Showing posts with label David Lee Murphy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David Lee Murphy. Show all posts
Thursday, October 28, 2021
Saturday, March 20, 2021
That Nashville Sound Saturday Newsbytes: Stapleton, Rimes, Collie, Malo, Monroe & More
With the nation getting vaccinated at a record clip and herd immunity getting ever so closer with each passing minute, a day on the horizon in which we get back to a day full of live shows and normalcy seems within reach. It certainly has ramped up the country music machine and lots of news from a lot of country music vets was released this week. Here's some snapshots.
Some new music videos over the last week:
Aloe Blacc & LeAnn Rimes - "I Do" - watch HERE
Leslie Jordan ft. Chris & Morgane Stapleton - "Farther Along" - watch HERE
Ashley Monroe - "'Til It Breaks" - watch HERE
Midland, in conjunction with their music label and CMT have released a new musical documentary of sorts that highlights their origin story. It's called Midland: The Sonic Ranch Documentary. Here's the description: "In the Spring of 2014, Mark Wystrach, Jess Carson, and Cameron Duddy took 11 days out of their very separate lives to head down to the Sonic Ranch, a studio nestled along the dusty American side of the Rio Grande outside El Paso, Texas. Midland was not so much a band as an experiment fueled by an assortment of spirits - but mostly tequila and the possibilities painted in their imaginations. They had no record label or manager and they had never played a show together. These recordings capture three friends, at a live-in studio in the desert, trying to make a dream come true." You can watch the doc HERE.
“When I put out ‘Found It In You’ I hadn’t planned to release a full EP, but as my fans grasped onto the single I decided to release this whole collection of songs,” says Tiera. “It was really important for me to release my first full project independently because I wanted to make my stamp on country music in my own way. This is my way of introducing everyone to who I am as an artist. I wrote all of the songs with my friends and favorite collaborators; it is 100% true to me and I hope people have just as much fun listening to these songs as we did writing them.”
Tiera Track List:
“Found It In You” (Tiera, Cameron Bedell)
“Not Your Girl” (Tiera, Cameron Bedell, Jack Newsome)
“Laid Back” (Tiera, Mike Robinson, Rocky Block, Sarah Troy)
“Miles” ft. BRELAND (Tiera, Cameron Bedell, Daniel Breland, Jared Scott)
“Shut It Down” (Tiera, Cameron Bedell, Jared Scott, Neil Medley)
The themes in Book of My Blues, those of love, lust, betrayal, addiction, recovery, damnation, and redemption are derived from the graphic novel Rockabilly Hitman, a long-gestating collaboration between Collie and director Hensleigh (“The Punisher,” “Die Hard with a Vengeance,” “Armageddon” and the soon-to-be-released “Ice Road” starring Liam Neeson) that depicts the exploits of rockabilly singer Jesse Wayne Hardin, who by night is an avenger of evil, as he travels the hard backroads from Muscle Shoals to Memphis, from the Mississippi Delta to Music City.
“Writing songs from the perspective of this character has been an enlightening journey. Some of my life experiences are in that character and I have stood at many of those same crossroads,” commented Collie. “Every line and nuance is intended to help bring Jesse Wayne and the ‘Book of My Blues’ to life. There are a lot of ways to describe the music, maybe Roadhouse Rock, Southern Gothic, Americana, Country, but at its core it’s a reflection of me and many others who came before me.”
The album features twelve original songs written or co-written by Collie, plus three rockabilly classics – “Hey Boba Lou” by Ronnie Hawkins, Jacqueline Magill and Robbie Robertson of The Band fame, “Night Train to Memphis” written by Country Music Hall of Fame member Owen Bradley along with Marvin Hughes and Beasley Smith, and the rockabilly standard by Carl Perkins, “Matchbox.” The album was co-produced by Kenny Greenberg (whose producer credits include Allison Moore, Josh Turner, Toby Keith and the Mavericks) and Chad Cromwell (whose credits include his work with Joe Walsh, Neil Young, Willie Nelson and Boz Scaggs).
The co-writers with Collie reads as a who’s who of songwriter elite, including Collie’s long-time friend Billy Bob Thornton who combines with him on the title cut, Tom Douglas, Gary Nicholson and John Scott Sherill, as well as Jonathan Hensleigh and co-producers Greenberg and Cromwell.
Track Listing with songwriters:
1. Book of My Blues with Billy Bob Thornton (Mark Collie, Billy Bob Thornton)
2. Born Ready (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg, Gary Nicholson)
3. On the Wings of Your Love (Mark Collie)
4. Right This Wrong (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg)
R. Matchbox (Carl Perkins)
5. Holly Springs (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg, Chad Cromwell)
6. Unfinished Hurting (Mark Collie, Tom Douglas)
7. Queen of A Hungry Heart (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg, Chad Cromwell)
8. Sinking Sand (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg, Chad Cromwell)
H. Hey Boba Lou (Ronnie Hawkins, Jacqueline Magill, Robbie Robertson)
9. Put the Gun Down (Mark Collie)
10. Walk the Floor, Kill the Lights, Slam the Door (Mark Collie, John Scott Sherill)
11. A Little Every Day (Mark Collie, Kenny Greenberg, Chad Cromwell)
12. The Son of a Gun (Mark Collie, Jonathan Hensleigh)
13. M. Night Train to Memphis (Owen Bradley, Marvin Hughes, Beasley Smith)
This week, Carmichael shares his rendition of Montgomery Gentry’s “Lucky Man,” a song close to his heart — not only because it was recorded by his uncle Eddie Montgomery, but also because the pandemic has allowed him to reflect on the many reasons he has to be thankful. The visualizer with this song includes an Opry performance, family and friends, the cities his career has allowed him to visit, and on top of that, his recent engagement. Watch the heartwarming video here: youtu.be/wdxSdn2ZYqs
“Lucky Man” follows the Bakersfield-tinged title track “Hot Beer" and TikTok-viral hit “Sawin’ Logs,” which both showcase Carmichael's knee-slapping humor and were produced with the help of Jon Pardi. In the hilarious “Big Truck," Carmichael questions the motives of his girlfriend’s affection — is it because of his big heart or his lift kit? On a more serious note, “Somewhere She Ain’t” addresses heartbreak, and “Since You’ve Been In It” is a traditional Carmichael love song.
‘Hot Beer’ is part I of Carmichael’s new music, and a full LP is expected later this year.
1. Hot Beer (Michael Hardy, Ashley Gorley, Hunter Phelps, Ben Johnson)
2. Big Truck (Dillon Carmichael, Jessi Alexander, David Lee Murphy)
3. Lucky Man (David Lee, Dave Turnbull)
4. Somewhere She Ain’t (Carmichael, Alexander, Ben Hayslip)
5. Since You’ve Been In It (Carmichael, Ray Fulcher, Michael Whitworth, Daniel Ross)
6. Sawin’ Logs (Brandon Kinney, Brice Long, Wynn Varble)
Mavericks frontman Raul Malo released a large collection of songs he recorded over the last year this week and has called the album Quarantunes, Vol. 1.
Malo says about the project, “As the pictures came in of empty streets across the globe, it was apparent this pandemic was going to last a while. This project stemmed from the idea that we were all in this together — everyone at home, doing what they can. It started in my home studio one rainy day, just me and the Mellotron, recording songs I’d never done before. As time went on, I brought in other talented players to contribute: Hector Tellez Jr, my sons Dino and Max, my friends The Band of Heathens, and of course The Mavericks. Although this quarantine chapter will be behind us one day, I hope this record can serve as a reminder that even in the darkest of times, there’s always room for a song.”
1. Love
2. Spanish Eyes
3. Ramblin' Rose
4. Solamente Una Vez
5. Wooden Heart
6. Galway Bay
7. Cha Cha Cha D'Amour
8. Jersey Girl
9. Santa Lucia (feat. Lisset Diaz )
10. Hey Gumbaree
11. Besame Mucho
12. Forever and Ever
13. Perfídia (feat. Hector Tellez Jr )
14. Maria Elena (feat. Hector Tellez Jr )
15. I Just Want To Dance With You
16. Moonglow
17. Those Were The Days
18. Brazil
19. All Of Me
20. My Way
21. The Sound Of Silence
22. Every Little Thing About You
23. Here Comes The Sun (feat. The Mavericks )
24. (Waiting For) The World To End (feat. The Mavericks )
25. Sweet Caroline (feat. The Mavericks )
26. Sinners and Saints (feat. The Mavericks )
27. Ventura Highway (feat. Hector Tellez Jr )
28. Back In Your Arms Again (feat. The Mavericks )
29. My Sweet Lord (feat. The Band of Heathens )
30. A Change is Gonna Come
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Interview Flashback: The Power Of The Pen- An Interview With David Lee Murphy
I have been blessed to write contributions/reviews/interviews/opinion pieces for several country music and roots-oriented websites and publications over the years including Saving Country Music, Nashville Scene, Country California, Country Weekly, American Noise, The 9513 and Engine 145. As a regular contributor to the last two in that list, I did close to a 100 interviews with different artists- and since both of those great sites have come down, I will reprint some of those interviews here to give them a home in perpetuity. This interview was originally published in September 2009 on The 9513.
Like two sides of a coin, David Lee Murphy has had two sides to his career.
There’s the country music recording artist side whose debut album Out with a Bang was released in early 1995. It produced two smash singles including "Party Crowd", which became the most-played country song of 1995, as well as "Dust on the Bottle", his first and only Billboard Hot Country Number One single. He would go on to record four studio albums and land 13 hits on the charts, with five of those landing in the top 10.
The other side of that coin is the songwriter side. After being dropped from MCA Nashville’s label in the late 90’s, Murphy has been one of Nashville’s most prolific hit-makers not with a mic, but with a pen. He has written or co-written album cuts for artists including Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Randy Houser, The Lost Trailers, Brad Paisley, James Otto, John Berry, Chris Young, Aaron Tippin, Montgomery Gentry, and Hank Williams, Jr. Within the last two years, he’s written Kenny Chesney's number one single "Living in Fast Forward,” Gary Allan's "A Feelin' Like That,” Blake Shelton's "The More I Drink,” Eli Young Band's "Always the Love Songs," and another number one in Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor.” Artists he’s associated with are a virtual who’s-who in major country music stars.
Now living on a small farm south of Nashville, David Lee Murphy is at peace with this second life he’s been granted in Nashville. While he still finds a thrill in performing on a stage, his typical days today are filled with family activities, songwriting and riding on the back of a tractor. And yes, if you need to know, it really is a “Big Green Tractor.”
Ken Morton, Jr.- As I was going through your bio getting ready for this interview, I read that you are the only person in country music history to ever write a song with the late great Minnie Pearl. How did you get so lucky?
David Lee Murphy- Well, it was kind of just by accident. Years ago, Minnie was on a show called Nashville Now on TNN. Ralph Emory was the host of the show. She would come on there and do a skit every night. I went out with a friend of mine who was on the show. They had these dressing rooms that were like little trailers and I was sitting back there waiting for my friend to do their segment of the show. Minnie sat down next to me- she was getting her make-up on and stuff. We just started talking and she started telling me about these great stories about Hank, Sr. There was stuff about him getting drunk before he was supposed to go on the Grand Ole Opry one night and how it was her job to drive him around and get him sobered up. It was just about that whole story. When I got home, I started coming up with this idea for a song. We got back together and finished it up and it was just so cool. I actually recorded it on my first album. It’s something that I’ve always been real proud of, having a song with Minnie. It’s truly special.
KMJ- I know you were one of the last songwriters to work with Waylon Jennings before his passing in 2004. What was that experience like?
DLM- I’m not sure if I was the last songwriter that he worked with but it’s still one of my biggest highlights for me. I am a huge Waylon Jennings fan. In fact, I had my Waylon t-shirt on just yesterday. We had gotten placed together on a radio show here in Nashville. Waylon and I just got to talking. We just got along really well. I just about knew every song he had ever recorded. I was asking him questions about how he had gotten certain guitar tones, how they cut one song or another, and how they came about everything. We just got to be really good friends. Over the course of a few years there, my wife would go out to dinner with he and Jessie. We’d visit the two of them when they were living down in Arizona and we’d just go out to eat. Waylon and I wrote three or four songs together. It’s just a huge highlight of my career. Of all the things, when you get to work with your hero, it’s just really special. He was a huge influence on me musically. It’s a career highlight, really.
KMJ- These days, you spend much of your time in the country, tending to fields- what’s a typical non-touring day for you like?
DLM- I still write every single day. I won’t write today, because I’m on the road, but that’s the exception. I’ll get up and go fix coffee. Sometimes I’ll even sit down before that with my guitar and see what I can come up with song-wise. I might write in Nashville. My farm is south of Nashville. And if I’m not writing here I might go into Music Row and write there. Or sometimes I just might go to someone’s house. If I’m not writing, though, I’m usually doing something on my farm. I’ll be found cleaning something up or cutting down weeds or there’s really no telling.
KMJ- Walk me through the song creation process for you, is it lyrics, title or melody first?
DLM- It’s never ever the same way twice. I might have an idea from somebody saying something. Or I might just have an idea in my head. Or another writer might have an idea. We try to find an angle on how that might be a song and sometimes it might just be a simple guitar riff. Sometimes I come up with a little melody in my head. That’s how it happened with “Big Green Tractor.” I was out bush-hogging on my farm one night and I had the lights on. It was about 8 o’clock and was driving along in this field. I was cleaning up this fence row and just started singing this melody and then this chorus of driving this big green tractor I was on. I was singing just little bits and pieces. The next day I was writing with Jim Collins who had written “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” for Kenny. I walked in there and asked him if he’d be willing to tackle another tractor song. And he said, “Yeah.” So we sat down and wrote that. I never know if it’s going to be starting a song with a line and it turning into something or a song. It just never happens the same way twice.
KMJ- Many of your popular songs have been geared more towards the lighter and more fun side of things. Is there ever a darker side of things for David Lee Murphy, the songwriter? Everyone has those kind of days, don’t they?
DLM- My whole thing about music, and the kind of music I like listening to, is to escape. It’s escapism. It’s not about problems and issues. I just don’t approach life that way. That’s why most my stuff is about good times and parties. Just about all my songs are about fun good time things. Those are the kinds of songs I’m attracted to from other artists. There might be an issue here or there or some darker moments that I write about. It’s like how I approach my shows when we play live. You know, you’ve been working all week, you’ve got stuff going on, there’s crazy things going on in the world, and the last thing that I want to do when I go out to party is dwell on a bunch of crap. I want to have fun. I want to hang out with folks that want to get drunk and party.
KMJ- Do you have artists in mind as you’re finishing or processing a song?
DLM- Yes. There’s always someone in my mind that I think that this would be great for. This would be great for Kenny. Or this would be great for Jason Aldean. Or this would be great for Tim McGraw. There’s some guys that mostly record just their own songs. Like Alan Jackson. Sometimes, I’ll have a song and just say, “You know, Alan would just kill this.” Every writer in the world does this, though. (Laughing) Every writer who reads this is going to say, “Yeah, I do the same thing.” You want a George Strait cut. Everybody is dying to have a George Strait cut on his albums. The same with an Alan Jackson cut. There’s just guys that are great writers and singers and stuff. I’d love to have an Alan or a George cut. I’ve never had either. Like Alan, to me he’s such a great artist and such a great writer. After all these years, he’s still writing all his own songs. He’s just amazing. When you get somebody like that to cut one of your songs, that’s just really cool.
KMJ- Is a song as much “one of your babies” when it’s recorded and released by someone else rather than being written and recorded by you?
DLM- Oh yeah. Always. It’s always a thrill to have some other artist record one of your songs. It’s not quite as fun as you doing it yourself, but in a way it is. If I record my own stuff, I’m already biased to the songs. If another artist records your songs, though, it kind of verifies to you about the songs worth and gives you good validation.
KMJ- Is it easier being a songwriter or a performing artist in Nashville?
DLM- Neither are easy. (Laughing) It’s really tough in this music business. It’s probably like trying to be an actor, a writer, a screenwriter or something else in Hollywood. It’s a real competitive business. There’s pros and cons about being an artist and there’s pros and cons about being a songwriter. As a songwriter you have no guarantee about anything. There’s absolutely no job security. You don’t know if the last song you had cut is your last. It’s like panning for gold, you just never know what’s going to happen. If you’re an artist, you don’t know if the last song you got on the radio is your last. It’s not fun around in circles, you know? Neither one are easy. It’s just a blessing for any person that gets to do it. It’s just like the old saying: “You have to count your blessings every day.” You’re really fortunate if you’re able to do it.
KMJ- That leads me well into my next question, are we ever going to see a new CD any time soon with your name on it?
DLM- I really don’t know. People ask me if I’m ever going to do another record. I won’t say, “Never,” but I don’t have plans to it right now. I’m enjoying writing songs for other people. I’m just constantly writing songs and sometimes I put two or three songs together and think that it would be a great start to an album for me. Then someone will cut one of the songs and somebody else will cut another one and I’m right back to the drawing board. Maybe I’ll just put it off a little bit longer that way. I was touring a little while back in Georgia and we’ve got kids out in the audience that were ten years old when “Dust On The Bottle” was blowing and going. To them, they don’t even consider it was a hit. It’s just crazy. But they still respond to all that stuff. I’ll just keep making music and see what happens. I really don’t know.
KMJ- Looking back on those MCA years, would you have done anything different on your releases if you had the chance to do it over again?
DLM- I’m sure I would have done a lot of things differently. Looking back on that first album, it was a different time period than it is now. Everything worked differently those days. There’s probably things I would have done differently. Yeah. That’s kind of water under the bridge, now. I’ve always tried to write the best songs I can write and just believe that everything works out for the best and for a reason. I’ve been real fortunate the last few years to have the guys record my music that has been recording them. Kenny. Jason. Gary Allan. I’ve been really fortunate with everyone like Montgomery Gentry, Brooks and Dunn and Tim McGraw. And you know what? It’s always been my dream to be a songwriter, like Kris Kristofferson and Billy Joe Shaver. All those great writers like Harlan Howard have inspired me. I’ve always thought that was the coolest thing. I’m really happy doing what I’ve been doing. I may not make another record, but I still love touring. We’re playing in clubs still and people are practically standing on the stage. In fact, they were getting on the stage last night. It’s fun. It’s just a lot of fun.
KMJ- What is country music to David Lee Murphy?
DLM- It’s just about everything I do. Everything I think about. It’s my livelihood. And it’s always been a major part of my life. So I guess the obvious answer is sort of cliché, but it is my life. I laugh because probably everybody says it. But it really is. It’s everything I think about. Besides my wife and kids, the next most important thing to me is making music. It’s like a basic part of my life and it has been for thirty years.
Like two sides of a coin, David Lee Murphy has had two sides to his career. There’s the country music recording artist side whose debut album Out with a Bang was released in early 1995. It produced two smash singles including "Party Crowd", which became the most-played country song of 1995, as well as "Dust on the Bottle", his first and only Billboard Hot Country Number One single. He would go on to record four studio albums and land 13 hits on the charts, with five of those landing in the top 10.
The other side of that coin is the songwriter side. After being dropped from MCA Nashville’s label in the late 90’s, Murphy has been one of Nashville’s most prolific hit-makers not with a mic, but with a pen. He has written or co-written album cuts for artists including Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Randy Houser, The Lost Trailers, Brad Paisley, James Otto, John Berry, Chris Young, Aaron Tippin, Montgomery Gentry, and Hank Williams, Jr. Within the last two years, he’s written Kenny Chesney's number one single "Living in Fast Forward,” Gary Allan's "A Feelin' Like That,” Blake Shelton's "The More I Drink,” Eli Young Band's "Always the Love Songs," and another number one in Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor.” Artists he’s associated with are a virtual who’s-who in major country music stars.
Now living on a small farm south of Nashville, David Lee Murphy is at peace with this second life he’s been granted in Nashville. While he still finds a thrill in performing on a stage, his typical days today are filled with family activities, songwriting and riding on the back of a tractor. And yes, if you need to know, it really is a “Big Green Tractor.”
Ken Morton, Jr.- As I was going through your bio getting ready for this interview, I read that you are the only person in country music history to ever write a song with the late great Minnie Pearl. How did you get so lucky?
David Lee Murphy- Well, it was kind of just by accident. Years ago, Minnie was on a show called Nashville Now on TNN. Ralph Emory was the host of the show. She would come on there and do a skit every night. I went out with a friend of mine who was on the show. They had these dressing rooms that were like little trailers and I was sitting back there waiting for my friend to do their segment of the show. Minnie sat down next to me- she was getting her make-up on and stuff. We just started talking and she started telling me about these great stories about Hank, Sr. There was stuff about him getting drunk before he was supposed to go on the Grand Ole Opry one night and how it was her job to drive him around and get him sobered up. It was just about that whole story. When I got home, I started coming up with this idea for a song. We got back together and finished it up and it was just so cool. I actually recorded it on my first album. It’s something that I’ve always been real proud of, having a song with Minnie. It’s truly special.
KMJ- I know you were one of the last songwriters to work with Waylon Jennings before his passing in 2004. What was that experience like?
DLM- I’m not sure if I was the last songwriter that he worked with but it’s still one of my biggest highlights for me. I am a huge Waylon Jennings fan. In fact, I had my Waylon t-shirt on just yesterday. We had gotten placed together on a radio show here in Nashville. Waylon and I just got to talking. We just got along really well. I just about knew every song he had ever recorded. I was asking him questions about how he had gotten certain guitar tones, how they cut one song or another, and how they came about everything. We just got to be really good friends. Over the course of a few years there, my wife would go out to dinner with he and Jessie. We’d visit the two of them when they were living down in Arizona and we’d just go out to eat. Waylon and I wrote three or four songs together. It’s just a huge highlight of my career. Of all the things, when you get to work with your hero, it’s just really special. He was a huge influence on me musically. It’s a career highlight, really.
KMJ- These days, you spend much of your time in the country, tending to fields- what’s a typical non-touring day for you like?
DLM- I still write every single day. I won’t write today, because I’m on the road, but that’s the exception. I’ll get up and go fix coffee. Sometimes I’ll even sit down before that with my guitar and see what I can come up with song-wise. I might write in Nashville. My farm is south of Nashville. And if I’m not writing here I might go into Music Row and write there. Or sometimes I just might go to someone’s house. If I’m not writing, though, I’m usually doing something on my farm. I’ll be found cleaning something up or cutting down weeds or there’s really no telling.
KMJ- Walk me through the song creation process for you, is it lyrics, title or melody first?
DLM- It’s never ever the same way twice. I might have an idea from somebody saying something. Or I might just have an idea in my head. Or another writer might have an idea. We try to find an angle on how that might be a song and sometimes it might just be a simple guitar riff. Sometimes I come up with a little melody in my head. That’s how it happened with “Big Green Tractor.” I was out bush-hogging on my farm one night and I had the lights on. It was about 8 o’clock and was driving along in this field. I was cleaning up this fence row and just started singing this melody and then this chorus of driving this big green tractor I was on. I was singing just little bits and pieces. The next day I was writing with Jim Collins who had written “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” for Kenny. I walked in there and asked him if he’d be willing to tackle another tractor song. And he said, “Yeah.” So we sat down and wrote that. I never know if it’s going to be starting a song with a line and it turning into something or a song. It just never happens the same way twice.
KMJ- Many of your popular songs have been geared more towards the lighter and more fun side of things. Is there ever a darker side of things for David Lee Murphy, the songwriter? Everyone has those kind of days, don’t they?
DLM- My whole thing about music, and the kind of music I like listening to, is to escape. It’s escapism. It’s not about problems and issues. I just don’t approach life that way. That’s why most my stuff is about good times and parties. Just about all my songs are about fun good time things. Those are the kinds of songs I’m attracted to from other artists. There might be an issue here or there or some darker moments that I write about. It’s like how I approach my shows when we play live. You know, you’ve been working all week, you’ve got stuff going on, there’s crazy things going on in the world, and the last thing that I want to do when I go out to party is dwell on a bunch of crap. I want to have fun. I want to hang out with folks that want to get drunk and party.
KMJ- Do you have artists in mind as you’re finishing or processing a song?
DLM- Yes. There’s always someone in my mind that I think that this would be great for. This would be great for Kenny. Or this would be great for Jason Aldean. Or this would be great for Tim McGraw. There’s some guys that mostly record just their own songs. Like Alan Jackson. Sometimes, I’ll have a song and just say, “You know, Alan would just kill this.” Every writer in the world does this, though. (Laughing) Every writer who reads this is going to say, “Yeah, I do the same thing.” You want a George Strait cut. Everybody is dying to have a George Strait cut on his albums. The same with an Alan Jackson cut. There’s just guys that are great writers and singers and stuff. I’d love to have an Alan or a George cut. I’ve never had either. Like Alan, to me he’s such a great artist and such a great writer. After all these years, he’s still writing all his own songs. He’s just amazing. When you get somebody like that to cut one of your songs, that’s just really cool.
KMJ- Is a song as much “one of your babies” when it’s recorded and released by someone else rather than being written and recorded by you?
DLM- Oh yeah. Always. It’s always a thrill to have some other artist record one of your songs. It’s not quite as fun as you doing it yourself, but in a way it is. If I record my own stuff, I’m already biased to the songs. If another artist records your songs, though, it kind of verifies to you about the songs worth and gives you good validation.
KMJ- Is it easier being a songwriter or a performing artist in Nashville?
DLM- Neither are easy. (Laughing) It’s really tough in this music business. It’s probably like trying to be an actor, a writer, a screenwriter or something else in Hollywood. It’s a real competitive business. There’s pros and cons about being an artist and there’s pros and cons about being a songwriter. As a songwriter you have no guarantee about anything. There’s absolutely no job security. You don’t know if the last song you had cut is your last. It’s like panning for gold, you just never know what’s going to happen. If you’re an artist, you don’t know if the last song you got on the radio is your last. It’s not fun around in circles, you know? Neither one are easy. It’s just a blessing for any person that gets to do it. It’s just like the old saying: “You have to count your blessings every day.” You’re really fortunate if you’re able to do it.
KMJ- That leads me well into my next question, are we ever going to see a new CD any time soon with your name on it?
DLM- I really don’t know. People ask me if I’m ever going to do another record. I won’t say, “Never,” but I don’t have plans to it right now. I’m enjoying writing songs for other people. I’m just constantly writing songs and sometimes I put two or three songs together and think that it would be a great start to an album for me. Then someone will cut one of the songs and somebody else will cut another one and I’m right back to the drawing board. Maybe I’ll just put it off a little bit longer that way. I was touring a little while back in Georgia and we’ve got kids out in the audience that were ten years old when “Dust On The Bottle” was blowing and going. To them, they don’t even consider it was a hit. It’s just crazy. But they still respond to all that stuff. I’ll just keep making music and see what happens. I really don’t know.
KMJ- Looking back on those MCA years, would you have done anything different on your releases if you had the chance to do it over again?
DLM- I’m sure I would have done a lot of things differently. Looking back on that first album, it was a different time period than it is now. Everything worked differently those days. There’s probably things I would have done differently. Yeah. That’s kind of water under the bridge, now. I’ve always tried to write the best songs I can write and just believe that everything works out for the best and for a reason. I’ve been real fortunate the last few years to have the guys record my music that has been recording them. Kenny. Jason. Gary Allan. I’ve been really fortunate with everyone like Montgomery Gentry, Brooks and Dunn and Tim McGraw. And you know what? It’s always been my dream to be a songwriter, like Kris Kristofferson and Billy Joe Shaver. All those great writers like Harlan Howard have inspired me. I’ve always thought that was the coolest thing. I’m really happy doing what I’ve been doing. I may not make another record, but I still love touring. We’re playing in clubs still and people are practically standing on the stage. In fact, they were getting on the stage last night. It’s fun. It’s just a lot of fun.
KMJ- What is country music to David Lee Murphy?
DLM- It’s just about everything I do. Everything I think about. It’s my livelihood. And it’s always been a major part of my life. So I guess the obvious answer is sort of cliché, but it is my life. I laugh because probably everybody says it. But it really is. It’s everything I think about. Besides my wife and kids, the next most important thing to me is making music. It’s like a basic part of my life and it has been for thirty years.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Bucky Covington To Release Good Guys On 9/11
When the country music star releases his second album, a special IAFF edition will feature two tracks to be purchased exclusively through the Help the Good Guys website. The International Association of Fire Fighters announced July 30 that former American Idol finalist and country music star Bucky Covington will donate part of his proceeds from the first week’s sales of his upcoming second album to the IAFF Charitable Foundation. And when the album is released Sept. 11, Covington has authorized a special IAFF edition Good Guys CD containing two bonus tracks that can be purchased exclusively through the Help the Good Guys website.
Covington has worked with the foundation and Help The Good Guys, which raises money through concerts, CD sales, and events. They provide financial aid to injured firefighters and their families. Covington has hosted benefit events, visited burn centers and burn camps, and made donations, according to IAFF. A number of other country music stars have assisted, as well.
OFFICIAL GOOD GUYS TRACK LISTING:
1.“I Wanna Be That Feeling” (Jimmy Yeary / Ben Hayslip)
2.“I’m Alright” (Tom Douglas / Casey Beathard)
3.“Hold A Woman” (Blake Mevis / Tony Ramey / Gordon Bradberry)
4.“Drinkin’ Side Of Country” (Duet with Shooter Jennings)(Bucky Covington / Rocky Covington / Ducky Medlock)
5.“Only Got So Much Time” (Bob Di Piero / David Lee Murphy)
6.“Mama Must Be Prayin’” (J Matt Nolen / Liz Hengber / Michael Logen)
7.“Sail On” (Lionel Richie)
8.“I Always Said You’d Be Back “(John Scott Sherrill / Dave Berg / Deanna Bryant)
9.“Mexicoma” (Lonnie Fowler / Logan Mize)
10.“I Want My Life Back” (Anthony Smith / Frank Myers)
11.“Gotta Be Somebody” (Chad Kroeger / Joey Moi / Ryan Peake)
12.“A Father’s Love (The Only Way He Knew How)” (Elizabeth Hengber / Thom E Shepherd / Steven J Williams)
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
The Lost Trailers Reunite (Partially) With New David Lee Murphy Penned "Underdog"
"Underdog," the new single release from The Lost Trailers, is starting to pick
up steam at country radio stations all across America. The song co-written by
David Lee Murphy, Stokes Neilson and Jason Sever has been in the Top 10 most
added country songs for the past two weeks. And that might not normally be big news. But it is from a band that announced this past year that it was done and had broken up for good.
"I'm thrilled to finish playing out the shows on the calendar for our fans; we've been blessed to have their unending support over the years," said former lead singer Ryder Lee last June. "I'm very much looking forward to the next phase of my career."
"We started this band as a bunch of high school friends with a dream of making music, and we've taken that dream to incredible places that have opened a lot of doors for us," Stokes adds. "I look forward to thanking the fans on our tour dates throughout this year; they've always been there for us. I'm excited for the future, continuing to create new music that becomes part of people's lives."
The former quintet is now down to a duo with Neilson and Sever holding the flag for the former band.
"I'm thrilled to finish playing out the shows on the calendar for our fans; we've been blessed to have their unending support over the years," said former lead singer Ryder Lee last June. "I'm very much looking forward to the next phase of my career."
"We started this band as a bunch of high school friends with a dream of making music, and we've taken that dream to incredible places that have opened a lot of doors for us," Stokes adds. "I look forward to thanking the fans on our tour dates throughout this year; they've always been there for us. I'm excited for the future, continuing to create new music that becomes part of people's lives."
The former quintet is now down to a duo with Neilson and Sever holding the flag for the former band.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
9513 Interview With David Lee Murphy
I had the opportunity to interview one of the hottest songwriters in country music, David Lee Murphy for the other site I work on, the 9513. Murphy’s debut album, Out with a Bang, was released in early 1995, producing two smash singles–”Party Crowd,” which became the most-played country song of the year, as well as “Dust on the Bottle,” his first and only Billboard #1. He would go on to record four studio albums and land 13 hits on the charts, with five of those climbing into into the top 10. He has written or co-written album cuts for artists including Reba McEntire, Brooks & Dunn, Randy Houser, the Lost Trailers, Brad Paisley, James Otto, John Berry, Chris Young, Aaron Tippin, Montgomery Gentry, and Hank Williams, Jr. Within the last two years, he’s written Kenny Chesney’s number one single “Living in Fast Forward,” Gary Allan’s “A Feelin’ Like That,” Blake Shelton’s “The More I Drink,” Eli Young Band’s “Always the Love Songs,” and another number one in Jason Aldean’s “Big Green Tractor.” Click HERE to read the whole interview."That’s how it happened with “Big Green Tractor.” I was out bush-hogging on my farm one night and I had the lights on. It was about 8 o’clock and I was driving along in this field. I was cleaning up this fence row and just started singing this melody and then this chorus of driving this big green tractor I was on. I was singing just little bits and pieces. The next day I was writing with Jim Collins who had written “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” for Kenny. I walked in there and asked him if he’d be willing to tackle another tractor song. And he said, “Yeah.” So we sat down and wrote that. I never know if it’s going to be starting a song with a line and it turning into something or a song. It just never happens the same way twice."
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
A Songwriting Award & A Birthday For David Lee Murphy
In recognizing David Lee Murphy on his birthday today, (he turns 50), we also recognize a major ASCAP award he was recently given. He became a part of the ASCAP Silver Circle of writers who have been with the organization for 25 years or more.Murphy's four albums have produced a total of thirteen singles on the country charts, including the Number One hit "Dust on the Bottle" from 1995 and four more Top Ten hits
While David Lee Murphy hasn't had a record released since 2004's Tryin To Get There, he has found continued success as a songwriter, most notably recently as a co-writer on Kenny Chesney's Number One single "Living in Fast Forward", Gary Allan's "A Feelin' Like That" (co-written by Ira Dean, then a member of Trick Pony, Van Zant's "Goes Down Easy", and Blake Shelton's "The More I Drink". 2008 saw the release of Keith Anderson's "Somebody Needs a Hug" and the Eli Young Band's "Always the Love Songs", two more songs co-written by Murphy.
You can watch/listen to his big #1 smash, "Dust On The Bottle" here:
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