure. I started listening to his music when I was 14, learning how to play guitar, and just getting into songwriting. A period of branching out from the music of my childhood, and into stuff I discovered for myself. I was a huge fan of The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and lots of great classic artists, but Hansard was the first contemporary songwriter that really took hold of me. He’s an extremely dynamic and passionate performer. Super vulnerable and personable with the audience, too. I saw a ton of songwriters play the “dark and mysterious” role well, but he was bold and authentic. He’s just an inspiring dude.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

There’s an awesome club in Orlando called The Social where I first started going to see smaller shows. I loved that room — 300-something cap, close quarters, and a great view of the stage from all angles. I played a headlining set there for my birthday with a six- or seven-piece band (which was crazy) and actually turned 20 while onstage. The turnout was fantastic, everyone sang “Happy Birthday” for me, my mom called me during the set (they were out of town), and I had the distinct honor of graduating out of my teenage years doing something that was important to me in a place where I first fell in love with live music. It’s a happy memory that I’m grateful for.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

I’m a big fan of movies. They’re awesome for gaining insight into different facets of life, especially at an age when you can’t always go and experience those things firsthand. Growing up, that was one of my BIG windows into the world. I’ve since done my own videographer work and grown to love it as another creative thing to do. I’m pretty big on making collages too — I like how it celebrates fusing seemingly different elements together to make something more wholly interesting. I think any creative endeavor strengthens ones creativity as a whole. It ALL informs the music.

What rituals do you have, either in the studio or before a show?

I usually don’t write a set list out (if at all) until the absolute last possible second. The vibe of every room and situation is truly different, which is one of my favorite things about touring. A lot of times, if I’m playing solo, I’ll just write out a long list of possible songs and pick whatever I feel in the moment. It’s an exhilarating feeling to be off-the-cuff in a show setting. It makes the night feel more natural.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

I usually never hide behind a character in a song. I mostly write from my own specific point of view — I find I’m able to feel more authentic in voice and emotion when I put myself in the “hot seat” of the song. That being said, I’ve always been intrigued by songwriters who can weave a story and put themselves completely out of it. I hope to grow as a writer with each album I make, and maybe that’s my move for the next one.

Photo credit: Mike Dunn

BGS 5+5: Mike and the Moonpies

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Artist: Mike and the Moonpies
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Latest Album: One to Grow On
Personal nicknames: The Moonpies

All answers by Mike Harmeier

Which artist has influenced you the most … and how?

It would be impossible for me to narrow it down to just one artist. Early on, I was heavily influenced by George Strait and ’80s/’90s country artists, in general. I really thought that was the path I would take — a very commercial approach to country music. I would later gain a new perspective when I started listening to more songwriters like Guy Clark and John Prine. It was then that I wanted to add more depth and sincerity to my music. When I moved to Austin in 2002, I started to get more into the art of record making and that process was heavily influenced by bands like Wilco and Radiohead. Lately, I’ve kind of melded all that into an approach that’s more along the lines of Jerry Jeff Walker. Freewheeling records with thoughtful lyrics and just having fun playing music with my friends.

What’s your favorite memory from being on stage?

I’ve had countless moments that stick out in my memory from being on stage. Most of them include our artist friends joining us on stage. From the big jams we usually host at Mile 0 Fest in Key West, to our encores with the opening bands joining us for a cover song to end the night. Most recently, Jerry Jeff Walker’s son Django joined us on stage in Alpine, Texas, for our rendition of “London Homesick Blues.” It’s a song written and performed by Gary P. Nunn and made famous on Jerry Jeff’s Viva Terlingua record. We cut it in London at Abbey Road Studios for our Cheap Silver and Solid Country Gold record. That was a very special moment and felt like a culmination of a lot of things for us. You never know who will join you or when, and that excitement always makes for a memorable show.

What other art forms — literature, film, dance, painting, etc. — inform your music?

I’ve always found a lot of inspiration in film. Especially when that film uses the right music for a particular scene. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve hit pause on a movie to write a song. Some songs can take on a whole new meaning when you put them behind the right scene or character and I will sometimes use those character’s emotions to inspire a new subject to write about. I’ve written quite a few songs just off one line I heard in a movie or TV show.

What’s the toughest time you ever had writing a song?

I actually had a lot of tough moments writing songs for this record. I had more time than normal to write and rewrite these songs. There were countless edits and rewrites and versions of the songs that we just scrapped and then started over. While I think these are some of the best songs I’ve written, it really took much longer to get to a place where I was happy with them. I think if you spend too much time on one thought it can be a dangerous game to play. I’m still learning when to put the pen down and be satisfied with what came naturally. It’s a fine line.

How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me”?

I think I have subconsciously done this a lot with many songs in our catalogue. Not until this record have I made the conscious decision to write from a character’s perspective. While I was experiencing or have experienced a lot of the feelings and virtues of the character on this album, I tried to take myself out of it as much as I could. I wanted to broaden the scope and viewpoint beyond my own personal experience so I strayed away from talking too much about road life or really much to do with my personal experience with my work as a musician. I wanted to project a world view from the perspective of an everyday nine-to-fiver and play with how that intersected in my own personal experience. While there is a lot of myself in these songs, I think it translates to the everyman in a very relatable and accessible way. At least to anyone that works hard to get where they want to be.

Photo credit: Lyza Renee Photography