Brave One

Album: Hope (2021)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jim Lauderdale was worried he'd never be able to perform live again, and his fears stifled his creativity until he found hope and started writing songs to help others find it too. On "Brave One," from his 2021 album, Hope, the singer-songwriter encourages frontline healthcare workers to press on in the face of adversity.

    "During this nightmarish period, these folks are real heroes that are putting their lives out there for us," he explained on American Songwriter's Off The Record podcast in 2021.
  • While healthcare workers were at the forefront of his mind when he wrote the song, Lauderdale said it could apply to any other brave ones who risk their lives for others. "Anybody that's in some kind of service, whether it be military or what - just people that are risking their lives and sticking their necks out," he told Paste Magazine in 2021.
  • In the lyrics, Lauderdale tries to make sense of the state of the world and asks that the third eye on our heads would be opened and the meaning to be revealed. This is a reference to Eastern spiritual philosophies that suggest there's an invisible third eye on the forehead that represents wisdom that can't be attained through ordinary sight.
  • Lauderdale co-produced the album with his longtime collaborator and bassist Jay Weaver. It was recorded at Nashville's Blackbird Studio, where students at the Blackbird Academy, the studio's in-house audio-engineering school, engineered the bulk of the release.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

James Bond Theme Songs

James Bond Theme SongsMusic Quiz

How well do you know the 007 theme songs?

Dexys (Kevin Rowland and Jim Paterson)

Dexys (Kevin Rowland and Jim Paterson)Songwriter Interviews

"Come On Eileen" was a colossal '80s hit, but the band - far more appreciated in their native UK than stateside - released just three albums before their split. Now, Dexys is back.

Director Wes Edwards ("Drunk on a Plane")

Director Wes Edwards ("Drunk on a Plane")Song Writing

Wes Edwards takes us behind the scenes of videos he shot for Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley and Chase Bryant. The train was real - the airplane was not.

Metallica

MetallicaFact or Fiction

Beef with Bon Jovi? An unfortunate Spandex period? See if you can spot the true stories in this Metallica version of Fact or Fiction.

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," Kiss

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," KissSong Writing

After cutting his teeth on hardcore punk videos, Paul defined the grunge look with his work on "Hunger Strike" and "Man in the Box."

Spooner Oldham

Spooner OldhamSongwriter Interviews

His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."