From his first single to his current hit “Why Don’t We Just Dance,” Josh Turner has collected a nice string of country music hits that range from the spiritual (“Long Black Train”) to the playful (“Firecracker”) to the romantic (“Your Man”) to everything in between. The constant that has kept everything rolling is his strong baritone voice that recalls the traditional country of yesterday while also remaining relevant to today’s radio tastes. In this interview Josh Turner discusses his upcoming album Haywire along with being part of the Billy: The Early Years film and what song he would love to sing for a John Anderson tribute album.
Matt Bjorke: Your about to release your fourth record Haywire. How has the song selection changed over the course of your fourth albums?
Josh Turner: For me, going into this record anyway, we had found some songs before we even thought about starting the new record. And one of the songs, actually one of the first songs we found in this process was “Why Don’t We Just Dance” and had anticipated getting started on the record when we wanted to but we were contacted by another artist about whether we were going to cut the song and out of respect for that artist, I went in and recorded it to see if it was something that we really wanted to keep. So we went in and cut a great track on it and from that point we went in and finished the record. It took about 8 months to complete.
Matt: What songs do you gravitate to at first, the melody or the lyrics or both?
Josh: For me, I normally listen for the melody first because it hast o be something that sounds good on the radio and the record because a lot of times when you’re driving down the road listening to the radio, you normally don’t listen to the lyric or the story of the song right off the bat, particularly when you’re driving and paying attention to the road or have other things on your mind. But if it sounds good, that’s gonna compel you to listen to the lyric and see what it really has to say so I’m normally looking for that good audible quality to it?
Matt: So how is Haywire different or similar to your previous records? Is it maybe that you recorded it differently?
Josh: In a lot of ways it’s similar to the previous albums but in other ways it’s different. I think the one thing that’s really different about this record is that it’s more along the commercial lines of what a record would be and there’s a lot more energy, I think, that comes through not only in the up-tempo songs but the ballads and story songs too. There’s a whole lot of energy in the record that makes you want to get up and dance, tap your feet or dance (laughs)…
Matt: or listen to while driving your truck….
Josh: Exactly…
Matt: How has the recording process changed over the years, has your producer Frank Rogers challenged you to go places with your voice that maybe you haven’t tried before?
Josh: The recording process has become a little more comfortable, a little more relaxed because Frank and I have been working together over four albums and some of these musicians have been working with us since the beginning or since my “Your Man” record and so they’ve really come to understand what we really want out of a song. They also understand, too, that what we’re willing to take a risk and think outside the box. And since we’ve been working together for so long they’re able to go in and cut a track without much guesswork and it streamlines the process.
As for Frank and myself, we’ve really got a routine going. I go in right around the same time to do my vocals and we have a process where we just don’t rush it. Sometimes it takes two to three hours and sometimes it may take five hours, you just never know. It just depends on the kind of day we’re having. He just allows me to get in there and be creative and he does push me to get the best out of me but he’s never one to make me do something that I’m uncomfortable with. Usually I’m the one who is going to stretch my voice and he’s there to tell me if it sounds good (laughing)…
Matt: And that’s usually the sign of a good producer, they let the artist go where they want to go while not forcing them to sing a high note that they possibly havn’t sung since 10 years old…
Josh: (laughing)…Oh yeah, exactly…
Matt: What made Just Dance the right song to preview the Haywire album? Was it because you found it first?
Josh: We knew we were going to put that song on the record and I knew right off the bat that it had a potential to be a hit. We had actually contemplated putting the single out before the album was finished but then decided to finish the record. When we finished we still thought that “Just Dance” should be the first single and I’m glad we made the right choice with it sitting in the Top 10 [as of late January 2010], so it’s looking great.
Matt: One of the songs on Haywire is a cover of a Don Williams song called “I Wouldn’t Be A Man.” What drew you to record this song (which was also recorded by Billy Dean)?
Josh: It was emailed to me by Frank’s assistant one morning before I went into the studio basically to see what I thought about I and that song really helped me to remember why I’m doing this and what songs I need to look for when recording albums. Because this song in particular, it has a very classic and timeless feel, with a very unique melody with a very heartfelt, positive message and a different way of writing a lyric, It’s just classic Don Williams. He was one of the best at choosing great songs and the fact that he cut the song proves that he thought a lot of it and was always consistent about picking songs with the classic and timeless feel. It got me really excited about going into the studio that day and not only does it remind me of the type of song I need to be looking for but when I heard it, I also felt strongly that I could make it a Josh Turner song, make it my own. I was very pleased with how it turned out and now there’s talk of it being a single at some point…
Matt: Oh I can see that and it feels like it’s a strong partner with “Your Man.” In fact, even if it’s not a single it would probably get great fan reaction if it were put into the set with “Your Man”…
Josh: Oh, absolutely.
Matt: So you played George Beverly Shea in Billy: The Early Years, What drew you to that project?
Josh: They came to me with that role to see if I was interested in doing it and I knew that it was a low budget kind of thing but it’s something that I’ve always thought about, doing some acting, but it’s not something that I’ve made a priority or something I perused but this role came along and it was tailor-made for me in many ways. It was shot here in Nashville, it was a small part, and it required me to go in and sing. It also was a role that allowed me to portray a man that I had looked up to for many years. I’ve said in pretty often in many interviews in the past that growing up as a Christian in the south and the Bible belt that Billy Graham and George Beverly Shea were like Batman and Robin. They were like superheroes to us and so I jumped at the opportunity to play George Beverly Shea in this movie.
It’s funny you asked me about this because a few of days ago Ricky Skaggs called me from North Carolina and he was actually out there visiting George Beverly Shea and put him on the phone I got to talk to talk to him for the first time.
Matt: That had to be an honor, right up there with other meetings for you…
Josh: Oh, absolutely! It was very much an honor and he told me how he had a signed picture of me in his office and I was blown away by that. Because he’s about to turn 101 so he’s been there, done that and experienced a lot and shows no signs of slowing down either. Because, people I talk to say he’s got the energy of a teenager.
Matt: Speaking of gospel stuff. Each of your albums has featured a Gospel song or two. Would you want to record a Gospel or southern Gospel record in the future?
Josh: Absolutely. I’d love to do that some day and I’ve always had a desire to do that but I don’t think it’s the right time in my career just yet to do that, as I’m still trying to establish myself as a country hit maker but yeah, that’s definitely on my list of things to do in the future and something that’s always been close to my heart but the timing will have to be right for something like that.
Matt: You’ve recorded several songs for various projects over the years like for a tribute album for the Band (“When I Paint My Masterpiece”). If somebody was making a tribute album for one of your favorites, who would it be and what song would it be?
Josh: Man, that’s a loaded question right there… (laughs) I’m trying to figure out the artist at first. The obvious one would be Randy Travis as he’s one of my big heroes and I can do any song that he’s ever done but I don’t know if that’d be the best answer…golly….
Matt: Let’s say if they were doing a record for John Anderson…
Josh: If they were doing a tribute for John, and I think they should (laughs), Man, I’d probably like to do something like “I Wish I could’ve Been There.” I think it’s such a great song and there are a lot of people can relate to it and it has a great story behind it. John had invited Kent Robbins out on the road with him and Kent was a great songwriter here in town but he’s not one who wanted to be away from his family. And he got out on the road for two or three days and it drove him crazy thinking how people could sleep in those bunks every day going down the road…(both laughing)…He got really homesick. So he and John sat down there in the bus and wrote “I Wish I Could’ve Been There.” And it’s basically about a guy who’s always out on the road away from his family missing things while working and it turns in the last verse to find the man celebrating an anniversary with his wife and his children saying that they wished they could’ve been there. So it’s a pretty real song.
Matt: Yeah, I was growing up when that song was popular and I still hear it on the radio now and it actually segues nicely into my next question about how great is it for you to be able to go back to your bus and have your wife and children there?
Josh: You know, words can’t describe that. To turn around on stage to see my wife back there on stage playing piano and background vocals and to go off the stage and be greeted by my 3 year old coming up and givin’ me a hug and being able to hold my seven month old out there as well. So it’s really a blessing. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Matt: Well, I think it’s a good thing because then you don’t have to think “I Wish I Could’ve Been There” for the children’s life events.
Josh: (laughing) exactly.
Matt: How special was it for you to be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry as a member in 2007?
Josh: It was a big honor and the Opry has always been a big part of country music history and I started playing there back in 2001 and I’ve played there 105 times since then. I’m no stranger to the Opry stage and they’ve always treated me like family so I’m very honored to be an official part of the Opry family.
Matt: How has the internet helped you remain in contact with your fans?
Josh: I think it’s been a big asset. I think the internet was made for fan clubs and fan clubs were made for the internet. My fan club is strictly on line and we have a big online community as far as Josh Turner fans are concerned and we’ve been able to sell a lot of records online and fans are able to go watch my videos. It’s been a valuable asset to give fans access to us and they’re able to buy albums or merchandise or donate to our charitable fund.
Matt: Speaking about that fund, perhaps there are some fans out there that don’t know about it. What can you tell us about it?
Josh: It’s a music scholarship fund that my wife and I set up back in 2005. This past year school year was the first time that we had our first recipient of the scholarship. It’s to go to a student who comes from a school that is lacking in music classes or don’t have many opportunities to help send these music students to college. We sell bracelets with the name of the fund on it and we auction things off through the website and at the fan club party every year so we can send America’s youth to college for music and arts.
Matt: Well, this seems like the perfect place to conclude our interview. Thank you for speaking with Roughstock today.
Josh: Thank you.
For more information on Josh Turner and the Josh Turner Scholarship Fund you can visit his website by clicking here.
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