Well, the bad news is that Jill beat me. (Though it was close!) The good news is that I beat my last run’s time by 5 1/2 minutes. Which is huge. It was frozen out there, psycho cold and windy, but a lot of fun. Here are Jill and I post-race.

I also took this picture of Andy G, and I turned into an album cover and sent it to him. I thought it’d be fun to see what you guys could come up with. Here’s the cover photo. What does Andy’s next record need to look like/be called? I await your glorious replies.

I’m running a 5k at the Nashville Zoo today and I’ve programmed my iPod for the perfect mix. The first two sets of three songs will be about ten minutes each, so I can keep track of where I am. If I hit the finish line during U2 I’ll have creamed my last time. If I hit it during “The End” I’ll still have beaten it, but it will have been close.

Crowded House – “Don’t Stop Now”
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “Into the Great Wide Open”
Big Bang – “All The Time”
Pearl Jam – “Brain of J”
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers – “I Won’t Back Down”
The White Stripes – “Rag and Bone” (my current favorite song)
Arcade Fire – “No Cars Go”
Crowded House – “Nobody Wants To”
U2 – “Get On Your Boots”
The Beatles – “The End”

I figure I’ll hit my old time at about the second verse of…

Beyonce – “Single Ladies”

So here’s hoping we can avoid that. (Even though that song is kind of awesome.)

More to come after the race…

I’ve been having a great time at the studio this week. I’ve been writing songs with Andy Gullahorn and Steve Hindalong, and yesterday we finished up the electric guitars on Eric Peters‘ new record, which will be fantastic. Ben Shive is producing it, and we came up with some great stuff.

We also started enforcing a dress code…

You also need to know a little bit more about our assistant at Sputnik, Josh (aka the SoupSmith). He’s a wonderful individual, a genius at many, many things. Life would not be the same without him, and that is a lesson he apparently decided to teach us yesterday…

I got an email today from someone asking me “How do I know if I’m ready to make the investment to record an album?” I wrote him back quickly and then the rest of the day kept coming up with different answers to that question.

These different answers were showing up because I kept becoming aware of different ways I ask that same question every day.

I’ve been very blessed to achieve some big goals. I’ve played in an arena, heard myself on the radio, become friends with my heroes. But those are the kinds of goals that are pretty much out of your hands, unless of course you’re crazy rich. A whole series of things beyond your control need to happen to lead you to doing those sorts of things.

Seeing it from that side, and thinking about that original question, I’m coming to realize that the goals we achieve that matter are the ones that we control. I’m much more hit-or-miss with that.

My hit: I started running to try and do a 5k last year. I actually did it and have lost weight and will lose to Jill Phillips handily in another 5k this Saturday. (3pm at the Nashville Zoo, if you want to watch. Gabe Scott will also be there and will run a marathon in the same amount of time.)

My miss: I’ve never written a novel. Barely even a short story. And why? What’s stopping me?

Well, there are good excuses: I have two kids and a career that takes a lot of time.

And there are bad excuses: I’m tired, I don’t really want to do it anyway.

And then, THEN, there are the reasons: I’m scared and I’m lazy. (Lazy, of course, just means I’m scared again, but of hard work.) I want it to be fun, but when I try it’s not fun. It’s hard. Because I don’t know how to do it.

Practicing guitar was not fun. Playing guitar well is some of the most fun you can have on Earth. Why can’t I take that knowledge and move it to another medium? The Reason.

So my answer to the question “how do I know I’m ready to make an album?” is probably the same as the answer to many other questions like it. Because you feel the need and it’s become possible for you. And because otherwise you won’t be ready yet, won’t be ready yet, won’t be ready yet and then one day it will be too late.

It’s like getting married, having a kid, driving a car. You’re never ready. You just decide to do what you feel you need to do, from my perspective this is called “obedience”, and you do it as well as you can and you wait for something supernatural to bless it.

Now, I’ve got to go. I have an empty Chapter 2 to wrestle.

So last night our heat never turned on. It was below 0 outside and in the low 40s in the house. Bummer. Both of our girls have been really sick, and Alison and I haven’t been far behind. I ended up missing a meeting today while waiting for the heat guy to get here. Bummer.

That said, it hasn’t been the worst thing in the world getting to be with the girls today. Ella wants to type her name, so here she is:

ELLA

Caps lock was on, but she did that by herself. That’s a big deal. Also a big deal is that tonight is the Battlestar Galactica season premiere. I don’t want to admit how excited I am. Ok, now she’s going to write another word:

DADDY

Took a bit to get the spelling there, but it’s coming along. We’re about to head to the doctor to get these ladies checked up. Hope you’re all keeping warm.

I produced an EP for an artist named Lindsey Jones last year. It was just released last week, and I was able to play with her at the CD release show. I wanted to share one of the tunes with you, cause I just think it’s really fun.

The band is Paul Eckberg on drums, Jeff Irwin on bass, Ben Shive on keys playing one of the most wicked solos I’ve ever heard, and me playing guitar, trombone and singing a bit.

02-honestly-1.mp3

Lindsey’s a great artist. She has something to say, but she’s not so burdened with it that overtakes the desire to just make music that’s fun to listen to. It was a fun record to make and I hope it does well for her. You can get the record and hear other songs HERE.

(Do any of you Web Ninjas know how to make that file a streaming player? It used to show up like that, now it doesn’t. I have no clue. Thank you!)

In other news, my whole family is under the weather today. Lots of Disney Princess songs on DVD, vitamin C and trying to get some rest. Hope you all are feeling better!

I’m sitting at 3rd and Lindsley, a club in Nashville, about to play a couple CD release shows. Lindsey Jones is a fantastic artist. I produced her EP and I think it was one of the best things I got to work on all year. You can find that HERE. I’ll post one of her songs eventually, because I think you’ll like it, but this internet connection is pretty slow.

I’m also playing with Julianna Zobrist. Mitch produced her EP, which I got to play on. She’s 9 months pregnant. Due in two weeks. Crazy. You can find out about her HERE.

So my first week as a home-bound Nashvillian has been crazy. Just super busy. Good things, but I wish they could be a bit more spread out sometimes!

Alison and I, and a bunch of other friends, got to spend a day and a half listening to author Dan Allender speak. He talked about marriage and it was an incredibly beautiful and inspiring time. I wish I could share it all with you, but to try think of one or two nuggets, the experience bottlenecks in my brain. He’s amazing in that he never tells you “do this” or “five steps to doing THAT”, he just talks about what is true (about pain, God, emotions, escape, contempt, sex, etc…) and then you see that truth revealing to you what needs to be done. Amazing. It’s a really loving way to guide people, and I was grateful to sit under his words for that time.

Finally, for those of you who were actively following my NFL picks for this season, you should click THIS. Next year, if you want to make some money gambling, just call me. It’s obvious I know what’s going on.

Well, I have more to share about this past week, but maybe if I don’t spew it all out in one post I can have some left over and write again tomorrow. Novel thought, eh. Ok, I have to go play now. I just had a cajun chicken sandwich. I’d give it a 7 out of 10. So, now you know.

So the new year is upon us. It’s always such a great reminder of the hope we have, that making a change, starting over, that these things are really possible.

For me this feels a bit less metaphorical this year. A season of change is here, and I think it’s a good one. After a lot of prayer and conversation I’ve decided that this year I’ll be spending off the road. I’m going to dive in deeper with songwriting, production and session guitar work here in Nashville.

I may do a few shows, maybe short solo runs in the Spring and Fall, and I may do a bit with Caedmon’s, but it will be very minimal. I’m ready to be able to more fully invest in my relationships at home, both with my family and my friends, and with work opportunities here in town.

Being gone three days over the weekend means the next three days in town are always spent at home, then you’re about to leave again so you spend the last day at home, thus ensuring you fall off the radar with your friends, unless they’re on the road with you. I’m really excited to not always have a NASA-style countdown to departure running in my background. It will feel weird, I’ve been on the road for eleven years now, but I think it will be good.

I’ll still be playing shows in Nashville, probably more so, and will stay posting and working on solo material. I hope I’m able to keep things interesting on here, and I somehow imagine it will be easier, as I might have some more free time.

So that’s my big news, not that it’s really that huge. I hope that everyone had a great Christmas season and sees hope somewhere in this new year. The AP Christmas tour was, to me, the best and most fun yet. Knowing it would be my last road experience for a while allowed me to really embrace it and enjoy it.

So now it’s time for me to get to work, I have some bgv’s to do today, and a few meetings. You guys have been the most amazing support for the past many years, and I hope it’s just the beginning. Happy New Year.

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The Last Show’s Songs:
Canada
I’ll Be Home Soon