Bobbycast#493 - Eric Paslay on Why Songs Don't Need to Go No. 1 to Be Impactful, the History of Barefoot Blue Jean Night, and What He Learned from Losing a Record Deal
On this week's episode of the BobbyCast, Bobby sits down with singer/songwriter, Eric Paslay. Eric tells Bobby why he thinks a song doesn't need to reach No. 1 in order to be impactful, the history behind Jake Owen's song "Barefoot Blue Jean Night", what he learned from losing a record deal, and much more!
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The interesting thing. People like, guy, you must have been upset, and I was like, honestly, I wasn't. That's the first time I ever had a song go top five and it didn't go number one. It was my first number two. I'll take it.
Episode four ninety three. Eric Passley.
Eric has had a bunch of hits as a songwriter.
He did Whoa that mad beat him?
This made it beat him even if it breaks your heart. Eli Young Band, Whoa Whoa? Now I'm Gonna grow up, Ja co Owen, Barefoot Blue gen Knight did the Little Bit of Heaven and Her angel a lot well. I struggle with that one, Love and Theft Rascal Flats Rewind Friday Night, which ended up being maybe a number one for him, but lady A cut it first. We talk about this on the podcast. Lady A cut it first, he wrote it and then he put it out again. I went number one.
Keith Urban Wildhearts, which it was at two, which was crazy, and it was at number two and it was like, so, huh that stings.
I know. So massive songwriter, really good artist has had number ones. He won where he was nominated for a CMA for a song that we talked about that I really believed in was like a she ain't long wait, she ain't man, she ain't.
Singing all these songs messed with melodies in my head. She don't love you, She's just lonely.
That song was awesome, ended up being a top ten song and nominated for a CMA. But I think it was one of those times where nobody wanted anything to do with a ballad.
In that weird stage of like four years.
It was all party songs. Yeah, and that is not a party song. So I've known Eric for a long, long long time. Went to his wedding. We talked a little bit too, how it's not that we don't still like and love each other, but like he got married and had kids and moved away and we just haven't really hung out a whole bunch lately. I'd still probably give him a piece of a kidney, though probably not full.
It's a little piece, yeah.
But a piece would regenerate to a full kidney. I don't know. He's great. He's tall, he can write songs, and he can sing him He's a total package. He does this deal called song and a hat. It's kind of like a live show experience at chiefs bar So, if you're ever in Nashville, you should check it out and see if you want to go and watch that. He had a second baby recently. I don't know what else is there to say.
I covered all. Yeah, I'm still thinking of that sliver of a kidney sliver. He's going to release a lot of music this year.
He's got tour dates set up all across Europe in the United States, including Hawaiian twenty twenty five. I'm not sure because we recorded this this point a couple of weeks ago. Do we talk about the TV pilot we did together? No, they talk about the song I wrote together, but not the TV pilot. We did a TV pilot. I've had so many failed TV pilots. But I really wasn't as much of a part of it was as he. I wasn't as much a part of it as he was, but we were. He was building crazy things because he's the art He's an artist in every way, so he'd like take old lights and make it this really cool thing. I think we were ahead of our time, and it was him and I and they spend a little money making like and then it never got picked up.
So it's like the.
Ballad during a party song situation. Yeah, that's exactly what it was. Here he is follow him at Eric Passley pas La Y he is not related to Brad Paisley, which you people used to ask him all the time. At Eric Passlay on Instagram, Eric Passlay dot com. And here he is episode four ninety three, Eric Passley. We have been legally told we can't play music on podcasts now and I think it's your fault because you pointed at me like you did it and I know it.
But we can't because mostly it's like I'm greedy.
It's on demand and it totally makes sense, but like, we can't provide anything that you need to pay for on demand. But it's also hard for us to promo things even for fifteen seconds at a time, A difficult place to put us in to go. We'll use you. For example, here's Eric like fading Night. Yeah, you've written all these songs some people know, some people are doing.
It, yeah yeah and their intro.
We can't even that. Oh yeah, you could even bring a guitar and play stuff that you wrote. Now, it's not something that we ask our people to do because it's like we don't. We don't have a di I or anything. You know, we just talked for the most part.
But like the sit in the corner and intro, they.
Just they'll just sit and play and not care how it sounds. But it like is good for effect. My whole point is, I forgot where I was going.
Oh got it. We can't play any music here, Like, where.
Was I going? I don't even know.
I that's why we have headphones.
Oh that's right, thank you golly, Because I had another thing I was gonna talk about. I breathe loud. So mostly we would wear these because music would play and you can't hear the music in the room. See, we're headphones. But if I'm not wearing headphones, you'll be talking. If I don't have ones on, but I know about headphones on, I can hear me breathing loud. So all that to say, it keeps me from breathing loud.
And I'm a freaking pro professional.
I keeps me breathing the breather, yes, and no, dude, my note, even those for some reason, I breathed loud.
And then the second reason is.
Sometimes if I if I have a little deuspittle in my mouth, and I'm not really doing anything, but you can hear like get the gate, so I wear headphones for that.
Now you were like, do you need to now particular?
Just picture like an engineer just running to push the like, yeah, Bobby Gate to make sure the little sounds up on air.
And my Bobby Gate is me wearing headphones, so you're like should I was like, you don't have to hear professional, but I do because I breathe. Its cold out, but it is called I hate it. It probably works for you more than it does for me. The second thing I want to mention before we get started here, as you said, hey, did you do the show this morning? Which we did? And I think Mike and I both got to this studio like fifteen minutes ago because we try to now communicate it to do you have enough time to shove something down your throat as we go Studio A to Studio B, because there have been times where we will just push so long and then drive here we've not eaten and it's three or four o'clock and that we've had no food. But yes, we did the show, so what you heard was us live and I appreciate you saying you even listened this morning.
Thank you very much, John. I feel like a little background.
With us erk and I dated it for three years. We did no you know what I was thinking about you and I follow your social and stuff, which keeps me to feel like I still know you, or at least keep up with you. I do know you, but there we had a good run, actually spend a lot of time together personally, like and I would still consider you a friend, but it's one of those friends where nothing happened that didn't make us hang out less. But like you had a kid, you moved farther away. I was gone all the time, and then all of a sudden I had seen freaking American two three years or so.
But it doesn't feel like the pandemic didn't help, That's true.
I didn't even think about that. You're right, that was the beginning. I think of us not seeing each other at all. Yeah, but I haven't seen you in person well.
After the incident. Yeah, but I've been using that a lot and people are.
Like, what, Well, I'd never even drank before then, and especially put a pill up to my rectum, and that's why the incident happened.
I knew it.
See, so but I was walking down here, I was like.
It's so social media is a weird thing, because I was gonna talk to you about your second baby, and I won't even know that I it wasn't for social media. But I know you and your wife, but I haven't actually seen you and like touched you until I hugged you when I walked in. And I know it's weird. It's really four years possibly pandemic though that makes a lot of sense.
Yeah, I was at your wedding. Yeah, yeah, crazy, we're there. Okay, So all right, well let's we hang out.
That's it, all right, see you guys next week another episode. Let's just I wanted to just start with like a general what's up, man, Like, really, what's going on?
I mean right now, babyland. Yeah, I'm in babyland, like no was four weeks old. So just doing all that, and uh, yeah, I can ask you a question for having to sleep a little crops crops to the mama's out there and the papas.
A little advice from you if you may. Yeah, and I get it.
This show's about you put a little advice from you. Now, my wife and I at some point we're going to have children. She's not pregnant now, and I feel the need to say that every time I bring it out, because people will be like, he's talking about it, like she's pregnant. She's not pregnant yet. It's not like talking to people. Love freaking talking and buy something I know nothing about. I'm one of them. I've made a ut I know nothing about. Yes, the baby stage seems miserable.
Uh, you know, it's funny, Piper, our first one is six now she just turns six. I forgot the baby stage.
But I really do like the puppy stage though, too, until I got another dog and then I'm like, oh my god, I forgot how hard the puppy stage was. Yeah.
Well, I I think it's just, you know, you maybe the blessing of the mind. If you have all right mind, you forget the traumatic parts. You know, not that it's really traumatic, but I mean the lack of sleep. Maybe you're just so tired you don't remember it, your brain doesn't allow you to. I don't know.
I also don't think that everything traumatic is bad, true.
I think no, it's it's every second I'm holding over and when she's even crying, it's just like this is cool. I'm glad she's breathing, you know, seriously, that was my thought. She was just crying and crying, and it's like, well, she's got a gash, she's that's something. I got it. There was a burp I didn't get out of her or something, and it's just human and awesome. And I was just sitting there going like, God, think you she's breathing, she's crying NonStop. I haven't slept in a minute. I cry for the same reason, you know. But I mean, you know, I guess that's maybe that's where my mind, as he says, but just it's all relative.
But it's it's a hard because again I know, and again you're you're great.
You function on little sleep, You're great.
I'm insulted by that, because here's why great. Here's why I've gotten good at performing high at a high level while being exhausted. Right, I've gotten no better at not being exhausted. And that's a double negative. And you would know this just from being an artist and a writer and having to create when you're tired, like I've got, you just get better at doing it tired. Yeah, and I am perpetually exhausted, not the way my stepdad was. He worked at the mill. So I'd like for everybody before you jump down my throat, I'm never not exist, but I don't think that makes it easier for me to be exhausted even more. I mean, the baby thinks it hard.
You know, you can hire a nanny and I and I'm dude, I would have five do it. No, No, I'm actually serious, like to be able to sleep at night. I'm telling we're yeah. I mean, I'm I'm totally getting a nicko night nurse and stuff. So you are getting to help Natalie sleep just more and Natalie, I.
Don't know, because if you like my wife, you'll never listen to this because you know Eric your husband, and you get enough Eric all the day, and my wife gets all to me all the day, so she doesn't need to hear anything I ever do professionally. But if you do happen to hear this, I miss you, and I yeah, hope it's going awesome and I miss you and you're awesome.
Well, hang y'all got to come up to the farm.
I know, but that's another thing about why I've been hung out when you got the farm.
We're also we're also eas No, but.
When you got the farm though, you were like as a farm a lot right when you moved and the farm's not.
That's what it was. You invited me to go to Garth Brooks. Yes, and I totally should have. I'm sorry. And the reason and this was me being trying to please people and we'll not people. It was just an interesting thing of family. Natalie's grandparents were moving down that day to the farm. I was like, dang it. But I always in my heart there's always the memory that we saw Garth together.
I didn't want you to go. We should go, but I don't think he's gonna be doing anything for a while. Well, you know he's gonna get through that one way.
Well hopefully all is good for everybody.
Okay, So the baby thing, I it'll happen. I'm gonna be Oh, I'm gonna get so a little. My wife and I situation. I would like to have a night nurse. Now do it?
And we don't have a baby, right, But I would think.
What would the night nurse be for we?
I wake up all of the night. I do wake up. I wake up with the extreme anxiety through the night. I don't have in the daytime. I never thought I had anxiety. I felt bad for people that did. I think I get I think I'm neurotic. I think you have a bit of that creative neurosis. Hope you don't mind. I don't care if your mind that. I can't feel.
Yes, I feel freezing now I'm not moving there, I'm moving yes.
And also, don't they say, like you have have to like sign up like forever to get your kid into school and get a good night nurse and nanny. And I'm like, well, we're not going to wait ten years, so let's go ahead and get one and get them working.
So I winy not Yeah, I get a little thirsty little perch parts and nine night nurse ding ding ding ding.
Won't be so wrong with that, you know, get them on that comfortable in the house.
I mean you can see if you trust them or not exactly. They drop a lot of things. Don't hire them.
If like, and I put a couple of like nice watches around just on the table randomly and see if they disappear. Do you guys, you have any help?
Natalie's mom is there with us a lot. My mom comes down and hangs out a lot, so that's good.
That's help. But that's not the help I was asking about. That's real, that's like family.
That's family help. No, we have not hired anybody. Uh I think that will have and this this go around.
What's the difference and we'll get off babies, But what's the difference in the what's the difference in the two as babies like Nova at this point at four weeks, five weeks, six weeks? Are they the same or are they different?
We're all different, Bobby, here we go and I love them both even I didn't ask difference. No, I mean, actually, uh, Nova is so chill that in the hospital and we like got the nurses to be like, she's not waking up to eat? Is there something wrong? And they're like, no, she's just chill. Do you feel so Nova's more chill than Piper was his baby, but Piper had more coligy stuff going on, so she had all kinds of stomach issues.
Because you've been through it with a baby and a toddler, do you feel like the second kid, You're like, we're fine if it falls. Not if it falls, you know what I mean, Like it something happens, We're not going to freak out as much.
Is that happening, Yeah, I mean yeah, I mean definitely don't drop the baby. But that's not ideal. But like I mean, it's just experience. I've been there, done that. Uh and it's still uh yeah, I mean it's it's easier because I've changed a bunch of diapers and if there's a certain problem. Oh, you know, on Piper, this helped, you know, but just experience.
But I just did that.
I you know, I'm highly experienced that I've only had two children. Yeah, but I should talk to like.
A lot of it. No, you're good. I trust you though. And here's what I just did that I think I've ever done in the history of this show while doing the show. I just took my shoes off. That's how comfortable I am with you being here we are. I literally just took my shoes off in the middle of it. I would never do that. I'm just she's back on no, not doing it all right? So okay, yep, baby, I.
Wear the same socks. I don't have them on right now.
I don't think you do. These are still my socks. These are Nikes. Every sock if it's a dress sock, if it's an athletic sock. I just weren't Nike socks. It's good all the time. There's no difference brought to you by No, it's not even a sponsor. Yeah, okay, So professionally, like I know the answers to these questions up to a point, but I'd still like for you to take me to some of these places when I ask them, because I got a whole bunch of questions that I have for you specifically, But like, what's happening like career wise, man, what's going on music?
I mean, I'm touring all the time, which is fun, it isn't strung. A lot of my fans are like, you don't tour that much anymore because I maybe have thirty dates that I post about and then I probably have thirty or forty. I'm heading out to another Florida gig tonight, and I think since twenty twenty, there's just more private gigs or people realize you can hire us. You know, I'll come sing in your backyard if you know you pay me the right amount and you're not too creepy. But even if you're creepy, if you pay me right amount, even if you're I wear a monkey costume. Again, it's fine even.
If you're creepy as long as you're not creepy alone with me. Because I've had privates before.
Where there Yeah.
Twenty eight percent of them are with weirdos.
Yeah, well you got you know, you got your your reaches a lot further than mine.
No, but for different reasons. I think people should hire you for privates. And I think people once I'm there, they're like, what do we just pay for? But and you're also intimidating, you're a big guy.
But for people, don't pick on me. That's yeah, true.
For me, it's I don't even mind if they're weird. I just don't want to be weird alone.
With Yeah, because the commit you got content, come on, they would be like, get you some songs and give it stories if you.
Get the heye, give me yoursel phone number. That happens sometimes and I'm.
Like, you know, I give them an email address that I never look at, but I mean I don't look at my real one most of the time, but yours just ah, it's bad for Christmas. I'm just gonna buy one of those apps that deletes everything and then I just start at zero. Again. Anyway, back to my my career.
There's an a hold on, there's an app the deletes.
I don't know. I just need to zero everything. I think I have like fourteen thousand emails. I haven't looked at, but I think fourteen you know, thirteen thousand of them are But you should be.
That because you're a creative, right, you're an artist.
Yeah, I am.
Yeah, I'm a neurotic creative. I have no red dots, no emails ever, there is no It's also why I can't sleep at night. It's the same thing, it's just different.
Did I get an email? I got to read it.
It's like I don't want to miss something because if I miss it and I'm late and it's important, they're not gonna want me for this anymore. And if they don't want me for this anymore, I must be losing my momentum. And if I lose my momentum, I'm not going to have these and.
You'll be completely worthless and no one will love you about Oh that's it. I will never talk to you again.
But we've already been there. That's fine, But that is like, that's it, that's I mean, that's the root and it is not rational, but that is it.
That's fine, that makes sense. We all want to be pretty always. Whenever I write a new song and bringing in to play it for now, I'm just like, tell me I'm pretty because you know. But yeah, I've just I've been playing a lot of songs, writing, playing, writing a lot of songs, playing a lot of shows.
How many times writing a week?
Honestly? Right now? Well not with the new baby, I'm just like taking off. Well, actually I wrote with try and Anderson the other morning, got some ideas going. But I'm probably on average three times a week. Now what's to go? I mean, if if five times a week. If you know, artists want to write five days a week, I'll write with an artist five days a week. If I'm going to go in with another rider or it's like hope this song gets cut, I'm not going to do it five days a week. I'm gonna keep those ideas for my artist friends when it's time to get on the bus with them, or whenever it's time to write that song.
You know, Hey, read is your mic on? Do you have Mike over? There'm gonna ask a question on Mike. Oh, it's okay, I'll just I'll just yell. Do you know what hit song Eric Pasla and I wrote together? Did you not?
It went number one? Man?
Do you know Friday Night and Friday was a jam? That's that's like his song? But you don't know do you think I'm first of all? Do you think I'm kidding? Okay, so you think I was just with him and I all I did was like, oh, that's a great idea, here's the.
Word of the and then I'm a writer. You don't think I can contribute?
Okay, go ahead, think about it.
I'll come back to you.
What's Oh if I wrote that, I would never stop talking about that song, She Don't Love You? That is one of the best country songs in the past twenty years. Thanks man, and I let's just go there for a second. If you don't mind, Yeah, that's not it. Read. I'll be coming back to you though for an answer. And it's real. This is not a joke, Mike. You know it.
And it went number one, right, Yes, Yes, we have a number one song together. We do.
We'ren't saying no more. Read. We've moved on with the conversation.
We love you, buddy, but you've had two guesses.
We're going to come back for another one in a minute, And I do want to talk about like current stuff with you too, but she don't love you of all the songs that I've heard, and I want to just be complimentary of what I've heard with my ears like that to me, that song was that was classic when I heard it the first time, which aren't words I don't know that I've ever used ever on this podcast, and I don't think I'm just saying that because you're here. I hope my efforts to get as many people to hear that song as possible because I was so passionate about it, and you and Jen.
You capital even the only one that made sure people heard it. Well, there was a bunch of there was a handful of you at radio that played a ballot at a time when when those feelings songs were definitely not happening.
Like I get chills thinking about it because I haven't thought about that.
Song, and thank you so that song it ended up being nominated for awards too.
Yeah, we were like, I think it was a Song of the Year at the ACMs, and it meant a lot because I sang it and wrote it and I've been nominated for the only other awards well, I guess a Grammy. We were nominated for as a performer, but a lot of them were as a writer, you know, so it meant a lot as a singer.
And I remember just dialing in and going, this is my early days here too, and it's one I really was. I'd find music I was passionate about, and I actually had a bit more influence then because there weren't as many avenues. I have influence now in different ways that I did not have then and have don't have as much in ways that I did. That was one where I had music influence. Yeah, And I was like, if you guys all love this song, like I can't be your friend and I will play it all the time.
You know, it's I mean, you kept it alive. But it's like when when everyone at radio isn't playing the song, like that's the interesting thing. Most people, I'll say, hey, what do you think that song went on the charts? Because in Nashville we're so driven by charts?
Can I guess? And I guess too before you said.
Answer, yeah, what do you think ten? Uh? What got to fifteen?
Okay?
But everybody thinks it like went to you know radio, you know I was a part, Yes, but most everythinks is the number one song, and that The interesting thing about this is, uh, I mean on music row as a songwriter, and for me with Jen Wayne, it's like she wrote that. With me, it's like, gosh, she only got paid as a fifteen even though everybody believes it's the number one. But that being said, it still gets played off. So it is the positive side of that is when I talk to writers and artists, it's like, hey, your song doesn't have to go number one to affect people. And that's one thing. Same thing with high Class we got to High Class is I went to Colorado and played a show and these big old dudes, cowboy guys came up to me and mf me up and down because I didn't play high Class and they were like, dude, we only like line dance to it three times a night out here, right. Apparently they're line dance into high Class all the time, and I didn't know that. It makes it different because the song only went to number thirty because we were five years too soon. So okay, I'm deep diving in there nostalgia. But it is I like that.
I want to take a step back. Though I did nothing. I didn't write the song. I didn't discover the song. I did not make the song a hit. I think there were times where people hadn't yet given it the chance it deserved because I I didn't even I think I saved it a couple times to where it forced people to listen to it a little more, and then they did what was smart was to keep it alive, and then it kind of caught. That's what I remember about that song, just being so passionate about it, and like you'd be like, oh, they're about to get a down arrow do it. I would cheat. I would just be like, well, I'm playing I'm on three hundred stations, I'm playing the song every day, twice a day, and you don't need things to make me now. This is like, but if the song wasn't great, I wouldn't have done it.
I wouldn't still be playing shows if he didn't play.
Something That is also not true. I'm not looking for any credit. All I'm saying is that song was so good it made me want to do things that I did not do, and I was just lucky enough to know you and I know Jen, and Jen is also a runaway June and I know Jen, But that was one of the best country songs in the past twenty five years and nice and I love it and I hope people still like react to it.
Yeah, they know it. I mean as a song. The more I the more you involved in music and everything, I'm able to look at a song and just be like, man, yeah, and it's true. We wrote a classic song and probably thirty minutes it just fell out of the sky.
Really.
Yeah, just need to be written. And that being said, it's the thing about songwriter, it's just a muscle. It's when the right idea shows up, you don't mess it up too bad. When they give you the right pitch, you can you can hit the grand Slam. You can really hit it out of the park and hopefully people are in the stands to hear the hit.
Let's take a quick pause for a message from our sponsor, and we're back on the Bobby Cast.
Give me the quick version of just sit in a room. Who's in the room where the idea came from? And it fell out like encapsulate that for me.
I mean a lot of times we're writing some uptempo positive thing. Another line came out, and that's what happened. We were writing something because Jennifer Wayne's grandfather is John Wayne, and uh, George Straight ha just announced the cowboy rides away to her. So too many cowboys rode away. That's where that line came from, because on our mind we had George straight cowboy rides away to her and uh, and this line came up. Yes she don't love, Yes, she just lonely, and we were like, that's interesting, what was that? And so we wrote it.
You had to change a pace though, m hm risky because to hear you writing a song to just catch radio or to have something fun.
Total tempo positive for George's you know, end of the tour Cowboys song and we I don't even know what it was. I know it couldn't have been too bad. We probably should go back and listen to it.
Isn't it so fun though, to write ballads because you can actually get a message out that people will hear you can.
You can do it in an up tempo It's just I don't got anywhere clever.
I don't take them. I don't know the words. And up tempo songs I know the melodies. Never listen to words too fast. Yeah, ballads, I'm in Yeah, I know every word. I'm feeling the motion. Let me think about it.
She don't love you, She's just lonely.
What does that mean?
What do you think?
What I think it means is here's a guy who sees his X with another dude and he's like, bro, she don't love you. She's just sad and by herself, so just missing. Don't get the big head because it's probably about me.
There's all kinds of unhealthy but healthy. Yeah.
Would that be accurate? Is to have what you guys were thinking?
I mean at the emotion I was feeling at the time. It was just heartbreak and anything to make you feel like it's all right.
The emotion you were feeling in real life. Yeah, that was happening with you.
Yeah.
I won't push farther.
That's fine. Well we'll we'll talk on the next one. No, it's real life.
We're not done. You're going home to go now? No?
No, I mean it's you know, you go through stuff in life and I think you're making the right choice and all that, and uh, feelings show up in songs, you know, and the honest truth is it wasn't the truth. The truth of what the situation was was not she don't love you, she just lonely. Just the line showed up. And when you're in Heartbreakville, you're able to write those songs even more honest. But yeah, I'm glad the song showed up.
Yeah, me too.
Uh the one you were just talking about, the line dancing one.
Oh, high Class? Do you know that I hid that song?
I hit that song me the melon, I need you to sing me the Meloani and.
That we high class, give me my chaves on inside. I'll just in blast.
That was a jam.
I hid that song from the label and they found it. Dang it. I told them it was five years too soon.
That song was a jam, and I needed you to do that to get me back to it. Oh yeah, that song comes out later. That's a freaking I.
Hit it well because it was right after She Don't Love You. I was like, we just went over every country person. We can't play high Class. They're gonna all think I went bro country and turned my back on them, like it's the song. I'm like, well, I first you here we go.
I didn't understand what you meant at first when he said it was too it was too early.
Mike, I feel like I'm away. I mean that sounds like I'm I typically am creatively five years too soon.
Hold on a minute.
You wrote with Warren Zeiders Ride the Lightning.
Yeah, that was the first song I think he ever wrote in Nashville.
What the heck?
He so? He Uh? His so the story of what he was writing about in the beginning that Warren told me, And I don't know if he wants it's fine, it's the truth of his life, but he's the story was something about like he had a character that he had that was in jail for killing his dad or for hurting his mom and this and that. So he was like, his his songs are based off of a imaginary, you know, character of himself. And uh, he was like, so he's in he's on death row. And he was like, yeah, he's on death row for killing his dad or something like that. I'm like, well, you know they call that ride riding the Lightning. You know, when you're in the electric chair, ride the light and know that, And that's that's what the song is. And uh, and a lot of house on the golf course the other day at a fundraiser, Saint Jude fund raiser, and this dude played that song like three times, and the fourth time it came around, I'm like, hey, man, I wrote that. I actually wrote that one. I was like, you really like that song? You go away man? You know. I was like, yeah, I wrote that, and I was like, you know what that's about? And he goes no. I just thought it was cool, like ride the Light and yeah. Man, I'm like, well, it's about the electric chair.
He's like, what like a metallic I thought, yeah, I didn't know that was like the term for you're about to get the electric chair.
I mean maybe I maybe only one person that taught that to me made it up, But.
I like it. Though, read what's the song we wrote? No, that's a good one. They'll read just yeld Barefoot, Blue g Knight, Please hold your other guesses.
That is a song.
And I have been very close with Jake on and off through and Jake and I have a similar thing as you.
They're just years we didn't be. We weren't even frinds for a while.
Now because if anything else, bought a freaking farm out two hundred miles away and but anytime I called Jake, He's like, he texted me this morning. I talked in a few months even, and we've gone on vacation together. And that song is as much of him as anything else that is him, because that song is him.
Yeah, And well even there like Riverside Down on the Riverside, there was a spot that he grew up going to in Florida and was just by.
Chance complimentary to you and a Jake.
Even for Jake to go that song is so me because it takes an artist to to sell it, yeah, and to sing it and be proud to sing it. And that there is not a song that is more Jaco and the Barefoot Blue Gene.
Now and most played country song in the past decade? Is that right? Yeah? Crazy just a had some wooes.
You still get checks with that one, I hope. So you don't know.
I mean, I'm sure I get something. It's never as much as people think it is. All that being said, I will never go hungry, So I'm good.
Whoa man, You're woes are awesome?
Woas man. I would say young people and children and both sing it.
Oh, I was gonna say kids and songs like it's a hard knock or I like kids singing like acquired chore man, like that collapse woes. There are those things that people go a cliche. No, you know why.
The clochek is are awesome if you do them right.
There are super effective weapons that if everything else is done right around them, it's the perfect icing. Yep, Barefoot Blue gene Knight an amazing song worked out. Do people freak out when you go I wrote this and you play it?
Yeah? Usually on the front road they're like, he didn't write this, Jake did, which is fine. That being said, Jake and them did change a couple of words that were they did it right. And and he never asked for a royalty. So thanks Jake. That being said, he's paying a lot of shows.
So yeah, I think it's good to Jake's even to thank he as an artist.
Thank you. I don't think Jake enough for that. I mean, that was my first uh recorded song by a major artist and at went number one? Like huge?
Is that right?
Huge?
That's your first cut?
Pretty much? I mean I had a couple like little ones, but it wasn't like like an established someone on the radio.
Yeah that's exciting. Yeah he Yeah, you told me that even in privacy, like Jake changed a couple of things that, which is great. But most of the time when they do that, they they're doing it for two reasons. One, they're doing it because they also want to claim they wrote it. They may change uff just to even if they don't feel like it's just so they can say I was a part writer.
Yeah, I don't you know.
That is not integrity. It's not it's not an integrity play. Yeah, and Jake changed a couple of things that made it more natal tim and did not ask for any riding.
Yeah, it was like right and all right, I don't know, it's night. And he changed a couple definitely could ask for a little piece though he totally could have. That's cool, Jay, you know you went a horse or something.
He's good. Angel is love and theft is a chance. Yeah, man, a little bit of nose, angelize it were you gonna guess that read? No, I didn't write that. That's pre me. I was before I got to town. Okay, Yeah, that's a good one. Blue Gen Night, though, I think Eli I'm bading in for breaks your Heart. I'm trying to think of the songs that i'd be most surprised. If you were playing and you played it and said you wrote it probably Barefoot, because it's such a massive, massive, massive song, like you said, biggest of over the last ten years, I'd be like, oh, that's cool. I had no idea.
Yeah, you and it's not a thinker when.
You wrote it was were you just writing it in a room and to see where it goes and exists?
Actually, you want to know the story about it. Dylan Altman, one of the writers on it, and Terry Salchuk. I walked into the room and Dylan Altman was telling us his favorite concert you'd ever been to, and in my shows, I actually play part of a song that goes into Barefoot. But he said he turned around. It was JFK Stadium and Dylan's a little bit older than me. It was in nineteen eighty eight, and he said he turned around and there were lighters in the dark in the middle of this rock show and it was You Two's Joshua Tree toured It's amazing. I Love You Too, love and YouTube you too, I Love you Too out there. But I think that I was sinking through that just recently. I'm like, it's so interesting that country music was influenced by Irish music from the beginning, and somehow we wrote the most played country song of the decade and it was influenced by an Irish band and for those pretty crazy So thank you Bono and maybe that Adam Clayton.
Junior and the reference at the edge maybe you didn't catch and I bring it up too. Yeah, country music is based on music from Europe and music from the slave ships. Yeah, and you're right it like that. Yeah, that's it. That's why we have what we have, which is always so weird for me when people are like, oh country, I like, bro, do you want to go all the way country?
What I think, Hank Junior? What in country? As Daddy was so like the country you like and stop hating on people, man, Like.
THISXT generation is going to tell you your country is not country.
Absolutely right now. I mean yes, name famous whoever, and it's not going to be country in ten years whenever. I remember when Cruise came on. I saw the Tyler the other day and I told him I was like, dude, I just heard Cruise come on. I was like, man, I miss old country and I was like no, that like health roze over with that Kenny Rodgers, he wrote record a song on mine. I got to hang with him a little bit at the end of his life. Kenny Rodgers said Health roze over at the award show, and he and Dolly Parton saying Islands in the Stream because it was written by the Beechees. Yeah, yes, yeah, like Health froze over man, And now everybody's like, oh well, I miss a little country. Country is never a country. It's it's always moving, so it can stay alive. If the pond didn't move, it ties. It's the stagging at the fish die get You have to have a movement in life or it'll die.
And it's moved in different directions.
But you know what happened, that part didn't continue right, Like the parts that resonate with country music fans, the authenticity of it and the instrumentation changes. I mean again, Bob Bob Wills, the Texas Playboys when they when they freaking miked a stell guitar, they amped a still guitar. Yeah, that's help freezing over.
Like you know something crazy I did at the end of the day. Speaking of steel guitars and Bob Wills, my grandfather was in a band with his brothers name as Arnold Chiller and the Moonlight Serenaders as what. They went by a country with a Frank Sinatra song, which was amazing and uh or no that's not Franks. Yeah, well le sing it anyway. They would go to the elite cafe that the Magnolia people now, and Bob Wills would be there. But my grandfather actually converted a Gibson lap steal into a pedal steel guitar. And I totally just interrupted you, Bobby, But I was so excited about this story. I played at the Grand Ole Opry the other day and it was it would have been my grandfather's one hundred and seventh birthday, and I think, I think we'll have this posted, but I ended up surprising. My mom was there. It was her dad and everything, and I didn't get to know him. He died when I was two, so I wasn't like the kid in the music family, even though they definitely paved that road for me, because my grandmother, like, whenever I said I was going to be a musician, she was like, that's great, and nobody was freaked out because my grandfather and his brothers had done that. But I found a cassette with my grandfather singing on it, and he was singing Green the Greens al Alex, really old song speaking of Irish music, European music. But I ended up pushing play on a cassette player and I had Bruce Spout in an amazing Stell guitar player play my grandfather's steel guitar, and I played my great uncle's kalamazoo that he took to World War Two with him and brought it back. So the two instruments got to sing together again on the grand O Lotpry stage and I sang with my grandfather. I harmonized with them.
How did they mic the cassette?
I plugged it in. There's a little out thing, so really just like it I was singing. I just toick a mic on it. But it was one of.
Those things that's a really great story.
So I got to sing with my grandfather on the ground, a little heavenly birthday gift for him.
I got a little I got some chills there on that.
Yeah, man, So it was pretty uh. And I've been dreaming it up for ten years and I'm finally like, I have all these dreams that I want to do, and when I described that to people that are like, how are you going to do that? Yeah, gonna pull that off, Like it would be pretty easy. I just push a cassette player and sing with it. How are you going to do that? And then I do it and then people go, oh wow, that worked. So I'm realizing in my life there's a lot of ideas I have that people just don't understand. I just got to do it.
Yeah, that's so simple. I would not have thought to do it like that. I'd have been like, Okay, how do we dub this off and get a digit? But at times we can take something simple in make it way harder than it needs to be.
But back to the Texas Playboys and Steel.
They amp to steal guitar again. That's one of those hell freezes over type things. And even Kenny Rogers, you know back when he would before he was a country star and he was singing what condition my condition is in? Like he was a pop star. You know, Kenny Rodgers was one of those that people look at now and go like that ain't country. He came from pop.
That's what Kenny Rodgers freaking did.
And now I was like, when you.
Go to Asia, if you say country like Kenny Rodgers. I know that because my parents lived in Thailand and my dad sort of looks like Kenny Rodgers, so they like Kenny Rodgers.
Wonder because that was very specific.
Yeah, Friday Night read mentioned that that was a jam, but I believe if I'm correct, you wrote that I think lady A cut it but didn't put out a single.
Yeah, it was on the on the Night record.
And then you asked, hey, you guysn't put a single. Do you care if I cut it and put out a single? Is that true?
I actually was? I mean it was uh. Yeah, Basically I was playing a little show down in Birmingham and yeah, I got the one of the guys at the label, Kevin, came down and he came to the show and just after I played Friday Night he pointed out me. He said, there's your single, and I'm like, lady A cut it? You know from the stage. He goes in and put on the radio it's your single, Thanks Kevin.
Keith Wildhearts. Yeah, man, how'd that one go?
Uh? This goes out to the gifts. All of the Dreamer was ready to fly like a whisper single that we were twenty. I'm bringing you cookies next time. I have a song on the radio. We missed number one by twenty six Spins no Way. Yeah. So first, and I'm fine with you that.
You know why, because I talked to Jen Wayne. I was on a golf course. Jen Wayne pulls up behind me. We're playing golf. Jen Wayne, by the way, was a professional tennis player. Again really run away doing one of the great great people too. And she pulls up behind me and she's with Garth's lawyer. But she to her, that's not Gar's lawyer, that's like her friend orson.
I don't know.
And I only knew Gard' lawyer because he kind of got somebody I knew at Of in Trouble.
Not Garth, but somebody I knew aw Of in Trouble.
And I just met him because we had opened for Garth in Fantville in the raizs Bake Stadium, and so I met him and I went up to him and I was like, hey, I just want to say thank you because he contributed to something that was very very beneficiar to me. It's very beneficial to me. I can take that out here. And so but then I see Jen and him coming up right and like, what the crap and she's like yeah, she goes, can you believe? Because again, at this point, I wasn't like in the music game, meaning I'm just creating content at this point, but I don't even keep up. But I wanted off, like my friends are doing well, you know, and she was like, we missed by twenty sixpence or twenty whatever the number was, and then she told me who beat it? I think there was like a multi.
Way Yeah, someone had it for multi w Yeah. I'm kind of like, why you you don't need a three five, seven week number one, especially.
If it's that close, like somebody helpened on the point A. So that's a good song.
No, it worked out, I mean, all that being said, and the interesting thing people like, guy, you must have been upset, and I was like, honestly, I wasn't. That's the first time I ever had a song go top five and it didn't go number one, like it was my first number two. I'll take it, Yeah, you'll take it, but I'm no, I'm serious. It was like relative, just in relative thinking. It was like I've never had a number two? How cool was that I could have had six number twos too. You know, Keith Urban is the guy too that had really instilled in me after saying it many times. What you said earlier was because Keith to be like this song not on air. We'd be talking and Keith and I left pretty close up been over to. You know, we're Keith and I are friendly when he's here.
He's not here a whole lot, But when he's here and he's like, dude, of my biggest songs weren't number ones.
He goes.
Everybody thinks they were because the everybody goes crazy for them, but he's like number seven, number thirteen.
The honest truth is it was too early. People are catching up, and that'd be I will say, if anybody has never seen Keith play live, you I don't care what genre and what zip code you thought you were born into where your parents didn't want you listening to that you listened to. Like whatever music you like, Keith Urban will melt your face off. Also, his whole band is like Frontmen and the and the cool thing is the fact that he has Nathan and Jerry out there singing, and that Keith isn't intimidated. It is because Keith is such a rock star. He doesn't need to be intimidated anyway. He goes see Keith's live band. They're a freaking mind blowing.
And he is such a.
It's word gets thrown around a lot, but he's such a perfectionist in that I've been with and around him at times pre a show and he's making sure the lights are in the exact place the lights like before he does a show, like he's going, okay, what you know, sometimes, depending on where you are when you are an artist, won't even need to do their sound check. Let somebody go do it for him. He ran a sound check, he ran some new stuff. He wanted to test the lights. He wanted to see what the light like. That's a guy who wants to make sure that the people get out of it the money they put into it.
Yeah, and he has the time to do it. I remember in earlier years doing tours, You're just like, I don't even have time for sound check because my day's books so much.
What do you mean happened to? Like dude?
Like, yeah, just all kinds of random stuff.
Read not that you out of songs?
Whoa what?
No? Yeah, Rascal flats rewinds for singing that one.
Uh uh, well, let the moon back up in the sky put a pull back into that sweet.
Oh yeah, no, it's not it radio ear song that goes like this, when I grow up, up up back and be whatever I want, won't won't you see?
I never said it was I said it when I grew up.
Wasn't there one kids.
Song writing kids songs before I even had kids.
I just remember being so grateful Phil Barton. And what's what's really cool is every once while I feel a play at the Rite and people will tag me and it. I just remember being so grateful because you knew Phil and brought Phil over to the when I lived downtown, and I was just so grateful that because dude, you can write with anybody at any time. People do you have?
That's fun. But I was alrite any song ever.
I was like, Eric, well don't say that because it made me feel lesspecial. But then it's I was like, He's like, all right with anybody, all right with everything? Everybody asked, uh yeah, yeah. I was very great to fool because I was like, and then Eric's like, let's do that that that that I remember vividly and it's awesome and people still school still use that for like assemblies.
That's great.
I get tagged at like the end of the school year every year with schools and their kids like all like the second art of singing the whole song and so yeah, that's it. You didn't know that digitary.
Yeah, I see this guy. He's thinking back in school.
Yeah, the Bobby Cast will be right back.
This is the Bobby Cast. What are you writing for the most now? Like you're gonna put stuff out? You already got done?
Yeah, I mean I've I've put out three projects since twenty twenty.
I mean, like com.
I just sent a hundred songs to management just to be like, okay, help me pick what you said one hundred. Here's a hundred that I think should be on an album. And that was I think I got to the ease. I don't know. I just write so much. I don't like, we don't write crappy songs. I'll send you a hundred. You want to know I'm good. Yeah, yeah, no, I'm good. You have since you have so much time or you're not exhausted, I'm gonna just make you really paranoid at night. It's holding the wrong song.
I don't listen too much. I wouldn't say music, but it's I don't listen. I listen to we do what I like. Now, I don't have a pressure on me to like find and break, but every once in a while something to hit me and I'll be like, oh, Or there'll be a writer that writes a few things in a row with different artists and I'm like, god, dang. Or like I've mentioned Megan Maroney, like she writes and how she writes, she's very specific and it's her voice, and like there's just certain people that you're like, WHOA like that. But I've become a bit jaded in a way. I've heard so much and sometimes I feel like I'm not even fair to stuff because I've heard so much and ten seconds into it, I'm like, been there, But I'm not giving it the actual chance that it should deserve. Because I've listened to so much music.
You just don't have as much grace for a maybe mediocre song.
But maybe it's not mediocre.
I mean, if my wife just judged me on the first ten seconds, no chance, Yeah, it'd be like it's.
Another generic mediocre white boy.
Yep, it's trying.
Now, there's just like just another giant leprecaun walking around.
How tall are you four?
I'm only five foot sixteen? You know I like that there six four yeah, yeah, six or four?
Do you ever think about shaving your beard? You did that when you'd like the artist thing, were be like, I'm gonna change it up and be like rock.
I mean, I could, you know, I guess I want to go Rob Banks or something. You know, it's me you do?
Beard is the thing when you go do You're gonna go do a bunch of shows. You're doing Hawaii too, I saw.
Yeah, I've been doing that a little bit. I've been playing Europe at least once a year. I'm trying to do it a couple of times a year with what intention to go have fun, make music. And they really like what I do over there a whole lot. They listen. It's interesting.
What do you mean they listen?
It's people have asked like, what's the difference between the States and Europe? And this is not it's not an insult. It's we're taught how to listen, and we're taught how to consume certain things in our lives. I think. But it's funny all the European artists want to come to America because a show in America is a party and all, and a lot of American writers love and artists love going to Europe because the show is a concert. Like in Europe, you play a song and they don't scream, talk through it, and then they applaud at the end, and then they want to know the new song that they haven't heard yet. In America, it's typically and it's also the crowd, you know, if it's just a radio bar crowd, they'll they'll start selfieing during the number one song. If it's a new song, they're getting a beer. They don't want to know. They haven't been told it's cool yet. That's interesting and to me it's And you can see people wanting to dance to the new song, but they're not sure if their friends will make fun of them to dance into a new song that nobody knows yet. It's just like, ah, man, y'all could have so much more fun. Just don't judge each other, Just have fun, dance to the song you hear that makes you move. You know, what are you gonna do with all that one hundred songs? I mean, we got to pick some I mean, I don't know. I mean, we'll see which twelve or fifteen or thousand. I mean, I'm like I could put a song out a day and have you know, in a world of chasing phenomenons of just well the well the ones and zeros line up for you. It's kind of like, I guess if I put more songs out, there's more chances. And the interesting thing is, like songs have forever to be heard, is always what I is what I know, and.
You don't have forever to hear that people hear the songs? True, do you care about legacy.
Or I mean, I I care, I care about what I I mean, I care that I hope people at the end of whenever my days are done down here, that they go he he used his gifts for good, you know. And I always I am one of those guilty people. I try to put the hope at the end of everything, even if it's a crap day. I try to be like but the sunshine for a second, you know, But but deep down I'm that long play guy of like man I do even when everything's bad and it's not good, like I believe good wins in the end and everyone's beyond loved if they if they're able to open their arms to it. And my hope is with music and all that, that I planted good seeds in people's hearts and it grew good stuff, you know, but.
Way healthier than I am.
No, man, I just that's my hope. That doesn't mean I'm good at it.
But I have questions on my phones. So when I grab my phone, don't be insulted. Ask some stuff I wanted to ask you that they're in this vein, but keep going, you're.
But yeah, I mean, that's that's the thing. I hope that uh, whatever I do, people are influenced to do good with what they got because people are sure chasing a lot of wind that's not going to fulfill them these days. Yeah. I'm guilty too.
Me too. I'm very guilty. But sometimes it takes me chasing it and getting it to realize, oh, I didn't need it. I've done a lot of that.
I always say it's the they call it fishing, not catching. They call it dreaming for reason, it's fun to chase them. So I think it's it's more fun to chase a dream than to catch it. There's a certain balance there you know.
A lot of the stuff that I thought was super important, and I still think some of it is, but just for different reasons.
Now you know what, Well, it's all important. It's all important to our stories.
I'll say that I gotta find my The new iPhone has updated, and there are some really great things about it, but I can't find my favorites folder. Now it's like, you have you guys updated your I phone. Okay, there's some cool things.
One you can send a text on, so I don't update until all my friends.
He's on i ones, he's on the verson one's iPhone.
It still says dial up as it's ringing.
Sending a text on Timer is now really cool for me because my schedule is so weird. If I wake up at three thirty in the morning and I want to return a text, I don't really send it then because I think I want to wake somebody up with it, right. So at times I'd be like, I'll just text them at eleven, then I forget and then never text them back, and I hate that about me. But now you can on then with a new update time the text. I think it's a great, great part awesome. Yes, So that's one of the new things. The bad thing is I can't have my favorites folder, and I have these questions and it's driving me out of my mind because I was like, oh, I'm gonna run these through Eric, so nobody go anywhere?
Everybody, Eric where? What what album? Did you?
Not?
Really? It was called nice Guy and this guy, Bobby Bones was actually in the music video. It was awesome, And uh.
Wait, are you doing a joke thing? Because I'm gonna rolling out py attention to you right now. But if you're not doing a.
Joke, I'll also put out an album called even If It Breaks your barefoot Friday Night. Now, I went and.
Recorded now he's doing a joke thing?
It's and I went and sang even if It breaks your heart myself. If you'd like to hear me.
Some Mike Kevin, can you pull up your phone?
Yeah? Can you find the favorites folder? I do see how it's difficult to find? Where is it? Walk me to it? Well, I just swipe all the way down and then you get the search thing that comes back up and then I just type favorites. Oh my god, if that's all I needed to do. But it does a late it's kind of hidden now favorites. Yeah, I found it.
That was it? Okay?
Top results, dude. I'm it's one of two things. And Eric, who can tell me this? Either I am now old or this is just too new and I can't figure it out yet. And it could also be both.
But I do not.
I don't see it. I don't know. Man. What are you play? Are you playing golf? You said that?
Hey, yeah, I'm actually I'm having a I'm doing my first Eric pass Slays. Uh. It's going to be the Eric Passlay Breakthrough T one D Classics. So we'll raise money for TAP one diabetes in August. So where is that He's going to be here in Nashville?
Are you invited? I'll play?
Come on, how I'll do it. We'll get Gator and you and all the famous friends.
How's your how's ibtes going?
All good?
Is that a real question? I mean I know no, yeah, no, I mean.
I wear a pump. I get to be a dexcom Warrior. So where a dex come and both of them communicate with each other. So, I mean, just the it's amazing. In the thirty years I've had Type one diabetes, the just the advances in technology. It's amazing my cell phone. I can give myself insulin from my cell phone. It'll tell my pump to do it. So it's it's pretty dang amazing.
And just your short life of being a teenager to adult, like technology has evolved so much.
With that, Yep, that's crazy. It's great. Okay, I have my question.
I found them all right, and I had these say just for you, like some of them because I was like, Eric's a deep thinker.
He also squirrels a lot, and I like that.
About you, Like I can go down a tangent. I'll chase a tangent not all day.
Man, if your next five years were a chapter in a book, your next five years from today, Yeah, what do you think? Think that chapter would.
Be about recreation? Howso I'm realizing I'm in the next chapter artists wise and all that in a way doing that, I mean, I you know, I hopefully it would involve music that gets heard a television show of me diying stuff.
And we tried on weilot.
I know, and maybe that I might write a book because people keep saying you should write books because I talk in songwriter language that they like, and what kind of book about what I have no idea. I'd assume inspirational or something that just the creative inspiration. I don't know when you hit the roadblock where you.
Go next question?
Been around the rock?
What would you do if you were not afraid?
I wouldn't care as much about things that don't matter, and definitely about people that don't matter. Although people matter. About people's opinions, I would not care at all about someone's opinions as long as I know I'm leading with love.
Do you feel like you've been able to change with that over the last few years? Are getting better at it? Worse out?
Oh? Yeah?
Just different at it?
Oh? Especially yeah, I mean in uh uh yeah, I mean being an independent artists now. It's like, you know, I've had to deal with a lot of things, you know, looking back at the past and regrets and I should have could as and blah blah blah.
What has gone really well in your life so far?
Honestly, I'm pretty dang lucky. It's all gone pretty damn well. You know. Obviously, I'd love to still have a major record deal because it means i'd be on the radio, I'd have better shots at it.
It doesn't matter as much anymore.
I know that. And I know that too, like.
It doesn't matter and it's significant, but not as much. You know, you don't need it anymore. Yeah, you know, for you have a hundred songs.
I'm good. I'm playing seventy to eighty shows a year. It's good. I'm good. But yeah, sorry, had PTSD. What was the question?
No, I was asking what's really why, really right? And you said lucky and I I'd meet that if it's okay to meet that with. I think you have obviously worked extremely hard, and I think you've made great relationships, and I think at times you prioritize different parts of your life, and with any prior prioritization, you're going to gain some parts and you're gonna lose some parts. I think, though, that I just have trouble with luck because I don't see you. I see you having made a lot of great decisions, and I don't think that was lucky.
Yeah, I uh, it's uh. I've had that. I've had the right yes is at the right time. Still wanted more yeses. I don't want uh, And I'm fine with the ones that didn't say yes.
What lesson have you learned the hard way.
Hmmm, say what you need to say when it's time to say it. Hold your tongue too, It's tough. There's a couple of them to hold your tongue. Stuff. Sometimes the person driving the car is not your therapist.
Now, is that specifically about an uber driver you've had, or is that more of a metaphor.
I'll just say on when the person selling your song, here's you needing therapy. They're probably not going to sell your song very well. Why didn't my song work? Oh my gosh? What should we do? Why tell new artists that, like, hey, I'm telling you too much. No, that's I tell new artists when you're on radio tour, like your your radio promo person is there to sell you. And if they walk into the radio station and they have fear in their eyes because you have doubt because everybody does, don't do that. Don't do that.
What's the best thing about being.
You, man? I get to be creat and I'm paid for it. I actually get to I get to use one of my best gifts to make a living. That's insane. That's crazy, But also the the insane part of it is I've learned me It's like I literally move air for a living. It's intangible. I literally make stuff up. It might be from a real story. So like the reason I renovate houses and build I'm literally just was building a new pantry for Natalie this morning and finished it up, got the door on the hinges and all this that. But it's because it's tangible. It's like the light is on. It's not an opinion, it's it. You don't have to tell me if you like this song or not. You don't have to tell me if the light is on or not. It is a factual fact that there's electricity by code going to it and it's on.
Do you need that to match the exact opposite of that.
Yes, I think so. Just it stables me out and h and also it means I can sit and just think and you know, move dirt and a skid steer it three questions.
What do you wish other people knew about you that they may not?
Huh, I don't know. I'm pretty open book most of the time. I'm not sure we've got all the time in the World's podcast. I will say, I mean, you know, I wish people saw a show, come see me sing songs. I'll play shows a lot these days, and like an amazing compliment but also just kind of a stab in my creative heart is people will walk up and be like, you're the best singer I've ever heard. How come I've never heard of you? And you're like, like, that is the sweetest, awesomest thing you could tell to me, other than I have nothing to do with if you ever have it? Like Bobby Bones played me where have you been?
Yeah? Yeah, I can see where.
Both And that being said, I also love it because, like, well, go check out my songs. You can hear me sing them too, and go listen to some I've written to left. What's your favorite thing to do in the world. I'm not going to accept songwriting or no I got you.
Yeah, I want to accept that. Uh.
My favorite thing is seeing something I did impact people in a really awesome positive way. That feels good because it means whatever I did mattered, not for my ego, but knowing that my goal is that's my goal.
Final question, what's the one mistake that you learned from the most.
I think losing a record deal. I think there's a lot of mistakes I may be made. I still I believe that it was a mistake. I believe that I made little mistakes and sometimes like, ah, if I was more clever, if I was more of this or that. Obviously I'm still I've let go of it, but being here with you hanging out it makes me listen a little bit you made though, Yeah, there would have been like you said, I think at the time at times that I was renovating more stuff than I needed to do, but it was keeping me sane in the in the world of chasing the the neon rainbow of radio and everything. I don't know. I mean, I think that's uh, just looking back at wishing certain songs worked and knowing that I still have so many songs that I know will impact people in a good way. It's just like I wish I had a quicker way to get this to people, even though I do with social media and all that.
Those hundred songs are those songs though that are also being pitched at the same time.
I mean, they could be you sent the publisher. I mean, I think they're getting played for people. I assume that they are. But majority of artists like writing it these days, you know, and there's great a majority of artists are writers. But yeah, but it's uh yeah, I mean, and I mean, if anybody wants to hear the hundred songs, just send me a text. I got more.
Here's his number.
Five five five.
Tell me about song and a hat.
A giant leprechaun. Oh, song and a hat. So I started doing the show. I've done two so far, and I just kind of thought, like, man, what would be a cool songwriter experience type of show? Because we do songwriter rounds where we you know, set three or four chairs up, you have songwriters who also could be artists, et cetera, and we tell a story, play a hit, tell a story, play a song, tell a story, play a song a number no one's ever heard for anybody that's never been to a songwriter around. It's really common in Nashville. But I was like, man, there could be some other experiences. And the main thing why I call it song and a hat as we pass around brown hats like I wear all the time, and every audience member, if they would like to, can put in a song title, and at a certain point in the show, like after a couple of songs that we play, I'll literally draw a song title out of the hat whatever I pull, the person that wrote it down comes up on stage and we write this song for about ten fifteen minutes. Because people are always like, how do you write a song? Like, I don't know, just watch us. You know, there's not one way to do it. You know. You throw around ideas and think, well, if this was the soundtrack, what soundtrack would be playing, if this is the theme. You know, that's kind of how I think of it. So literally, at our live show, we write a song with a complete stranger, and I teach them like, hey, there's four of us on stage, you own your share of the song. This For some reason, we ever finished this song and Keith Urban cuts it. You own a fourth of it, because that's the right thing to do, in my opinion. And then and then after we've we've done it a couple of show, I picked two titles throughout the show, so a couple of people wrote with this fun stage ammenst us amongst us, playing hit songs and telling stories like a regular show. And then I have a paper shredder on stage and at the when I'm done picking songs, I literally say, hey, by the way, these these song titles are not copyrightable, Like I could literally write every single one of these ideas, and so I like, keep your ideas, those few silly people and shredded up. Christian Bush was on the first show and he said, look, dreams being shredded right before your eyes. You know, that's fun. And so it's just you know, really creative confetti that goes in there. But and then I also have a thing called the first take work tape session, where I've got my tape recorder and I have all the writers send me a work tape, which is the first recording of a song you've written before anybody's ever heard it, and it's ever famous. So the audience gets to hear kind of the first version of Barefoot bleeg Niter, even for Bigture Harder, you know, Christian with it. It was like a sugar Land hit, you know. So it's a fun show. We're doing it at Chiefs Downtown, a cool, cool theater. It's almost it's pretty much every month.
Oh yeah, yeah, there was.
Got I copied a bunch of the songs you get written, and we naturally went through a lot of them anyway, but just kind of in this there was something that's written about you. I thought was hilarious, because not everything written is true. Things about me the people to write just aren't true sometimes. Yeah, and I'm going to read a note that I saw that and knew wasn't true. Ready, He's married to country singer Natalie Hemby.
That's awesome. You wouldn't know something awesome. I've totally texted Natalie Hemby things that I meant to send to my wife, whose maiden name is Natalie Harker. But that's amazing.
Eric married country music songwriter performing Natalie Hemby in twenty seventeen. She and luckily I know Natalie too. Natalie Hemby didn't know that's not true. She's a fellow Nashville songwriter, and the couple shared love of music makes for a creative partnership.
That is amazing.
Congratulations on your thank you.
I love you, Natalie.
Fictional marriage, We'll go.
That's awesome, dude. I'm so happy to see you. I am glad that you're here. I am glad to you look.
Good, good to you. That's hanging more in person.
You got your beard keeps you looking like the same age as you were before.
You know, it's just I'm less of the giant leprecauns.
Do you have any gray in there?
There's a little bit happening. Yeah, let's see it. I just put it in there to make people think I'm aging. Oh, you add the gray part of the witchery. I like that, you know, and.
Read's blown away by the fact that he didn't know that we wrote When I Grow Up. But I do like that. You think I wrote Barefoot Blue ge and I so thank you for that, Reef. Basically I wrote, Yeah, I wrote all of his songs.
If we're up to you, he was the influence for them. All.
You guys go follow Eric on Instagram.
We said all this in the pre but I'll up a page now which Instagram at Eric Eric pas La follow at Eric Passlay, and we'll be looking for that one hundred song album.
Hi, they'll only be probably twelve, but what a letdown.
We'll be looking looking for those eight albums albums. We'll do it eight sixteen. Yeah.
I mean, maybe I'll just put a song out every day, so.
I just book a world record. I just saw the guy who broke the record again for one every week. You could do every day easily. It's at the record. You got to produce them all though that's time and money.
Man, Well you just pay the producer that wrote it with you in the room. Demo, there's no such thing as a demo. They're all records.
Sure, it's a good point. You guys go follow Eric Eric Passlai.
Thanks for listening to a Bobby Cast production
