Country singer and songwriter Josh Thompson has been logging time in the studio, hard at work on the followup to his Columbia Nashville debut, Way Out Here, which has yielded the hits “Beer On The Table” and “Way Out Here.” New songs continue to spill out of the Wisconsin native and former construction worker, who compares songwriting to a drug. “If I’m not writing a song for any period of time, I’m really hard to be around,” he says. “I get kind of crabby.” We asked Thompson about co-writing, mixing music and religion, and touring with Dierks Bentley.
Is your approach to this record any different from your previous one?
It’s definitely different, because I‘ve had time to specifically write for this record for the last year and a half. The time frame allows me more time to get to the studio and try different things out, and find that live sound that we deliver every night. It’s been more of a slower process because we had the time.
Are the songs that have gone up on your website recently, “Got To Go To Heaven” and “I’d Be On a Boat Somewhere,” going to be on the new album?
Those are some of the first songs we cut. Being out and playing every night gives you the opportunity to test the song; see if anybody gets it, to see if it works, and it may be the deciding factor on whether or not we’ll cut it for the record. We’ve been playing them live and been getting a great response. So, we’ve already put those on the record.
Do you remember writing them, and what inspired them?
Yeah. The “Got To Go To Heaven” song, I was at the Key West Songwriter’s Festival about three years ago. We were sitting at the Green Parrot, it was about three in the morning, and we’d had somebody mention that. So, we wrote about the Green Parrot on the bar napkin. We came up with the “Boat Somewhere” song in Washington that we came up with the title. We finished it in Cancun about a month ago, so that’s been going on for about eight months now.
Both of those songs are co-writes. When you co-write, how does it work?
I usually go in with an idea, or a theme for a song, but it comes out both ways. There may be a riff first, so it never really happens the same way twice. That’s for sure.
Of the songs you are recording now, were there any that were particularly easy to write, or difficult?
Well, “Got To Go To Heaven” was extremely easy. I think we wrote it in a half hour. We would have completely forgotten about it had it not been for the bar napkin. “I’d Be On a Boat Somewhere” was extremely difficult a lot of times, just because we wanted to be sure that we got it right.
You’ve been able to write songs with religious themes. Is that something that is particularly hard to pull off?
No, it seems to be a common theme for me, because religious ideas are a common theme in my life. It kind of can’t help but spill over in my music.
You’re also producing an album by country artist Chris Cavanaugh. What attracted you to him?
I’ve known him for probably about four years. We’ve done a bunch of shows together. What attracted me to him, besides the fact that I love his voice, and that I’m a fan of his songwriting and guitar playing, is that he’s got a 100+ shows a year. He’s not sitting around Nashville waiting for someone to discover him. That drive, that initiative, is exactly what I did, and it’s good to see that. It’s cool to see people not waiting around for something to happen; they’re out making something happen.
What do you do as a producer?
Absolutely nothing [laughs]. I think so much of producing is finding the right musicians, because they’re so talented. They’re kind of like songwriters where they can take this empty piece of music, and turn it into something that is so vibey and so cool. Getting the right guys in there, and just being in there to give tips and coach a little bit.
What instruments do you play besides guitar?
I try to leave the musicianship up to the professionals. I would say I’m a pretty good guitar player as far as a songwriter goes, but a horrible guitar player as far as a musician goes [laughs]. If that makes any sense.
Who are some big lyrical influences on your own music?
My biggest is Merle Haggard. I’m a big fan of Waylon, George Jones, and Hank Senior. What drew me to those guys is just how vulnerable they were, and how honest everything was. Nothing was ever put off on something else. When they wrote about it, speaking from their experience, they weren’t afraid to be the bad guy, and to let people see that side of them. I think making themselves vulnerable like that really attracted me.
How’s touring with Dierks Bentley been going?
We were just on the road, it was our first weekend, and it went great. It’s probably the coolest tour I’ve been on. Everything is so easy. The crowds are great, and it’s just fantastic being out there.
You said once that “songwriting is like a drug.” How is songwriting like a drug to you?
It is very much like a drug to me. If I’m not writing a song for any period of time, I’m really hard to be around [laughs]. I get kind of crabby. I don’t know if crabby is the right word. If I do write a song, and I think it’s great, then I’m on this emotional high for about three days. It’s something that would be very hard to stop. It’s something that got infused in my DNA.