Part 2 of Bob and Monte's conversation with John Arthur Martinez

Such a cool Texan! John Arthur Martinez talks about "Nashville Star" and reveals a connection that Bob and him shared in 1979. What was it? LISTEN

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Hey, it's Bob Pickett. Weare on our way to the legendary Broken
Spoke. Come on, let's getout the truck and head inside. Come
on, let's go and side getready for another tale from the Broken Spoke.

(00:24):
Well, I hope you enjoyed partyone. Now let's get back to
the conversation. Monty and I aretalking to John Arthur Martinez. It's Tales
the Broken Spoke and nobody you broughtup you know Kent's name. We really
have not paid proper homage the Kentat all, and we need to plan
a future podcast when we do that, you know, because he influenced so
many people, and I mean justthe greatest friend a songwriter, yeah,

(00:48):
ever had. And it's it's greatthat that Randy Rogers is carrying on the
tradition we cheat him right now.You probably have noticed you ever see Parker
McCollum usually on TV. Occasionally hewill wear a cheat him street hat,
which is it's nice and everything.Let's get back to you though, because
the Pride of Marble falls class innineteen seventy nine, Yes, the champion
disco dancer. So eighty six you'replaying down at Headliner's East and that's where

(01:14):
MONI saw you for the first time. Right, what was that? Wasn't
just your day job? You hadother jobs of sides picking around here,
didn't you. Well, there wasa period where I was as kind of
off the grid is a good wayof putting it. You know. I
had friends who let me stay attheir places. I didn't have a home

(01:36):
like I have now with my lovelywife, right, celebrating twenty five years
this year of marriage. So Ididn't have a home like that then.
I sometimes default it might be myfolks couch, you know, it might
be for a while there it wasmy buddy's couch, or behind sleeping back
behind the couch because he wanted mesleeping on the couch behind the couch in

(01:57):
Tucson, Arizona. For a coupleof years. Uh, left Texas,
went to Tucson. I was therethinking I was going to get a graduate
degree. But all I did waswrite songs and play gigs. Hey,
that is a graduate degree, man, Now, let me tell you.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, youwere a Rhodes scholar. You didn't know
it back then. Yeah, onthe road and well, because I like
and I knew because John Arthur andI we've we've written together. We've been

(02:21):
blessed to write a top forty recordtogether on on his record. Great just
did a great, great record.I just played it if I didn't care.
I played that on Saturday, andDad gummed if I didn't start weeping
when I hadn't played it in awhile. Man, such a such a
strong team. We wrote this amazingcat Tommy Connors. But uh, you
were you were? I mean,were you really caught lightning in a bottle?

(02:44):
Was on the Is it the firstthe first season of Nashville Star?
Yes, it was season one?And what was that two thousand and two?
Two two thousand and two or three? And they had their big nationwide
cattle call. Now where did theyhave that? Someplace very close by We're
sitting at the Willie Booth. Itwas about seventy five yards to the east

(03:07):
on that stage. Spoke yes,and it was uh Tracy Gershawan who was
at She was at CBS, thenSony she was then you know, and
uh and Charlie Robinson was there.But now Tracy and Charlie that was all
this part of this thing of uhuh to Winnow it downs from like what

(03:29):
was it like from twenty to fiveor something or something like that. They
had they had thousands originally they uhand and what Tracy did was she hired
all all throughout the country. Sheshe hired these different people that had been
in major label an rs to gothrough literally about one hundred cassettes and and
there were cassette tapes, not evenCDs. And Tracy hired uh one former

(03:54):
major label an R person in Austinto go through about seventy five cassettes,
and that was Brandy. And shesaid, do you know this guy,
John Arthur Martinez, you know,and I'm just gonna quote it because it's
a possiz were married, of course, you know, yeah, we already
married. We've been married four years, three or four years. And she
just no, she hadn't even startedher publishing company. She had she was

(04:16):
she was managing Perdinais and Arland forWillie and she hadn't even started Moonkiss and
Tracy hired her to go through thesecassettes. And Brandy just went, I
mean, you know, these aresome of these are good. I mean
they're good. You know, It'slike but it was going to be a
nationwide you know, like a likean American idol for country music, you
know, Nashville Star. It wasgoing to be a huge deal. And

(04:39):
Brandy was like, man, thiswas good. And she had like a
good pile and then she like it. Then she had like a I mean,
none of them were like bad bad. They were good enough to have
sent it in, but they weren'tlike ready to have hit records, you
know. And and she had thisgood pile. And then, uh,
after she's gone through like I don'tknow forty of them or something, she
came across John Arthur's and she wentout, I got one cassette for this

(05:01):
pile. She goes, it's Brandy. And if you know Brandy this,
I'm just gonna She goes, it'sa podcast. She goes, this guy's
fucking great. I just well,well let me hear it. You know.
Immediately I was like, well,let's me just see about that.
And it was amazing, and youknow, and in Brandy's cassette, uh,
Brandy's pile, there was the whatshe submitted to Tracy was John Arthur
and Miranda and the pretty Good herethe same season as Miranda. Yeah,

(05:30):
oh yeah, that girl was onthat show too. Yeah, it was
here yeah, and Miranda didn't evenmake it. She was number I think
she came in third, she camein third. Yeah, but yeah,
but I mean and the person whocame in first eight year was Buddy Jewel.
Buddy, yeah, and John Arthurwas second. Yeah. Well here's
the great Yeah, yes, that'sthat's what happened. Here's the crazy thing.
Miranda lost in Dallas, and soshe came to Austin hoping that she

(05:55):
would get another, uh opportunity toto succeed. Wait a minute, wait
a minute. She went to Houston. She went to Houston. She went
to Houston to make to see ifshe could get because from from Austin.
Prentice Varning out of Uvaldi was alsoon the show. And a girl named

(06:15):
Kristin Kissling who could put herself inthe pretzel and that was that appealed to
the producers for television the radio show. But so there were four of us
from Texas, those three Kristin Kissling, Kristin Pretzel Kissling, uh, Brenie
Varning from Uvalde. And he hecould have been something that's fantastic. He

(06:40):
was very good. And he wasat the spoke that night because he was
fantastic. Yes, and he's alsothe one that won the local competition.
I came in second at the localcompetition. And then there was of course
Miranda as well. So there werefour of us on the national show that
made it. Who were the judgesbesides Charley Tracy Gershom No, but went
they had actual judge judges on theshow, didn't they? But I think

(07:02):
Tracy Robert Orman okay, yeah,and he's a brilliant I mean that man
loves country mu oh, he knowsmusic. Yeah, and he loves it
too, you know. So yeah, that was a fun show to watch.
It's great show. And I rememberlike the spoke was packed, and
I mean and I remember like,remember I remember Tracy talking about Miranda even

(07:26):
then she goes, she's a star. I don't know if she's remember she
said, I don't think she's ready, but she's a star, because you
know, Tracy. And then JohnArthur, I mean, man, you
know, because you're so sweet andhumble. Let me just let me just
say what you're not gonna say.He killed, he brought the place down.
You just you're just a great set. Just one of those times where

(07:46):
it's just everything came together. Itis just the right amount of people.
They just had enough beer in them. And and John Arthur just you know,
and and Charlie, Charlie Robinson.He went, do you know this
guy? I said, I knowhim a little bit, but man,
Brandy loved his cassette and he goes, he's amazing, you know. And
Charlie talked to you that night,right, yeah, Charlie, my wife
said, we got After I performed, I said, I've got to go.

(08:09):
I got my wife's got to getup early. She's cutting hair in
Marble Falls. He's a barber stylist. And I said, we got to
go. So I left, andCharlie followed me out and was just talking.
My wife said, was half anhour that he was out there.
He was trying to convince me becauseI still wasn't completely convinced that this was

(08:30):
something I should do. I justreleased an independent album and was starting to
get some independent Texas airplay, andI thought, you know, I'm starting
to make a living, and maybeI don't want to demean what I'm doing,
but I will say this Nashville Starwas not uh. They were glorifying
the songwriter and not demeaning any partof the artist. It was very pro

(08:56):
artist, very very well done,a lot of integrity in that show,
and you know later on it itdidn't because of Tracy. Because of Tracy
Yeah, well, I mean,Tracy just loves loves a songwriter. She
has always and she still does lovethe songwriter. She's best friends with Emmy
Lou Harris. That gives you anidea what kind of person she is.
And she's married to Steve Fischel,the great steel player, great record producer
that you know. She's got agreat show on XM by the way too,

(09:18):
which listen to all the time.Yeah, that's the way we reconnected.
She you know, and she's justalways about uh, introducing great art.
Well, she's got a great ear. Yeah, she's got a great
ear. I just remember being upsetthat Buddy Jewel one that season because,
like you said, there was somuch talent, especially you, and we
were rooting for you being the hometownperson. You know, nothing against Miranda,

(09:41):
she's East Texas. But but andit's but I just remember we're upset
the Buddy Jewel won. And BuddyBuddy's a great performer, great singer,
but his career didn't turn out likeeverybody thought it was going to turn out
well, you know, and oughtto say this because he's a great singer
and there's no butt that comes withthat. I just I was very familiar
with his voice, like Buddy,uh, it's got a beautiful voice.

(10:03):
Well, and he he sung onprobably a half dozen of demos. He
was a demo singer there in Nashville, and he was like the guy like
when I was first came to town. Uh, Tricia Yearwould and Kathy Matteo
were the two chick singers you hiredto sing on your demos, and Buddy
Jewel was the dude. You know, he was a country singer. But

(10:26):
I felt though Garth Fund just madea great record on Buddy Jewel and Garth
Thund is a great producer there.There just wasn't I felt Clint Black Yeah
right, that's right. Uh.I didn't think there was any magic on
that Buddy. No, it wasbland. Yeah, yeah, I'll that
you say that now. It wasit was. And I can say that
as a radio programmer because and itbut but yeah, I mean he had

(10:48):
talent, but just it just thetalent that he had did not come across
the record. Well to me,it just sounded like what you wanted in
a great demo singer. He soldhow the song ought to here, but
not the song you It wasn't astar. Yeah, it wasn't a star
and you star y ain't. Yeah. Well, man, what a great
show that was. I forgot aboutthat show and then when it moved over
to the other network, it justdidn't do anything at all. That was

(11:09):
a fun show to watch. Yeah. Well, I also think that they
they they brought in. The showwas so successful, you know, like
anything else in show business changed,This is so successful. Why I changed
again? Why change something was working? What did you learn though by being
on that show? Did it helpyou as a songwriter? Well? Everything,

(11:30):
It helped everything, because there's nothinglike television. I make a living
because I was on national television.Not just national television. The show was
rebroadcast country Music channel in Australia,Sweden, Canada. Became an international star
because of it. I got fanmail from South Africa and Japan and and
I'm able to go to Europe andthere's still requesting songs that I just did

(11:54):
my fifteenth tour of Europe in Mayand June, Switzerland, Germany, Austria,
Spain and France, and people comeup MANI and I'm here. I
am in Dresden outside you know whatused to be East German, East Germany,
and some guy comes up and hewants to buy these. He picks

(12:18):
out like six or seven CDs.I was trying to tell him, well,
you could buy my my thumb drive, you know, for eighty euros
and you're you're spending ninety on theCDs. And he was trying to explain
to me why he was doing that, and I just thought maybe he likes
CDs, he prefers CDs. Sohe comes back the next day and he
has it written and translated. Hesaid, I already have this, this,

(12:41):
this, this, and he namedthe titles already had. I don't
have these. That's why I wantthe CD and I want you to sign.
So you know, it's crazy becausethere there's East German what used to
be East Germany, and here's aguy that has seven of my CDs already.
That's cool, you'll bring it's worldwide. Just well, that's the whole

(13:01):
thing is like. And you gotto remember, like, particularly in the
European market and the Asian market,that these Nashville Star was two, three,
four, sometimes even five years later, and there's no such thing as
an old song or an old TVshow if it hadn't been on before.
And we were doing something and uh, I think it was I think it

(13:22):
was Sweden. Now it might havebeen, might have been uh Amsterdam,
might have been in Holland. Butand we look up and we're driving on
the way to the club and it'sjust me and the guys. It's you
know, it's kind of a wedo country, but it's kind of a
rocking thing, you know. Andwe look up there's a damn John Arthur
Martinez billboard and he said dutta duttadu in Dutch Nashville Star and you go,

(13:46):
wow, damn right, it isnice when nice happens to nice.
And this was like in five orsix. This was a few years after
the show that was not to thosepeople that was Floralia the Netherlands. You're
talking, yeah, yeah, itwas okay. And what was crazy is
that Stephanie Orbina Jones and I andmy wife too. Even though Stephanie hates

(14:07):
to give my wife credit, mywife was definitely a writer on it.
My wife and I had the songstarted and then we brought it and Stephanie
helped me finish at the River ofLove. It was. It was on
all of these plates. You know, of course, they don't have radio
the way we do. You know, Swiss radio has specialty programs right but
back the way radio used to beblock programming. So they have the specialty

(14:30):
programs playing the River of Love,and it's charting in France and Switzerland and
the Netherlands and number one in Malta, the only number one I've ever had,
number one in Malta, and souh so. Anyway, it was
incredible so that people would hear thefirst notes, and we started every show
with the song Doom, Doom,Doom, and immediately they'd all it was

(14:54):
familiar. They'd all get on thedance floor from just from that leg.
I remember Stephanie was on the showa few years later, wasn't she Didn't
she make that? I remember Iremember her auditioning for the show for Nashville
Star. Yeah, she auditioned forthe show, but it was out at
the out at the old Roper's nightclub. I remember what year it was.
I don't think she I don't knowwhether she chose not to or not,
but I don't think she did.Okay, and there was some kind of

(15:15):
audition that she was parting her bigold lick. She just came off a
big old hit wreck. So cool. So when people you know, you
just work at it a long timeand then you just kind of do exactly
what you've always done, and allof a sudden, welly aren't you glad
you had that test injury years ago? And by the way, he's got
the only website I know that you. It has a little page that says

(15:37):
tennis that you can click off.You don't play tennis wearing your cowboy boots,
do you? I did? Onceor twice a base player late at
night, we saw some kids playingat the public courts, and my bass
player went up to Donnie Dog Price. I don't know if you know Donnie
Price. I don't think so,Donnie goes, I bet you, I
bet your my buddy can beat youguys and his boots in his hat,

(16:00):
and so he and so they theytook the challenge. Of course I could
beat him in my boots. Andbut anytime something sixties now you can still
do that. That's great. Thiswas not when I was in my sixties.
This was when I was in myforty fifth classes seventy nine, doesn't
he looks like he graduated maybe twentyyears ago. Yeah, that's exactly.

(16:23):
Yeah, I play. I playedtennis this morning, so I yeah,
guys living the good life. Itell you, well, that's the beauty
of small town living. Is atHorshy Bay Resort. They let me come
in and play on their courts,you know, and and be part of
their experience here. And it's theyhave clay courts there that are comparable to

(16:45):
what they have Rolan garrows. Andso I played on I played on grass,
and I've played on you know,regular asphalt. I've never played on
clay. It's got to be fantastic. Yeah, it's easier on your knees.
He's on your everything. And butthe reason that I did that was
you remember you heard about that pandemicthat came around, right, think Someway.

(17:07):
That's why we got these behind us, right. Yeah. So,
uh, my wife said, ah, g b's hiring. They're paying twenty
two an hour to go be anight stalker. And I thought, honey,
I got other skills. So Istarted teaching tennis again. Uh.
And I was a high school tenniscoach at Marble Falls for a little while
there, and I played, asyou know, and I was taught many

(17:30):
clinics at Horseshoe Bay and I andwe used to teach a tennis camp at
mary Hart and Baylor, and soI knew how to teach. Who says,
you can't go home? That's beautiful. That's a great team. You
know that. That's so cool.Yeah, and I still have kept a
couple of the clients even though I'mbusy making music. Again, we about
guitar lessons. Man, you'd begreat as a guitar teacher too, Yeah,

(17:51):
but it's all intuitive. My guitarplaying is all self taught. Yeah,
you know. Yeah, And it'sharder to convey that I can show
them, you know, what Ido is and I have taught, like,
for instance, my family members,and I'll ask them what song they
really want to learn, and I'llteach them how to play one song.
And I said, what that thosechords that you just did, well,
now you can also play blue EyesCrying in the Rain. You can also

(18:14):
play jumbalayah. You can you knowyou you know, so you teach him
a few chords, and you havetaught me something because all the way down
here today I'm listening to one ofyour early albums, and I learned how
to sing Ameralo by Morning in Spanish. Wow, a little bit, a
little bit, man, What abeautiful What a beautiful version of that song.
Such a great language, that versionbeautiful. Yeah, that version.

(18:38):
My percussionist Luis is from Brazil.He said, they played my version in
Real Degeneiro and played everywhere. Theyloved it. It had featured Joel Guzman
on the accordion. So I toldMatt Rawlings, who produced the album.
I said, Matt, we can'tgo anywhere close to what George did you
know? So I said, weneed to do the intro lick with a

(18:59):
Spanish guitar and accordian and uh,and I said accordion should be the leading.
He was a little more cautious becauseit's Nashville. He said, well,
we'll have Brent Mason do the Spanishguitar and then and then the second
verse will Adjoelghuzman. I wish ithad been the other way around. It
is the way it goes from thatone to the three minor that really lends

(19:22):
itself to that's a very Spanish movement. You notice I changed, I changed
the arrangement, and I didn't goto that that when he goes to the
tag at the end, I didn'tgo to the George Strait tag that everybody
wants to go to, don youknow. I didn't do that. And
I put a pause in and atthe end my favorite part, you know.
So Matt was saying, how arewe going to end this? And
so and so I started playing.I said, I'm just gonna sing the

(19:45):
am You know, my voice isreally tired after after tennis, no no,
uh, Me and Blakeley and Greenbergdid three shows in four Worth and
we stayed up three or four everynight writing songs and yeah. So but

(20:06):
anyway, that's John Randall doing thosebeautiful hearts. John Randall, Yes,
such a great He's a great guy. He's working a lot with Parker McCollum
now, which I think he's helpingturn Parker into the star. Well when
you first heard that song, didyou hear the George Straight version or did
you hear the original version of Amilo? That morning? Well, we played

(20:30):
on case. We played the originalversion. The first time I heard was
We used to play Strafford all thetime, and we brought him down there
for a few shows in the youknow, I always make a point of
acknowledging Terry Stafford as the one whowho co wrote this was I forget the
other co writer? Was it Foster? But uh? Staff Terry Stafford acknowledges

(20:52):
that it was his idea and hisand his feeling and his concept, but
he acknowledged that it was the otherguy that really did most of the writing.
Well, your version is beautiful,beautiful, beautiful. Our listeners haven't
heard remember which one was the firstbecause it was played in well, since
you grew up around this area,I'm saying, because we played all over,

(21:15):
we played the you know, Terry'sversion was played, Uh played the
early version. Yeah that's Terry Staffordand Paul Fraser Fraser Okay, okay Foster,
I said, Fraser, that's okay, Alexander Fraser. Yeah, what
was by Terry Stafford? Music andCotillon. Well, he's doing quite well,
doing quite well with that. Youknow. That's what we always tell

(21:38):
people about, you know, becausepeople think if you've written some you know,
a couple of big hits like yourset, and that's not really the
case, particularly since we were talkingabout you know, royalties, you know,
being decimated. But I always tellpeople it's like when you when you
have a number one record, here'sthe here's the cycle of royalties. It's
number one, get a nice newhouse, and then the second round you

(22:02):
get nice new things for your newhouse. And then the third round,
like you get nice groceries for yourhouse. Starting down, the fourth round
is can I come stay at yourhouse? They got an extra couch.
I never had any of those levelsof success, So you have money.
I'm always I've always admired your successas a as a songwriter and well as

(22:26):
a performer too, because I'm niceto see the wagoneers here. Even before
I knew you, I can tellyou I'm a dancer, and so we'd
come dancing here all the time.And but getting back to royalties, I
did have something that was just absolutelyfreakish. You were talking about Cameron Randall,

(22:47):
Well, Cameron Randall and all thoseguys. They they decided we're going
to do a record on Flocco andmake him a household name like he deserves
to be. Yeah, And sothey did this record and they took a
song that I had co written withMike Blakeley and my and then Alex Harvey
helped us finish it on his birthdayin Nashville, and Alex loved the song.

(23:08):
It was just quirk, a quirkytwo chord song called said gurrokay hell
Yes, and my truck driver Buddyused to say it all the time,
so I thought it'd make a goodlittle hook. And Alex sang it a
cappella to Halverson. Bill Halverson theproducer of Flocco's record for Arista, and

(23:29):
Halverson says, I love it,I want to use it for Flocco,
and so he put it on Flocco'srecord and the album wind up winning a
Grammy. So it's just really incredibleto be, you know, to get
a Contributing Songwriter award from from NARISTI. And also that thing was cool.
But I mean, hell Yes wasa was a big record, especially in

(23:52):
places like Europe and other places whereFlacco has more of a cult status.
But but uh, Floco never likedit that much because they changed what I
gave them too much. They turnedthey made it a little too New York
Latino commercialized. And but there wasanother guy on Arista. I don't know
if you remember, a guy namedAlan Jackson heard of that guy. So

(24:18):
Alan heard that version and put iton his uh, his compilation record that
he did with Walmart, the exclusiverecord that he did with Walmart. It's
a bonus track, Alan singing uhalmost note for note, the same production
that Flacco did, but but differentrecording, different recording with Alan Jackson singing
it row Rowe with his Southern accent. Well, and it was just a

(24:47):
great you know, because I didn'thear what what you and uh Blakely and
Alex Harvey Road. I just heardthe record. It was just you know,
because you know what was in yourhead in your heart when you wrote
it. I only heard the recordrecords amazing. I mean, it's just
amazing. And I've never heard theJackson you know, and we his engineer,
John Shelton is John Kelton is agood family friend. But all have

(25:11):
to listen to that. But man, versions amazing. Well Floko did.
They did a great job. ButFlocco didn't actually sing the lead. Raul
Malos sang the lead and Flokos sangthe harmony on that and Parnell played the
slot. Leroy and Radney Foster didthe harmony as well. So it's a
pretty good collaborative. That was agreat album though. I remember that album

(25:33):
came out. They had an albumreleased party which was held in East Austin,
and they renamed this restaurant Flaccos Tacosthe big thing, right, and
it was, man, it was. It was fun, you see.
And you know, of course he'dtell you a floko run well yeah,
well and just such a and justa thing about you know, Flokos.
He's just such an amazing human being, just a great cat, you know.
And he does not suffered fools,no, no, no, no

(25:56):
no, just a wonderful, wonderfulguy. Well, man, I because
I mean we we might have todo a two parter with you, you
know, because you've had you've hadhit records, and you and I have
been blessed to write a hit recordtogether, Top forty record together. Oh
that record we forgot to mention,well, Miranda, Miranda sang the harmony

(26:18):
on that record. I didn't care. Yeah yeah, song that John Arthur
wrote about being a stepdaddy to histo his step dog. How did this
happen? Just because you still areyou still in touch with Randa? This
is from your friendship just a fewyears ago. Well, in those in
those This was probably seven or eightphone numbers ago with Miranda. I called

(26:40):
her up when you know we werefriends. That's why she's not returning.
Wait a minute, yeah, SoI called her up and said, Miranda,
I've written a song for my daughters. And I don't call them step
daughters, of course, call daughters. And and I said, I think
your harmony would be perfect because she'ssang harmony. Uh in the Nashville Star
House. We were always singing harmoniestogether. She loves singing harmony. She's

(27:02):
a great harmony singer. So shesaid I'd love to and she came in
and and of course then we hadto apologize later for not following the protocol
because she's big sony artists and dueltone. But but they chastised this and
let us release it anyway. That'strue. It's fantastic. I mean,
I remember it is like you know, I'll tell you a great story about

(27:23):
that, about that single uh isuh I had. It's been a lot
of part of my career as asongwriter on the right hand side of the
chart, which is like from fiftyto one hundred, you know, And
I had spent very little time onthe left hand side of the chart,

(27:45):
which is from forty nine to one. And this is the true story.
So we you know, we gotwe took Billboard back then and it was
going for ads. You know,it's John Arthur, you know, and
so you know, I just said, well, you know, and then
they said, well, no,we had a good first week, and
I was like, okay, youknow, I don't I don't know what
that means. But so I'm justlooking on the charts where the wagoneers and

(28:06):
I would reside on the right handside of the charts. I'm looking at
from one hundred up to fifty andcan't find it. Couldn't I couldn't find
it. Well, you know,maybe next week there'll be enough. And
Brandy goes, you've done, sonof a Bitch. It entered at thirty
seven on the left hand side ofthe chart. Yes, that's so cool.
The Hotshot debut is so great.It's like, well, fixing to

(28:30):
have us a little hit record.Yeah, well, of course we found
out that you now have Miranda's currentnumber. My Miranda story and this is
about the same time you guys didNashville star Austin Clemon's music festival just started
right, So I even forget who'son stage, but I turn around and
Miranda is behind me with a notebookand she's watching this person on stage and

(28:51):
she's taking notes. And of coursenobody knew who Miranda was back then,
but she's studying the craft whoever itwas on stage, and I thought,
you know that is and for somereason, that's just remarkable. You never
see them. She was study,she's paying attention to the songs. She
was driven, and it looks likea star, you know. And we
all knew early on that she wasgoing to be successful. And Sony knew.

(29:17):
Sony, much to Buddy's chagrin,Sony was always focusing on Miranda.
Really yeah, and we knew it. And I was forty years old on
that show, so that I justknew that. I thought, every opportunity
I have, I'm going to singone of my songs, and you know

(29:37):
that's what I did. Now,when we did the compilation album, they
wouldn't let me sing a song.I said, well, I thought this
was about finding the next singer songwriterin you know, this is the next
Nashville star who who writes his ownsongs. And they said, well,
yes, it is and you knowwhat they said. They said, well,
some of y'all are better songwriters thanothers, so it'd be an unfair
advantage. What that's what they said. Come on, well, that's what

(30:00):
they said. And so they said, everybody knows show business is based on
fairness. Yes, so no,no, here's the real reason they want
us to pick a song from theSony catalog. Exactly, yeah, exactly.
That's inepotism. Yeah, yeah,yes, that was the real reason.
Well you know it ain't show friends, it's show business. Yeah.
Wow. So I picked when yousay nothing at All? And I sang

(30:21):
the second verse in Spanish and thesecond chorus in Spanish, and it also
charted for me with no promotion.Right, yeah, but that's a I
didn't know that was off the compilation. That's a really great record. That's
a great record. It's a greatsong. I can hear you singing it
now. Yeah. No, that'sfantastic, man. So anyway, can
you go back and watch the oldepisodes of the show. I mean,
it'd be great to rediscovery those oldepisodes. Again, I haven't done that

(30:45):
in a while, but I wonderif somebody licensed that show, that'd be
fantastic. Great. Yeah, it'dbe great just to see everything again.
Yeah. So October twentieth and twenty. First, you've got the uh,
the Lone Star Jam. What isit called Fiesta Jam? Yes, the
Jam on Lake the official my fiveO one C three benefits youth magic education

(31:08):
in my community. And so Iwanted to brand our event is Fiesta Jam
on Lake Marble Falls. Uh,And so that's what we officially are called,
Fiesta Jam on Lake Marble Falls.And it is October twentieth. With
the songwriters Monty Warden, Pauline Rees, Bernie Nelson, Hellyanna Finley, my
buddies, John Murray Greenberg, MikeBlakeley and myself. We perform as the

(31:33):
out Law Firm Law Firm because ournames sound like a law firm and Green
Blakeley, Blakelee, Greenberg, Martinez. So we decided, you know,
we're so we call ourselves. Sowe're going to release a new record at
the same time, at hopefully myfirst vinyl record. I know you have
them fantastic, You're gonna love it. And have you have you have you

(31:55):
had a pressing? Have you hadyour press No, we we're just now
in the final of finishing all theoverdubs right now. You will never k
not do vinyl once you've done it. Yes, that sound. The reason
I brought these up here was I'mgoing to give these to you. But
but my biggest success story has beenthis is my newest album. It's been
when I started putting my all ofmy records on a flash drive, and

(32:22):
I am, I've got a reorder. I've got six of these left.
We brought that. We brought JohnWood John Colley of his concert a couple
of weeks ago, had that.I've never seen an artist put his music
on. I thought, this isthe neatest thing. This is keeping.
So you've got this, and howmany songs do you limit to the flash

(32:43):
drive? Because that's the question.I have fifteen albums that I've put on
there, all fifteen. This ismy lifetime's work, my life work.
Man. How did you do that? Did did you do you work at
NASA? That's sounds incredible to me. Well, most of them are self
produced. They were there were uhtwo of them had significant budgets. The
dual Tone release with Sony backing andthen the uh pregatory road release that I

(33:07):
did. That you you played myversion of Waltz when you can't out drink
the truth? Right? Uh butbut yeah, so and so I go
and I put it out there.I said, friends, fans, what
is this worth? This is mylife's work and I have fifteen albums.
You know what should I charge forthis? You know? Forty bucks?

(33:28):
Fifty bucks? Everybody agreed, onehundred bucks? Yes, right, So
it's good and right and that's cheapthough, and I'm on and I'm on
my reorder. But I also putsome videos when I'm in Europe, and
all the lyric booklets, and howdo they do? Like like, is
it like a pressing plant that doesit? I let disc makers do it?
Disc makers does it? Wow?I did try. I did try
a cheaper company and I'm not goingto say their name, but it wouldn't

(33:51):
play in people's cars. And Isaid, listen, and disc makers is
correat and I love disc makers.Yeah they done a great job. Yeah,
okay, give me your I knowyour website and I'm let you say
in your own words. John ArthurMartinez dot net. Just remember that I'm
a tennis player dot net. That'sbrilliant net dot net John Arthur Martinez dot
net. I just I just spentover two hundred dollars buying Monty Warden dot

(34:14):
com from somebody in Europe. Somebodyheld on to that, you know,
somebody went and just waiting for you. And so we've got the Wagoneers dot
com, we got Dangers Sheet dotcom. We're gonna put everything under just
my name. You know, nobodyknows who the hell am. So I
put it in and it's it owned. I had to buy it by my
own name from somebody. Well,mine's owned by somebody in the Cayman Islands.

(34:37):
After Nashville Star me in about sixor seven of the Nashville Star people,
uh, our names were were boughtup by somebody in the Cayman Islands,
John Arthan Martinez dot com. AndI said, you can keep dot
com. I'm not gonna do that. You can keep dot com. I'm
a dot net guy anyway, sobrilliant. But let me tell you though,
I did have a webmaster that droppedthe ball. I owned jam Records

(34:58):
dot com and he let it go. I put his name as administrator and
he didn't renew the fee. ButI own jam records dot com. How
much is a fee a year?That's nothing it's just a few bucks.
It's worth doing. Yeah, yeah, it's worth doing. But I'd never
own moneywarden dot com. And Ijust bought it. Had to buy my
own damn name because I because Ican't say Moneywarden dot neet like tennis because

(35:19):
I don't play tennis. Yeah,oh man, man, this fantastic.
Are you gonna come back? I'dlove to Okay, we'd love it.
We'd love to hear some more storiesand everything and talk about the event after
the event too. Yeah, bereal cool. Yeah, yeah, definitely,
definitely. And I love this man. Let me tell you this guy,
this is a great person, themost honest guy makes Santa Claus look

(35:43):
like an asshole. He's just aWell can I use that on the air
because I love that. Yeah,it's if you can, it's true.
But if you know John Arthur,you know that's the fact. Yeah,
well, I appreciate that. Moneyfeeling is mutual. Oh man, a
lot of fun mortels, broken smokecoming up. Okay, here's a late

(36:04):
addition, John, are that wewe connected because same girl cross in high
school. Junior high Bowerie Mobley movedfrom Sweetwater tomorrowl Falls. You graduated with
her and boy. But then wejust found out because we're the same age
class of seventy nine. You looklike his dad, No, he does
not. I look a lot older. It's radio life, is what it

(36:28):
is. Radio life, Okay,but we just found it and we I
don't I'm sure we met in seventynine. We both competed UIL State Editorial
Championship in May April May of nineteenseventy. I wanted I'm the state champion
editory. And of course, lookwhat has happened to journalism since then?

(36:49):
Aren't you glad we didn't go workfor a newspaper? Oh god, yeah,
no, I was. I gotthird in feature writing and I did
compete state against you in editorial.And where was the championship was in?
All U t U T. ThompsonCenter is where we Uh, I couldn't
pull that out of my Yeah,it was Thompson Center because it's only I
haven't been at the TOMPs Center sinceI graduated from UT. It's over there

(37:10):
by the LBJ Library. Yeah.Yeah, nineteen yeah, man, those
are fun times, those ui Ljournalism competition together. Yeah, we competed,
yeah, and but then again,you know, I can't say that
against Miranda Lambert Nashville Star, andI could say I compete with and journalism

(37:31):
that that had just seventy nine.Y'all were a couple of chick magnets back
then. Baby, you know whatthe you know? Okay, let me
tell you. I don't know.You may not remember this, but here's
what we did whenever we competed foru AL competition. And I was like,
say, it was kind of likethe big dog back then set high
school because I was always winning medals. We would get everybody's UI L medals

(37:51):
and I would walk in just afew minutes late, after everybody else was
in the room, so all thepeople could hear the medals clink clank,
clank clank, And here I comein wearing a letter jacket with all these
metals, just looking at people,nodding my head. It's psychologically that is
that is cool. And I willtell you this that my daughter, I

(38:14):
mean not my daughter, my littlesister would wear my letter jacket because I
got I littered as a freshman,So I got my litter jacket as a
freshman by the time you could,so she was always wearing my letter jacket.
And I always always thought, Ineed to go back and get a
new letter jacket. I came homefrom college found my sister wearing my letter
jacket. I got mad. Itook it back with me to Tech.

(38:35):
Wow. So, after all,we have a lot of common I don't
have any after first semester ninth grade. You're a baby winner. Yeah,
you're rock and roll dude. Hey, it worked, it worked, it
worked, and you're quite articulate.Well, yeah, I talk pretty good.
And what are you going to doin real life? Tails from the

(38:55):
Broken Spoke is recorded live at TheBroken Spoken, Austin, Texas, hosted
by Country Radio Hall of Fame broadcasterBob Pickett and Monty Warden, recorded mixed
down and produced by Mike Rivera