James McMurtry released his 11th studio album on June 20. The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy is a collection of songs that continues to cement the reality that McMurtry is, without a doubt, one of the greatest living songwriters today.
Though he’s never been one to pontificate on his own achievements or celebrate the accolades others throw at him, he spent some time catching up with Taste of Country to discuss the new LP.
“The records are kind of tangential nowadays,” he admits.
“Most of what we do is tour. It used to be that we toured to support the records, but now it’s kind of the other way around. We put records out and that helps with the tours because you guys write about us and people will know we’re coming to town.”
McMurtry says he never concerns himself with the details about how his albums are released; instead, he’s focused on maintaining his life on the road.
“We just keep touring and if the record comes out, that’s nice, it helps.”
And because of that, he shared that he feels less pressure when he’s writing and recording albums.
“We don’t have to deal with A&R guys in the studio messing with us or anything like that.”
James McMurtry Reunited With Producer Don Dixon on New Album
Thirty years ago, McMurtry partnered with producer Don Dixon on his third album, Where’d You Hide the Body. For the last three decades, McMurtry always wanted to work with him again and they finally made it happen on The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy.
“Don is a very positive individual,” he says.
“I have my own style of recording, it kind of evolved from working with him and Lloyd Maines, [John] Mellencamp. It’s more of a feel thing.”
As McMurtry explains, over the last 30 years, Dixon has only become a better producer, too.
“Don’s a lot more knowledgeable,” he shares.
“He got into the digital thing right when it first started happening because he knew that’s where this was going. He wasn’t tied to any mythology about analog being better than anything else, he just uses whatever works for him. I fell into that trap on my own, putting out some analog mixes when I should have used the digital mix — I didn’t figure that out until hindsight.”
Beyond his willingness to embrace the evolving world of technology, McMurtry says Dixon also has an inherent ability to feel when something is going right in the studio.
“One thing he is really good at is figuring out when the take is happening,” he adds.
“As it goes down, he knows, this is the one. If I’m producing myself, I’ll do three takes and I’ll come out and listen to them and so that’s 15 minutes to listen to those and decide which one to build on. Don’s got this sense of it, before you leave the room, he’ll come in and say, ‘Stay right where you are,’ and you got it.”
Why James McMurtry Included Two Cover Songs on His New Album
McMurtry has been known to include a cover song or two on his albums throughout his career and that tradition, if you want to call it that, continues on his latest album as he shares his versions of Jon Dee Graham‘s “Laredo (Small Dark Something)” and Kris Kristofferson‘s “Broken Freedom Song.”
“I think it’s the first time I covered one of his songs,” he says of his longtime friend Graham.
McMurtry had performed “Laredo” live in the past, including at a benefit show at Hole in the Wall in Austin, Texas, for Graham.
“We rehearsed it in the studio because that’s where our gear was and so we figured why not record it? It just kind of snuck onto the record that way.”
As for the other cover, McMurtry says that he was in the studio not long after Kristofferson passed away.
“I just went ahead and covered the song because I was there recording already.”
For McMurtry, Kristofferson’s influence on him is foundational to the artist he is today. He was nine years old when he saw Kristofferson live for the first time. That marked the beginning of McMurtry realizing the power of songwriting — not simply writing a song and playing the guitar, but actually crafting meaningful lyrics.
As for that show, McMurtry said he remembers it vividly.
“I remember he had this fringed vest on and he told a story about getting out of a cab in New York City and closing the fringe in the cab door and it goes driving off down the street, 15 miles an hour,” McMurtry says with a slight chuckle.
“He’s beating on the back window, trying to get him to stop.”
The 9 Wildest Kris Kristofferson Stories
Kris Kristofferson isn’t just a legendary songwriting talent, and he’s not just a multi-faceted star of stage, page and screen. He also just might be one of country music’s most fascinating people ever.
Need proof? Let’s look back to the time he gave up a prestigious military career to be a janitor, or the time he landed a helicopter in Johnny Cash’s front yard — and don’t forget the time he sang a duet with Miss Piggy! Flip through the gallery below for a round-up of Kristofferson’s most unforgettable, almost unbelievable, stories through the years.
Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
