Superlatives
A Vulture series in which artists judge the best and worst of their own careers.
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Favorite Drive-By Truckers song
Decoration Day, because it was the first one that I wrote.
I remember it felt really good when Patterson [Hood, lead singer] heard it and liked it.
Our bass player at the time, Earl Hicks, heard it first.
He didnt like it at all, which is hilarious.
Hes like, No, I dont think thats gonna work for us.
Then when Patterson heard it, he was blown away.
So that one will probably always be my favorite.
And they named the album after it, which was just amazing for me at 22 years old.
I was really cocky back then.
And I guess I still kind of am I just know when to keep my mouth shut.
Theyre gonna shit themselves.Then Earl was like, No, this is not gonna work.
Im like, Well, youre just a bass player, dude.
Best guitar-playing moment
On the new record, I think Overseas went really well.
That was one of those that I felt really good about because it started with the riff.
But I wrote that song as a guitar player.
And then the tone of that still really makes me happy.
And we did a cover of Brothers in Arms at the Ryman [in 2019] before the pandemic.
I thought that sounded really good.
I hit one terribly bad note, but other than that, it was really good.
Best guitarist youve played with
Oh, man, Ive been lucky that way.
And theyve all, for the most part, been very merciful.
That gives me faith in humanity.
Man, that guy can play.
He doesnt sound like anybody else.
Everybody in my family was very proud of me.
Writing anything for a woman is scary enough, you know?
Because in most ways they could just swat us away like a fly.
So Im really proud of that one.
First of all, Im a fan of Bruce Hornsby.
Theres nothing wrong with this album.
Like, what kind of sense does that make?
I think its pretty obvious that whoever writes the review should be the person giving the damn ratings.
But, you know, Im no critic.
I wrote that song to my wife.
All of a sudden, now Ive got something to talk about.
So that was a huge gift for me.
But thats okay with me.
Im not gonna take away their enjoyment of it.
Whatever they think its about can be what its about.
Then you should probably speak up.
So White Mans World was a tough one for that reason.
I knew there would be a lot of pissed-off conservatives.
Well, fuck them.
Thats the point I wanted there to be a lot of pissed-off conservatives.
That meant a lot.
Those problems should have been solved a long time ago.
So that one took some care and some caution.
That made it more doable for me, but it was definitely a challenge.
Its because theyre scared of saying anything more specific than that.
This was beforeA Star Is Bornor before Cover Me Up kind of became part of the country-music consciousness.
Im by myself, and that was my song on TV before the big football game.
That was really weird, but its always good.
I never mind that situation but it was just a strange place to be in.
And he was cool with that, so thats what we did.
I asked John about it years ago.
But, I heard you rip me off in some other songs.
And then he wouldnt tell me which ones.
You had to let John be John.
She didnt realize that that was John, you know?
So she said, Thats you!
Thats you that sings that song!
He was just delighted.
He was overjoyed that she would sing that song.
He stood there and sang it with her.
Theres a lot of good ones, but that was my favorite.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
