Brad Paisley is one of the best songwriters in music. Yeah I’m biased, but it’s my blog. Paisley’s style of writing veers from intimate to heartbreaking to hilarious. Sitting comfortably?
Whiskey Lullaby walks the line between despair and intimacy through the vocal contrast of Alison Krauss and Paisley. It describes a haunting story of two lovers and a Wuthering Heights/Romeo and Juliet-style heartbreak. I Wish You’d Stay is a faintly gut-wrenching take on the end of a relationship: “I left a map on your front seat/just in case you lose your way/but don’t worry, once you reach Sallisaw/it’s all Interstate.” There are also some strings thrown in there for good measure, but it’s the story that always gets me. It isn’t angry, there’s no animosity or fire, it’s soft and regretful. It’s about a relationship which, for reasons unknown, couldn’t work out. Sometimes those are the worst of all; nobody’s done anything wrong, you’re just not the same people you once were. The force of having to come to terms with this and the pain involved is perfectly captured in this song.
New Favourite Memory. “You’re fumbling round in the bedroom/trying to put on your shoes/hair half down, dress half on/looking like you’re about to blow a fuse.” It’s so simple. It’s also completely accurate if you’re a woman and you’ve had to get ready for something in a rush, but that’s the beauty of it. It perfectly romanticises the quiet security that comes with a happy, long-term relationship. The verses and chorus flit between time signatures (4/4 and 3/4 respectively) and it’s this waltzy rhythm in the chorus that lends another texture to the serenity of the images conjured.
I legitimately don’t know where to start with the hilarity of some of these songs. High Life, a song about a white trash family who will sue anyone for anything; I’m Gonna Miss Her, when a man chooses between his love for fishing and his girlfriend – “I’m sure it’ll hit me/ when I walk through that door tonight/ that I’m gonna miss her/ oh, lookie there, I’ve got a bite.” Camouflage, taking the mick out of the invisibility joke and Online and Selfie #theinternetisforever are commentaries on internet dating and the tastelessness of Instagram culture. The first time you listen to these songs is joyous because you don’t think they can get funnier as they go along, but they really do.
A third category that Brad Paisley excels in is the social commentary song. Take Those Crazy Christians – “A famous TV preacher has a big affair and then/one tearful confession and he’s born again again.” The song draws attention to a really interesting topic, as well as inviting an unexpected examination of one’s moral compass. Welcome to the Future expresses amazement at the developments of the world around us compared to fifty years ago, also paired with a sombre reminder of the difficulties surrounding race relations in America.
After examining the lyrical aspect of a lot of these songs, it’s also impossible not to mention the obvious; Brad Paisley is also a shit-hot guitarist. Play, his album from 2008, is mostly instrumental and contains some of the most infuriating chicken-picking known to man – Cluster Pluck is basically the Eruption of the country music world and features a smorgasbord of guitarists renowned for their finger-picking prowess .
I could go on and on about so many of Brad Paisley’s songs, but I’ll leave it at this, hoping that someone will go away and find a song of his which resonates with them. Believe me, you’ve got a wide variety of themes to choose from.