Thanks to Tribulation Studio in Grand Prarie, TX for sharing their space.

Learn more about Lincoln Swanzy.

This Month’s Topic: Music Publishing
We’ll be covering a number of topics, including
• Copyright
• Licensing
• Pitching to TV & Film
• Royalties
Tonight’s Guest Speakers:
Curtis Heath aka @curtisgheath
Film & Television Composer, Artist
www.curtisheath.com
Ty Macklin aka @ty_macklin_aka_xl7
Producer, Songwriter, AOE Recording Studio
@aoe_recording_studios
DJ Dugan aka @therealdjdugan
Chief Creative Officer at @smithmusic

Listen to Friends With Benefits: https://smithmusic.ffm.to/662582104417

Presave the single: https://smithmusic.ffm.to/662582105513

JM: Do you have any, real life examples where you’ve kind of had to put that quote or mantra into play?

JW: Yeah, a few times here lately I’ve had to tell myself “Hey! Come on. Let’s get it live.” Live by what you preach. Three years ago this August, I had a pretty dang bad horse accident. It put me down for several months and truth be told, even after a year and a half - almost two years - it still wasn’t right. But I was out performing. I had a horse step on me at my place, and by the time I got to the hospital I had almost bled out. Bleeding internally. I didn’t know it, waited around, finished up chores, and so dang, I better get to the hospital. So they get in there. They opened me up and got one foot of small intestine out and then put me back together. Two months later, I was back on the horse. And, about that same time, I got back to playing music and playing shows. I knew that if I took off any more than what I had to that my band and my crew would suffer. That’s not something that I take lightly. The band, my crew, they’re my family. Everybody’s got to eat. So, when you have to pull yourself up by your bootstraps and go - Hey, it’s a little bit. We can make it through a 90 minute show, so let’s do it. I lived on the canned oxygen. My stage manager would wrap them in black gaff tape. That way they’re not seen from the crowd. I would sing a song, go back there and take a puff. A couple of puffs off that fresh air can and get back at it. I’m proud to say that we’re back at it full force and healthier than I’ve ever been. I’m looking at life differently. There’s been quite a few times I’ve had some close calls like that, but that one really opened me up to - Hey, you’re not 18 anymore. You’re not invincible. So let’s slow down, look at the finer things in life, and live a little longer.

JM: That accident definitely showcased how tough you are because your doctors compared that accident to a really bad car accident, and you were already like - right away - how do I get out of this bed and get back to work?

JW: Yeah. I was asking the next morning how long would it before we get back to work. I was telling my tour manager at the time, hey, man, I’m going to dust myself off be back at it next week. Keep the fires on. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way. I was steadily chomping at the bit to get back to normal. Get back to what my life was all about. That was sitting on the back of the horse and being able to ride. Get back to playing music. Writing music. Putting records out. COVID slowed us on this record that we just released. It set us back. Wow. And then, we had the horse wreck in August and it set us back another small patch. That’s the way it is, man. Just live out - All grit. No quit. And try to put out the best music that we can. This new record coming out, it’s going to be something else.

JM: I’m excited for this new album. You mentioned, between the accident and COVID, this album took four years in the making, right?

JW: Yeah, it’s been a long time coming. Right about four years. Dang, we didn’t know the whole world was going to shut down. We didn’t know I was going to get thrown off. I can honestly tell you that me, myself, the spiritual man that I am - it’s all in God’s timing. That’s the way I look at it. Maybe it wasn’t time for me to put out that record. We can blame it on the economy or whatever, but there’s a reason this record is special. It took everything that I had to put it together. It took everything that I had to write the songs. It took everything that I had to come back from that, and we’re finally getting to see it. Every song that is on that record myself, Drew Hall, Kerry West, we produced that record. So if there’s a flaw, if there’s a glitch, if there’s whatever, it’s on us. I can say that about this record - and not being boastful at all, because I’m the most humble guy you’ll ever meet - but that’s my work. And if it’s a flaw in there, I’ll admit that I did it. But me listening to it and the rest of the people that’s got to hear it, it’s pretty dang special. It’s the first record I’ve been able to sit down and listen to in its entirety, without skipping it being my own record. You dive into records and start hearing what you wish you would have done. Right? This one here is just special. The guys that played on it: Nate Coon from Aaron Watson. All the boys from Aaron Watson’s camp was on it. Travis Bishop plays keys for Neil McCoy. Guitar player, Bryce [Clarke]. He was with Aaron’s band. We even brought Steve Murray in. I don’t know if you remember Perfect Stranger. You Have the Right to Remain Silent. That song.

JM: I’ve heard of it. I don’t know if I’ve heard the song, but I’ve heard the band name.

JW: Do yourself a favor and download Perfect Stranger - The Hits. That is country music right there. Steve Murray was the lead singer of Perfect Stranger. This guy, playing acoustic guitar is like a freaking Rolex watch. He is put together and his timing isn’t off. And I got to invite Uncle Steve back in, and he played rhythm guitar on the back part of the record. It’s like all the stars aligned. Every puzzle piece was there. This record is everything that I ever thought it’d be. So that’s my little rant. My brag on my own record. But it ain’t bragging. It’s just being proud of it.

JM: It sounds like this is a new chapter for you.

JW: It is. It’s a whole new big chapter. A lot of different ways. We’re seeing doors open that we’ve never had before. We’ve got a great band and everything’s clicking down the road. Good prayers are being answered. Heck, that’s all you can ask for. If we go hit a lick this year and we can we can do better than we did last year, I’m happy. If we go hit a lick and somebody wants to sign me to a major deal? You never know the answer to that. You know, I’ve known guys signed deals that sit there and was best thing they ever did. There’s guys who say, I don’t know what I did. I just know that if something good comes along, I ain’t going to turn my nose up at it. But it’s in due time, I guess. Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise. We’ll have something good at the end of the year.

JM: With the stories that you’ve shared, it seems like the title track - Same Ol’ Cowboy, Different Rodeo - That must have a very deep meaning for you.

JW: Yeah. In my mindset, I’m still 18. I might not do what I used to. I might not do what I used to as well anymore, but same old cowboy, a different rodeo. We still got a song. We still got to show that and just living life day to day living. Right? Trying to do right by you and everybody else.

JM: For, people that are excited about this album, three songs are already out: Dancing with the Devil, Same Ol’ Cowboy, Different Rodeo and Lovin’ Where It’s Going. Those three are already out and then you’re going to be putting out a couple more right before the actual release date.

JW: Right before the actual release date. We’ll have this one. It’s out right now. Same Ol’ Cowboy, Different Rodeo. Here in the next, shoot, probably next 4 or 5 days, we will release another one. That’s going to be Honky Tonk Time that Jake Worthington and I wrote. The last one in December before the full length record drops in January, it’s going to be Better on a Barstool. That’s the song that Brice Long and Randall King had written that I got a hold of. That’s pretty beer joint anthem. We’re getting open up the NFR, the National Finals Rodeo in December. That’s going to be our opening song. It’s going to tie in well with the release of that single and the release of the record.

JM: You have some pretty impressive co-writers on some of these songs, right?

JW: Oh, yeah. I think they’re some of the best writers in the world. Wyatt McCubbin, he’s from a little town - Selma, Ohio - and he lives in Nashville now. He and his wife - and two new babies now - this guy is one of the best writer writers that I’ve had the privilege of writing with. And, friend of mine, Jake Worthington. Flew up there to his mom and dad’s house, and there’s about three foot of snow out on the ground. I’ve never seen snow like that. They welcomed me in like family. We went out there to that little cabin wrote six off that whole record and had a dang good time. I’ve got Terry McBride. Sam Banks. Jacob Boyd. The list goes on. All these guys are good at their craft. They’re young guys, too. I wrote together with Ronnie Vance. He’s just a great writer, too. I’ve had the pleasure of surrounding myself with some of the greatest writers ever. When you get to write a good one and it does good, they don’t mind coming back and writing a few more. You make lifelong friends by doing that. I was on the phone with Carson Chamberlain today talking to him about a Zach Top song that he had sent me awhile back. I said, Hey, I know Zach’s blowing up pretty good, but, I need you to check on that song for me because I’m pretty interested getting it. Just want to make sure Zach didn’t have a hold on it because, he’s doing pretty dang good for yourself.

JM: He’s awesome. Yeah. Is there anything else that you’d like people to know about the new album.

JW: It drops January 17th. It’s the full length record. Share it. Share it with your mom. Share it with the grandkids. We want it to do good this year. We got a lot of folks that worked hard on this record that deserve it. So yeah. Share it. Give it away. TT

Where has Matt Mason been? For the last few years since stepping away from the road, he’s been getting his life together! After several years of relentless touring and low paying gigs, Matt chose to work on his family. He spent a few years dropping single after single, throwing stuff at the wall to see what sticks. During that time, his sleeper hit E became a RIAA certified gold single. He also shot through the roof on streaming, building a listener base that he never had when burning those road miles.

“The recoding process for this album took a very long time” he tells Texas Tailgate. “It’s because of me. I’m very sloth-like. We recorded the tracks well over a year ago. Raul Aguilar, who’s playing bass for me, had a hook up at Sound Kitchen in Franklin, Tennessee. We brought in Chuck Ward on guitar and Josh Mallard on drums. The tracks were cut in a day and I cut all the vocal tracks at home in my home studio. It was a long process. I spent time getting the vocals where I wanted them. Its the bittersweet of having a home studio, you don’t sing the songs and walk away. I had time to listen back and its easy to over critique yourself. It took longer but I think the finished product is better. I’m happy with these songs than a lot of stuff we’ve recorded in the past. Its always been quick fire stuff. We spent more time on this than anything else I’ve done in the past.”

Matt has been dropping singles up to this release, starting with Roll No More all the way to the latest You’re Gonna Kill Me. The Indiana born singer-songwriter has always been known for his gritty, alt-country with comparisons to Whitey Morgan, Jamey Johnson, or Cody Jinks. On this release, he leans into that association, digging deep into dark elements like the title track Time’s All I Got and Scars From The Flame, while reflecting on his slower paced family life on tracks like Friendly Fire which introduces his daughter Ella Mae Mason as an up-and-coming Country vocalist. Oh, and to celebrate that Gold Certification, he slips in a new stripped down version of E! TT

Powered by Smith Music Group: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.smithmusic.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Texas Tailgate Playlist.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

There is something about a quality album that you have to listen all the way through. With modern music promotion being so single heavy, we forget the heyday of dropping the needle or popping a CD in and listening all the way through. It is something I would encourage with Austin based singer/ songwriter Conner Stephen’s latest album Hangin On, produced by veteran Texas producer Chad Mauldin at KSIJ Studio.

Stephens is a true-Americana artist. He doesn’t stick to one hard genre concept, but rather builds on the many variations of Country and American music over the last eighty years. Hangin On opens with Backroads, a captivating, blue-grass inspired Americana track. Weaving his vivid storytelling, the tune evokes the specters of Steve Earle or Tyler Childers. Stephens shifts to heavy Honky Tonk sound with Certain Kind of Lover, a smoky heartfelt dance floor twirler that is the first tonal shift on the album. The song explores the complexities of relationships, with the narrator ready to cut the pent up tension between themselves and their object of affection, leading to an Urban Cowboy like romance story. He follows it up with Do You?, a sedated singer/songwriter track that delves into vulnerability and self-discovery. Here, Stephens and Mauldin push into a more contemporary production style. It Ain’t Fair keeps the melancholic tone of the previous track, building on the sparse and airy instrumentation like a West Texas sky.

The back half of the album sends us back to the Honky Tonk. The train drum beat, fiddle, and steel guitar will conjure comparisons to early Mike & The Moonpies on the title tracks Hangin’ On and Wasted A Good One. The Southern Rock influenced Shine a Light tears us away from the smoke and the neon, immersing us in a John Mayer-like haze. Stephens brings it full circle with his folksy Hey Ma, a sweet, Flatland Cavalry-like tear jerker that gives the whole album a soft landing.

Throughout the album, Mauldin’s production at KSIJ Studio puts a shine to Stephens’ songwriting with its attention to detail and ability. From acoustic intimacy to vibrant Honky Tonk brawlers, each track on Hangin’ On benefits from Mauldin’s expertise in capturing the essence of Stephen’s musical vision.

It is not just a collection of songs but a cohesive journey through themes of love, resilience, and personal growth. Mauldin’s production elevates each track, letting the album resonate with authenticity and emotional depth, appealing to fans of contemporary country while honoring traditional roots. T

T

Powered by Smith Music: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.smithmusic.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Listen to the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Texas Tailgate Playlist.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Listen to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Texas Tailgate Radio⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠

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This interview has been edited for clarity.

DD: Cory Cross! Welcome to the Texas Tailgate Podcast. How are you doing, bud?

CC: Doing well.

DD: You had to rush down here through traffic to get here. I do like your painter whites. You look like you’re about ready to go paint a house.

CC: Yeah, it looks that way. I’m not actually but it looks that way.

DD: Thank you for coming. I’ve been wanting to get you on to talk about your new album “There’s More”, which is a very interesting title. Where’d that come from? Why is it “There’s More”?

CC: I feel it’s got some, I don’t know, it’s got a little spice to it. I felt like for the title of an album, especially our debut full length album, - you know there’s definitely going to be more albums to come so there’s that - it’s a little intriguing. Honestly, I wrote the song “There’s More”, the title track off the album, specifically for this project. I knew I wanted it because we do tongue and cheek honky-tonk music. A lot of our more popular songs are fun, silly two-stepping songs, but for the title track I wanted something a little bit more serious and personal. “There’s More” just felt like it had some hope to it.

DD: Tell me where did you record this thing and where did this develop?

CC: We recorded and tracked everything Austin Choate, the drummer. He produced and engineered all of it. Mix and master. He did all at Weatherford College. He works there as well.

DD: That’s cool. I didn’t know they had a studio. Is that where you recorded it too?

CC: Yes, they have a really nice studio.

DD: Weatherford College in Weatherford, Texas?

CC: Yeah and there’s a man that works there, his name is Tim Kimsey. He’s worked with Vanilla Ice. He’s worked with Pantera. He heads up the Weatherford College recording program. You can go as a student and learn how to do all that stuff. They hooked it up for us. It was great.

DD: Is Austin still a student?

CC: He’s not a student anymore. He actually works for the program.

DD: Excellent. That’s very fortunate for you.

CC: For sure, because that can get expensive real quick. A whole album is very expensive.

DD: The whole album is a honky tonk album but it’s got an indie rock feel to it. I was listening to “Crying In A Honky Tonk” and there’s something about twin vocals on there that has a Waylon sound but through an indie rock feel.

CC: That was on purpose. A lot of the references that I gave Austin - bless his heart man because I’m not I’m Tech like savvy when it comes to the recording and engineering process - I was just sending him a million songs and just random references like Blink 182. They sort of have those on a lot of their earlier stuff and the Beach Boys that have layers and layers of vocals. It was on purpose that a lot of the references I gave him were rock and roll references. Waylon has some of that like heavy reverb type stuff on some of his earlier recordings. All the guys in The Burden, Kyle Farley on Bass, Matthew Walton on steel, Austin Choate, we all played in rock and roll bands in our early 20s and that’s the stuff that we first started listening to on our own when we were deciding what music we wanted to listen to as 15 and 16 year olds. It was all garage rock, punk rock, indie rock. That type stuff. Now that we’ve come back to country music - the stuff that we were fed when we were kids by our uncles and dads and grandpas - that Indie garage Rock just trickles in. Especially when we play live.

DD: Tell me tell me a little bit about the first track that we recently released, the single “100 Miles”. It starts off the album. Who is that at the beginning telling you they got you a gig?

CC: We met that woman on our first tour when we went out west to California while we were in Phoenix. She was there with some of her nieces. I don’t really know the specifics of the story because Kyle and Austin met her. She loved our music. There was beer flowing and there were shots taken. I guess she had a friend who knew a friend who had a friend who was booking for some festival that didn’t pan out but we got a good voicemail out of it. That voicemail was left on Kyle’s phone and they thought it would be funny to add that to the track. It’s random.

DD: The track is about being on the road. Where did that song come from? You’re counting down the miles getting home. It’s a trope within country music, being on the road and getting home. You put a very interesting spin on it. Tell me where did that come from? All of these songs you wrote them all? Right?

CC: Correct. That is true. I was in a hotel room in Austin, TX, and I’m pretty sure that it was a 5-day run. I know I wrote it in Austin and I know that at the time I was ready to get home. I’m pretty sure that I was actually counting down the days because my fiancé and I were going on vacation and I was getting ready to propose. I was especially anxious to get this run over with so that I could propose to my girlfriend and hopefully she’d say yes. She did say yes. We love what we do. I love what I do, but when you spend five nights in a row - sharing a bed sometimes - you know these Hotel breakfasts. It can get to you. I started to miss my fiance. Austin Choate, again, it was his idea to have each chorus count down so it starts with 300. When I first wrote it, it was just 300 miles and that was going to be what it was for each chorus. He was the one who decided to count it down. That’s a pretty good addition.

DD: There’s so many good songs like “Six Days on the Road” and “Houston” by the Gatlin Brothers where we’re trying to get home.

CC: Cory Morrow, “21 Days”. That’s what the first line - “I’ve been 21 days on this highway” - that 21 days is a nod to that Cory Morrow song. We got to open for him in Denton. I’ve been listening to Cory Morrow since I was 15. That’s a nod to one of my favorite counting down the days, being on the road: Cory Morrow’s “21 Days”.

DD: The next song that we put out was “Crying in The Honky Tonk”. We talked about it a little bit. You went out to California on a run and made a really cool music video. Tell me how that came about.

CC: We have a buddy, Chase Manhattan, that we met the first time we went out to California. He was booking the Desert 5 Spot in Hollywood and he’s a great guy. We kept in touch after the run. He was moving more towards filmmaking and I just reached out to let him know we were going to be in California. We filmed it at Maui Sugar Mill during one of our shows. He brought in a full crew. He brought in some actors and stuff. We had a bunch of our friends we made in Los Angeles just come out and drink and “act”. It was a blast man. A little awkward for me and the guys. None of us have ever done anything like that.

DD: Most of your videos have been live videos.

CC: Exactly. We did our set and then afterwards Chase had us do different stuff with our faces. It was a little awkward but it was fun.

DD: There’s always been a Texas/ California rivalry. A pleasant rivalry. There’s a label that Smith Music Group distributes out of L.A. called Blackbird record label. Really cool cats out of there. What’s your opinion on the differences between the Texas Country scene and the California country scene? Do you get into that?

CC: I know it’s blasphemous to say but there’s some good stuff. I love Los Angeles and I love the people that we’ve met there. They are so welcoming. We booked that tour a year ago not really knowing what that scene was like. We obviously know the sort of musical history when it comes to country music. We know about the Bakersfield stuff and Merle and you know but a lot of guys went out there. They made sure that they toured around California. Kris Kristopherson and moving to Hollywood. We knew all that but we didn’t know what it was going to be like when we went out there. All we knew is that we had listeners out there, so that was really why we decided to go. We knew that some guys that we listen to like you know like Jesse Daniel were doing stuff out there. We went out not knowing what to expect. The people that we met - the crowds - were just so welcoming. Very fun. The musicians were good. We really enjoy it. It’s different. It’s more tongue-in-cheek. You go out and everybody’s got their rhinestone suits on. It feels a little like dressing up, which is fine. I’m from the suburbs. I live in an apartment complex. We do our little runs around Texas, small towns. A lot of times we’re playing to actual good old boys

DD: You got blown up on social media for wearing tennis shoes somewhere recently.

CC: Right. We get that. We get “you got soft hands” or whatever. We get those comments online but obviously Texas is our home and where I grew up. The reason that I started writing country music was because of Texas Red Dirt country. You know that is where my creativity - when it comes to writing country music - sprang out. But we love going out to Los Angeles

DD: What most artists I’ve dealt with forget that there are scenes everywhere; scenes all over the place. There are people who make a killing because they understand that that is how they can really survive by getting connected with those scenes. There’s people like BJ Barham. He is a good example. He’s from North Carolina but he goes out to the West Coast. He comes to Texas. He tours and gets embedded with those local scenes. Now he’s a local without being a local. California’s got some good stuff. I’m a real big fan of Ted Russell Kamp’s stuff.

CC: When we played the first time at Desert 5 Spot, we did our set but then there was a house band. The way it worked there was a house band that had solo artists come up and do their songs. The house band learned their songs beforehand and played with them so it was kind of like a very structured open mic. We did our set and Chase said “Hey, do you want to do one song with the house band”? Ted Russell was on bass.

DD: He’s Shooter Jennings bassist for a lot of stuff and we distribute a couple of his albums.

CC: Vincent Neil Emerson is working with Shooter. There’s quite a bit of a crossover and so many people just went into the studio with him. Austin to L.A. I lived in Austin and we go down there a lot. Just I10, straight there. The thing that we enjoy the most about our time when we go to California or when we go to New York City - we did New York City last December. We’re doing that again coming up with Aaron McDonald. We love the people that we play to in Texas, but if you go to any barbecue joint in DFW, there is a good chance you’re going to get a pretty good, talented country singer-songwriter on a stage somewhere or in a corner. I feel like around here we’re a little spoiled. You know it’s just there’s many really great singer songwriters in country music, Americana. When we go out to California maybe there’s not as much. It’s just a different genre out there. It’s a big, big deal. It feels more like a special thing.

DD: Tell me about your experience with country music lovers in New York. What was the experience there? I’ve noticed you posting about it. There’s a promoter that you’re working with out there?

CC: Two of them. They’re DJs, actually. It’s DJ Prison Rodeo and DJ Moonshine.

DD: What kind of crowd is that? What are they looking for in a in a country artist out there?

CC: Those guys, DJ Prison Rodeo and DJ Moonshine, just got Charlie Crockett in there to do his album release. They are true fans and they know country music. The crowd, I don’t really know whether they know country music or not, but I do know that they loved what we were doing. They had the cowboy hats on. There were chaps out there. People with actual Spurs on, like they were just ready to party and dance. They knew how to two-step. Again, it was just a big, special thing and a band from Texas felt like maybe a little bit of a novelty. We got a Real Deal Texas country band coming to New York City. Everybody was so sweet and so enthusiastic. We had a blast.

DD: How I dig that you’re exporting the content - the lifestyle - outside the state. You’re an ambassador. You’re definitely bringing good music to the masses up there. We need to talk about that album. I’ve got notes. “Good Enough Today”. A honky-tonkin’ sad song. Where’d that song come from?

CC: I wrote that so long ago. I’m 36 now. I think I wrote it when I was 22 or 23. Back when I was living in Austin playing coffee shops and hookah bars, wearing suspenders and a fedora, or skinny jeans. You know, just Austin in 2008. It just stood the test of time. I don’t know. I just wanted to write something like a waltz-type song. When I used to do it, it didn’t sound anything like what the track sounds like on the album. The guys - Matt on steel and my buddy Joseph Fields who plays piano on it, he actually plays at my parents church and he does that piano part which is just so beautiful. Brandon Arthur who’s in Denton did the fiddle. It just stood the test of time somehow because most of the songs I wrote back then I retired a long time ago. It’s just one just stuck around. My fiance actually sang Harmony on it.

DD: She’s accompanied you on a few things that I’ve been a part of. The One Mic Session we did over at Cloudland. Y’all have a killer rapport, just y’all two by yourselves. Makes for a very entertaining time. Then you add on all the layers, it sounds fantastic. What made you decide to make it one of your singles for the upcoming album?

CC: I think because the songs that have taken off more or less have been our more Outlaw type stuff- as far as instrumentation, rhythm, tempo. “Done Being Good for Good” and the Honky Tonk, swinging type like “Too Drunk to Swim”. I wanted to feature a more melancholic, more serious type of song.

DD: Let’s talk about “Done Being Good for Good”. Very similar but goes in a different direction. Where did that one come from because that one’s very much a Waylon feel.

CC: I wrote specifically for our live set. Once I got Kyle Farley and Austin Choate, we started playing regularly. We were pretty much doing half and half covers and Originals. When you have a rotating door of musicians, you know you can just say “we’re going to play Lonesome On’ry and Mean in D” and they’re like “okay, yeah.” No need to rehearse. We got it. But then when you get guys that are willing to play regularly and rehearse, I can start writing some songs now and I wrote that specifically because at our live shows those types of songs - Lonesome On’ry and Mean, Only Daddy That’ll Walk the Line, White House Road - the more Outlaw type songs are always a hit. Let me write one. Really, that’s what it was. I just wanted to fill that space in our live set so that we could start moving towards mostly original music.

DD: That’s one of the frustrating parts about being a musician in Texas. You got to play covers just to grab people’s attention so they’re there long enough. I’m guessing you are you moving away from that. Are you getting there were some of your shows now can be mostly originals? You’re getting the fans out there finally.

CC: We’re at that place now. We did those three hour, 70% cover gigs for about two years. Now we’re doing mostly 90 minutes, all originals except for like one cover. That’s where we’re at right now. I still do a lot of the three-hour solo stuff. I gotta pay the bills, but as far as the band goes most of our shows now are 90 minutes. We have about three hours of original material now.

DD: I have been enjoying watching your career move and it’s going to keep moving up. It’s going to keep growing. I dig you because you’re not a cookie cutter on the Texas front. You’re not a Randy Rogers ripoff band. There’s a lot of Koe Wetzel clones out in the world at the moment. To see somebody taking a nice melting pot of Texas, that honky mix of honky tonk and indie rock, that I’m really digging. I love that you’re exporting it out in the world. The album drops on June 21st. What’s the plan? You’ve got some upcoming shows to promote it?

CC: We’re actually doing June 22nd at The Kessler with Matt Hillyer. Doing a double album release show. The Kessler’s a great room. That’s been a bucket list venue for all of us for so long. The first show I saw there was Joshua Ray Walker three years ago. Beautiful room. And then Matt, I’ve been listening to him, 1100 Springs, for forever. I remember riding around listening to 1100 Springs in the first truck I ever got at 16 or 17. It’s a really cool thing and we’re very grateful.

DD: Is that the only release show you’re doing?

CC: We are playing the 21st also. We’re doing the Magnolia Motor Lounge. We’ll do Fort Worth and then Dallas. I wanted to make sure I mentioned Tim Kimsey. He kind of oversaw the album. He was nominated for a Grammy for his engineering work. Tim Kimsey at Weatherford College. He really helped us out there. // TT

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