Country

Album: Behind This Guitar (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Mo Pitney's debut single finds him addressing the many meanings of the word "country," concluding that it has more to do with values than with location, as it can happen anywhere. The singer-songwriter penned the song with veteran Nashville songwriters Bill Anderson (Connie Smith's "Once A Day") and Bobby Tomberlin (Diamond Rio's "One More Day") for Diamond Rio after spending hours talking with the pair about their experiences.

    In our interview with Pitney, he said, "It's a song about the word and what we think it means. It might not be totally accurate, but it's what we think it means."
  • Once the trio got down to writing a song about country music and the country lifestyle they all shared, they realized that they were all from different generations, with Bill Anderson the old guard, Pitney the new guy, and Bobby Tomberlin in between. Despite their age differences, they admire the same artists, which include Ray Price, Buck Owens and Merle Haggard. The song was written about a year before Haggard passed away at age 79.
  • There are some pitfalls that come with writing a song about the meaning of "country," which Pitney tried to avoid by watching out for clichés and keeping the focus way from himself, so instead of bragging about his country bona fides, he sings about what the word means.
  • Wes Edwards directed the video, which uses the white backdrop common in film shoots as part of the story, showing how "country" is about the person, not the scenery.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Wedding Bell Blues

Wedding Bell BluesSong Writing

When a song describes a wedding, it's rarely something to celebrate - with one big exception.

Rickie Lee Jones

Rickie Lee JonesSongwriter Interviews

Rickie Lee Jones on songwriting, social media, and how she's handling Trump.

Sarah Brightman

Sarah BrightmanSongwriter Interviews

One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.

Bill Medley of The Righteous Brothers

Bill Medley of The Righteous BrothersSongwriter Interviews

Medley looks back on "Unchained Melody" and "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" - his huge hits from the '60s that were later revived in movies.

Bill Withers

Bill WithersSongwriter Interviews

Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."

The Police

The PoliceFact or Fiction

Do their first three albums have French titles? Is "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" really meaningless? See if you can tell in this Fact or Fiction.