Colt Ford’s Second Chance :: Ep 81 Try That in a Small Town Podcast

Death tapped him on the shoulder, and Colt Ford answered with grit, gratitude, and a different kind of fire. We sit down with Colt for a raw, unguarded conversation about walking off a Phoenix stage and straight into two heart attacks, waking from an eight-day coma with no memory, and learning to stand again—physically and mentally. What follows is a story about perspective, brotherhood, and the stubborn power of music to pull someone back to life.

We dig into the origin story of Dirt Road Anthem and how that song, first on Colt’s record and later cut by Jason Aldean, didn’t just top charts—it shifted the country landscape. Colt explains the creative risk, the early Nashville resistance, and why starting Average Joes was the only way to get the music out. He shares how millions of sales came without a traditional chart run, why moving the needle matters more than a statistic, and how a single song can become a cultural fuse.

There’s joy here too—golf tales from pro tours to Pebble Beach, the nerve damage that might cost his right leg, and the way he’s already game-planning around it. The Vince Gill golf legend gets its due, equal parts respect and hilarity. Most of all, we celebrate the brotherhood that carried him: Brantley Gilbert getting family to his bedside, pushing for life-saving care, then hauling Colt’s mic onstage every night until he could take it back himself. That mid-set spotlight became a lifeline and a promise.

If you’re here for country music history, songwriting craft, comeback stories, or just need a dose of real talk about what matters, you’ll feel this one. Hit play, share it with a friend who needs strength today, and if it moved you, subscribe and leave a review so more folks can find the show.

The Try That in a Small Town Podcast is powered by e|spaces!

Redefining Coworking - Exceptional Office Space for Every Business
At e|spaces, we offer more than just office space - we provide premium private offices designed for focus and growth. Located in the heart of Music Row, our fully furnished offices, private suites, meeting rooms and podcast studio give you the perfect space to work, create and connect.

Ready to elevate your business? Book a tour today at espaces.com

From the Patriot Mobile studios:

Don’t get fooled by other cellular providers pretending to share your values or have the same coverage. They don’t and they can’t!

Go to PATRIOTMOBILE.COM/SMALLTOWN or call 972-PATRIOT

Right now, get a FREE MONTH when you use the offer code SMALLTOWN.

Original Brands

Original brands is starting a new era and American domestic premium beer, American made, American owned, Original glory.

Join the movement at www.drinkoriginalbrands.com

Follow/Rate/Share at www.trythatinasmalltown.com -

Browse the merch: https://trythatinasmalltown.com/collections/all -

For advertising inquiries, email [e-mail]

The Try That In A Small Town Podcast is produced by Jim McCarthy and www.ItsYourShow.co

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_01 (00:29):
When I tell people stories of Vince Gill on the
golf course, they're like,you're lying.
I'm like, I no.
Nope.
I know I'm not.
You could watch him sing go resthigh on the mountain on the
first T.
And then if he hits a bad T shoton the first first T shot,
you're about to hear somethingyou ain't never heard.
You're gonna hear some toughwords that go together like
you're like, that shit don'teven go together.

(00:50):
Like, why would you put themwords together?
Another funny one, Neil, is weall know Rich isn't here,
obviously.
We know we love some Rich.

SPEAKER_00 (00:57):
We do.

SPEAKER_01 (00:58):
They forgot to tuck I'm doing it one time with them
on stage.
And they forgot to cut Rich'smic off.
So he I'm trying to rap, andRich is in the talkback mic
going, yeah, Colt, yeah, Colt,give it to him, give it to him,
yeah, and I'm gonna give him myword, and I got Rich in my ears
saying this.

SPEAKER_03 (01:16):
Neil had this song Farther away.
Farther away.
Wow, this this would be greatfor this girl, and and let's
just let's just cut it.
Because I don't want itdisappears.
Let's just let's just cut itbecause it's great.
How true this is.
Oh, it's very true.
So we cut the song, and I calledNeil and said, hey man, love
this song.

SPEAKER_02 (01:35):
We cut it like a week ago, and all I said he
goes, you know, podcast.

SPEAKER_04 (01:49):
Alright, welcome back to the Try That in a Small
Town Podcast.
We got Crash, KLO, TKM, Kurt, 20from the Patriot Mobile.
Powered by eSpaces.
I'm ready for you.
What are you ready for?

SPEAKER_07 (02:05):
You're interrupting his monologue.
What are you ready for?

SPEAKER_04 (02:07):
I always interrupt his monologue.
You do, actually.
I've noticed it.

SPEAKER_06 (02:09):
I've I always interrupt his.
It's kind of your thing.
The interrupter.
He goes back to Kurt.
He needs a name.
Wow.
We're waiting.
Well, we're working on it.

SPEAKER_03 (02:18):
There's lots of lots of names.

SPEAKER_07 (02:19):
Yeah, there are lots of names.
Not too far.
And Kurt, you were saying aboutour sponsors, you were saying.

SPEAKER_04 (02:27):
Oh yeah.
You know, I was giving him somelove, right?
Uh Patriot Mobile has beenamazing.
ESpace has given us a studio,which is fantastic.
We got original Glory Beer, ofcourse, which still haven't
tried the buttons.
Yep.
Hey, so tonight, this is this isgoing to be really awesome.

(02:48):
We've got a good friend ofOlivars uh who's got an
incredible story that I think isgonna it's gonna touch a lot of
people.
If you know Colt Ford, then youknow a little bit about the
story.
If you don't know Colt Ford,you're gonna want to stick
around because he's uh he's aunique human being and he's got
an incredible story, which isvery powerful.

SPEAKER_03 (03:10):
Great guy, great incredible work ethic as well,
like back in the day, like justbuilding things grassroots and
always been a huge fan of himand you know he's we have a cool
history together.

SPEAKER_04 (03:24):
Yeah, for people that don't know it, like he
wrote Dirt Rotant and he's cameup with Brantley Gilbert, so
there's a big history there.

SPEAKER_07 (03:30):
Um Nationwide uh countries nationwide, it's not
number one for Brantley.
He wrote that.
They were on a tear there for alittle bit.

SPEAKER_06 (03:39):
It was just good to see his face.
And he's lost a lot of weight.
I know it.
He's getting back and he's justfreaking he's gonna come back
stronger than ever.
It was just good to see hisface.
Yeah.
It was good after what he wentthrough.

SPEAKER_04 (03:51):
Absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 (03:52):
It's good to see him bounce back.

SPEAKER_04 (03:54):
All right, everybody, please welcome our
friend Colt Floyd.

SPEAKER_01 (03:58):
Colt, how are you doing, buddy?
Hey guys, how are you?
It's good to see y'all.

SPEAKER_07 (04:02):
Good to see you.

SPEAKER_01 (04:03):
Work good now that we get to see your face.
Yeah.
I'm glad to be seen.
It's it's I'm a little older, alittle uglier, but I'm still
here.

SPEAKER_07 (04:12):
You're definitely smaller.

SPEAKER_01 (04:14):
I'm definitely smaller.
Yeah, I'm back down to highschool weight.

SPEAKER_06 (04:17):
Now I gotta I gotta know, I gotta know how your golf
game is right now.
Have you been out and swingingit?
Have you been easing back intoit?

SPEAKER_01 (04:25):
I have tried to make three swings since the accident,
and one of them I fell actuallyfell over.
Uh I don't my balance is notgreat.
Really?
I haven't played it all, Nil.
It's it's I'm gonna try to getback to it here.
I was just I'm gonna try.
I just we'll see.

SPEAKER_04 (04:40):
Well, Colt, so you touched on it, you know.
Can you share with us, and Iguess some of the viewers,
because you know, we kind ofknow what happened, but I don't
think everybody understands theseriousness of what some of the
hell scares that you just had.

SPEAKER_01 (05:00):
Yeah, it was uh, you know, it uh I I had been doing
better.
I mean, I've known you guys, allyou guys for 20 years.
So I I I mean, I was a big boythere for a while.
I mean, and I I was doing a lotbetter, I had lost a lot of
weight, so I felt like I was,you know, you feel like you're
doing good.
And I'd just been to a and did awhole thing up at a big facility

(05:21):
and checked everything out.
They didn't see nothing.
And 10 days later I walk off thestage in Phoenix, Arizona, got
on my bus, and I that's I died,died twice.
I mean, it was two two majorheart attacks back to back.
They brought me back twice, uh,flat line twice.
The I was on ECMO, uh, which isthat's basically the Hail Mary

(05:43):
that's uh of of saving you.
I mean, I was in a coma foreight days.
Uh had to learn to walk again.
I mean, like everything shutdown.
I mean, every I mean it was Idon't know.
The doctor told me I was onepercent of one percent, and I
was like, well, my mama told meI was special.
So it's uh it would just it wasjust unbelievable.
I didn't remember anything.

(06:03):
I I wake up eight days later andI'm like, they're having to tell
me what's going on and where I'mam and I was stuck in the
hospital in Phoenix for twomonths.
I meant uh it was it was a lot,a lot to deal with.
It's and still a lot, but I'mI'm thank grace of God I'm still
here.

SPEAKER_04 (06:19):
Yeah, you know, people tend to forget about
that.
It's like you know, you you havefriends that go through maybe
not stuff exactly like this, butthat go through things and you
think, oh, at the time, oh mygosh, that's so bad, my heart's
with them.
And then sometimes you forgetthat, man, this is a process.
You're gonna be going throughthis and going through this and
for a while.
Uh, but we've been thinkingabout you, brother.

(06:41):
I promise you, you've been inour prayers.

SPEAKER_01 (06:42):
I know, and I I appreciate it, man.
The community certainly so manypeople have reached out and and
a lot of people came to saw mein the hospital.
I meant, you know, Brantley,Brantley was there, a big part
of what was going on.
And uh it was just so much, man.
I've never had you know, youguys know me.
We we played lots of musictogether, lots of shows, and I I

(07:02):
I just play, I worked, I workeda lot, and all of a sudden I
couldn't I woke I I wake up andI cannot pick up a styrofoam cup
and feed myself ice.
I can't do that.
Like I had to learn to walkagain.
I mean it was it was insane.
Like I I never I didn't knowwhat I was in for.
I didn't know what the battlewas because I'd never I never

(07:23):
even when I was a big boy Icould still do anything you
wanted to do.
We could I mean just whatever.
I mean, I I I I wasn't scarednothing but God and my mama, and
now I got crazy anxiety andnerves.
I never had that before.
So it it's it's been an ongoingprocess that's a a lot to deal
with.
I meant like the first time Iwent to get back on the bus, I
started to step on it and I waslike, wait, oh, last time I was

(07:45):
on here, shit, y'all carried meoff here dead.
So a lot of things like that youdon't think about until they're
back in the situation, and it'slike, oh, that's yeah, I I don't
even sit where I used to sit inmy bus anymore because I that's
where I was sitting when ithappened.
So I I I'm just unbelievablylucky that I meant because you
know, you guys know the road,you have a routine that you do.

(08:08):
And I I meant normally I go backto my you know, we get to on the
show, my crew guy David said Iwhen he took my ears off, he
said I looked at him and said,Boy, I'm getting too old for
this shit.
And and he walked off.
Normally I go back to the backof my bus, you know, to my
bedroom, take shot, call mywife.
I I don't, you know, I'm donewith the partying days, boys.
We done we done ease don't passthat.

(08:28):
We done ease don't pass that.
So I'm just gonna go back hereand and eat a popsicle and watch
Law and Order or Dateline orsomething and go to sleep.
But for some reason, I sat downin the front lounge this time.
And for some reason, my bassplayer Nick uh said, Well, I'm
gonna take Colt to drink.
It's super hot out there, and hewalked on the bus and I had
already fallen out, and it wasthen it was just you know chaos,

(08:52):
and nobody knew.
They didn't know how long I hadbeen out.
Uh when my wife flies in andlands in Phoenix, she asked my
TM, like, how long was he out?
He's like, No more than 10minutes.
She's like, 10 minutes?
Like, 10 minutes, there's nocult left.
I meant like it so it was justthey didn't know till I came out
of the coma, and they said we'llhave to test him, you know,

(09:14):
mentally.
And and my wife was like, Wellshit, you might not be able to
tell.
I don't know.
He's a little messed up beforehe went in there.
I don't know if you can tellmentally or not.
It was just it was a heck of athing, man, to wake up.
It was just uh and you know, youguys, I don't know if you've
heard how I did wake up.
I mean, you guys all know Toby.
I mean, I'm you know, he wasbeen so important, I'm I'm sure

(09:36):
to all of y'all, like he has tome.
And you know, he used to call melittle dog daddy, and and I was
like, you know, for most people,you'd go, I don't want to be
little dog, and you're big, Imean, but it's freaking Toby.
So you're like, yeah, you stillhe feels like a superhero.
And and I woke up by literallyas a light, bright as it could
be, and Toby stepped out andsaid, They're not ready for you,
little dog.

(09:56):
You need to go on back downthere.
And that's how I woke up.

SPEAKER_07 (09:59):
Wow.
I mean I was gonna a ask youabout that.
So in being out that long, likedid you have any any visions and
like in your coma for for a goodbit?
Did you have any of that?
You know, did you peek intoheaven or anything like that?

SPEAKER_01 (10:13):
Three things I had to ask about because I didn't
remember anything.
I had uh my son, uh Brantley, ofcourse, again was out there,
Gilbert, and Brantley's known myson since he was six, and he's
now twenty-six almost.
So he he you know, it's goodwhen you got great friends.
You guys know.
I mean, uh Brantley was outthere and he he immediately had

(10:33):
his TM Corey.
They got my they got my son on aplane and bought him a ticket
and flew him out there to me andmy wife.
And so it was just, yeah, Imean, it was it was crazy to
wake up and just be like, Idon't know what's going on.
I mean, I just didn't know.
I didn't know what washappening.
I'm looking around like, oh,okay, I I mean I can't move.
I mean, I'm just it was it wasit was wild, man.

(10:55):
But I I remembered my wifesaying something to me, and my
son, I asked him, did he, hesaid I was whispering in your
ear that don't put your gundown, Dad, you're not out of the
fight.
That's you know, the Navy SEALsaying, I mean, and and he he
was, you know, I rememberedthat, but that's literally all I
remember.
I don't remember days beforethat.
I don't remember riding outthere, I don't remember I I'd

(11:16):
never lost time before, and thatwas that was interesting for me
to never have I just wake up andbe like, I I don't know what's
going on, I don't know where I'mat, I don't know any of that.
So it's been a lot to deal with,but uh man, the fans have been,
you guys know this music.
We play it for these fans, man.
We write songs for these fans,and and they you know, I've gone

(11:37):
on stage and stood out there andit's it's they're still there.
Hey, you don't know.
I didn't know.
I'm like, maybe hell they mightnot be there.
I mean, you know, you don'tknow.
I mean, you it's we we're insuch a fast-paced world
nowadays.
And I just turned 56 and thingslook different for me now, boys.
I mean, I I see thingsdifferently.
A lot of things I was chasing,you guys have all been there.

(11:57):
I'm uh things, a littleperspective on a lot of
different things now.

SPEAKER_08 (12:01):
Amen.

SPEAKER_01 (12:02):
Not not not go go go all the time.
Yeah, I'm trying to be still andbe present more.

unknown (12:07):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (12:08):
Well, we've always been a one of your all of us,
the biggest fan of you becauseof your your hard work.
You're you're the you're the youknow the poster child for
building something grassroots.
And it's you you did it so uhgreat.
I mean having you I can'tremember what year it was you
were uh on the road with us, butwhat a blast.
Yeah.

(12:28):
I mean what a what about whatwas that?
Uh 2010, 2011, somewhere.
Maybe 2010, yeah.
I can't remember.
I think it was 2010, somesomewhere in there, nine, ten,
eleven.
Man, what a what a what a greattime.
And and for young artists who wwant to know how to do it, you
you did it.
You you built it.
You you you played show aftershow after show, building your

(12:49):
fan base.

SPEAKER_01 (12:50):
Well, I did it similar to the way y'all did
too.
I mean, at that time, you know,when things were blowing up for
Jason and you guys, I meant whenhe when he was first talking
about recording Dirt RoadAnthem, I I remember
specifically we were playingFlorence, South Carolina, that I
mean, and uh after the show, youknow, Jay's like, it's crazy to
hear 10,000 people sing a songthat has never been on the
radio.
Like he's like, that's crazy.

(13:11):
And you know, so y'all have beena big part of it, and y'all have
always been so kind to me.
And uh, you know, I I I didn'tknow what I was doing.
I mean, I would guess I wasprobably a little ahead of
compared to what's going on now.
I'm like, really?
I've never even had a song inthe top people don't know that
I've never had a song, my ownsong, in the top 40 on a country
chart.
Wow, never but I've sold fivemillion records and I've had

(13:34):
I've got multiple platinumsingles, but I've never been on
the chart, so I was just so farahead.
You know, I mean, like now, I'mlike, hey, I I was doing that 10
years ago, boys.
What are you talking about?

SPEAKER_04 (13:46):
That's absolutely right.
You know, you might they'retalking about dirt road anthem.
I think a lot of people know,but also there's a lot of people
that don't know.
You had a massive hit with DirtRoad Anthem before Jason Al Dean
did.
Can you take people back to thatand how that turned out?

SPEAKER_01 (14:04):
Yeah, I mean, you guys know.
I mean, our history is sointertwined together.
I mean, uh, you know, obviouslyJason and I both from Georgia,
but Brian Brantley wrote thatsong, it was on my first record
right through the country, andheck, we didn't know what we was
doing.
We didn't know what we was doingat the time, and it just started
going crazy.
And, you know, Knox was workingwith Brantley at the time, and
so we started, it just kind oforganically happened, and then

(14:28):
we had no idea.
You guys probably remember this.
Like, I was getting ready to putout my third album when he cut
Dirt Road Anthem, so I mean itwasn't like I they wouldn't play
it for me.
I I I can't help it.
I wish they would.
Clearly, the song does okay.
I mean, it's it's a no, it'sit's been pretty popular.
Yeah, yeah.
So our fans, if y'all remember,Brantley and I's fans went nuts.

(14:49):
They were like, Jason stole thesongs.
And they weren't happy about it,eh?
Yeah, yeah.
We had to make a video about it.
Yeah.
Yeah, we Brantley and I had tosit down and make a video about
it.
Like, y'all calm down.
Okay, what happened?

SPEAKER_07 (15:01):
This is a good thing.
This is a good thing.

SPEAKER_01 (15:04):
Yeah, yeah, it was a good thing.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 (15:07):
I've got a great I'm sorry, Catulli.
Go ahead, go ahead.
No, I've got a great story aboutDirt Road Anthem.
Well, give it to us.
No, uh I went to the studio whenwhen they were tracking that
song.
And they were tracking, y'allwere tracking a couple of
things, and I went over therejust to hang out.

SPEAKER_04 (15:21):
And uh That might have been the only song that
Neil didn't have on that record,by the way.
No, it's really probably right.

SPEAKER_01 (15:28):
Absolutely, yeah.
Thanks.
I appreciate you, Neil.

SPEAKER_06 (15:30):
No, I gotta just props to you, bro.
I'm like, we're in there and I'mgetting ready to leave, and so
I'm I I walk out and Knox,Michael Knox follows me out and
he goes, Hey, come here, I wantto play you something.
So we get in his truck, and hehad already had like a rough mix
of dirt road anthem up already,and he plays me that.
He didn't say a word, he justturns it on, and he plays the

(15:52):
whole thing, and I'm sittingthere listening to it, and I go,
I don't care what y'all cut ofmine.
All I know is I want to be onthe record that that song is on
right there, because that'sgonna that's gonna be freaking
huge.
That's all I told Knox.

SPEAKER_01 (16:06):
Oh, it was fantastic.
Nox really pushed that throughbecause you know there was a
point when Jay was like, Jasonwas like, I don't know if I can
do it like you.
I was like, well, stop doing it.
Don't do it like me, say it likeyou.
You're not, I mean, we're bothnamed Jason, but don't do it
like that.
Uh say it like you.
I mean, and and and Knox reallypushed him, and well, thank God
he did.
I mean, as as that's as asongwriter, you guys know.

(16:29):
I mean, that's that's uh you'reextremely blessed to have one
like that.

SPEAKER_06 (16:33):
I mean, like, you and Brantley wrote, y'all wrote,
y'all wrote the balls off ofthat song, man.
It was so good.

SPEAKER_01 (16:39):
You know, and we didn't know, we didn't have no
idea what we was doing.
I mean, and and I'm just I'mstill tickled that I play it
every night and people still gocrazy.
You know, it's I've had a lot offun doing it.
My most embarrassing momentdoing it was with the boys
there.
We were on the road with them atfreaking uh Wii Fest.

SPEAKER_08 (16:56):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (16:57):
75,000 people throughout as far as I could
see.
We started the second verse, andI looked at Jason, and he looked
at me, and I couldn't say aword.
I didn't remember one singleword.
I've been there.
And he and the guys are justplaying, and he goes, You wrote
it.
Well, that doesn't help me.
I need y'all to sing the chorus,tell it.

SPEAKER_03 (17:18):
You know, that song's got a really cool history
because I remember even beforewe cut it for Jason, Knox was
producing Brantley for a littlebit.
Yeah, he was gonna do it forBrantley.
We actually cut the song we wecut their odd anthem for
Brantley.
We cut it in the studio andwe're like, this is a cool song,
you know.
And then that was kind of thelast we heard of it until we

(17:41):
until I think Jason called usone day and was like, hey, you
guys remember that song you didwith Brantly?
We're like, yeah, that's a coolsong.
And I do remember tracking thatsong in particular and knowing
immediately within the firstthree, four bars, I'm like, this
is this is gonna be this issomething.

(18:03):
Because it just for what we'redoing.

SPEAKER_01 (18:06):
Y'all, right after y'all cut that, tell y'all and
you you and Eric, y'all and Erichad were out together.

SPEAKER_03 (18:11):
Yeah.
Yes.

SPEAKER_01 (18:13):
So Eric called me from the first night, and he and
he called me late at night, twoo'clock, I'm like, why the
hell's Eric Church calling?
Two o'clock in the morning.
He's like, I just told Jason, ifhe doesn't make this a single,
he's a biggest idiot.
And I was like, I was like,what?
He was like, I just watchedthese people go crazy.
He's like, it's it it was it's abig record, it's a special

(18:35):
record to be a part of.
It's a special song, and youknow, me and Bradley are lucky
to be a part of it, and to haveso many other, you know,
versions of it or whatever.
I meant another funny one, Neil,is we all know Rich isn't here,
obviously.
We know we love some Rich.

SPEAKER_00 (18:49):
We do.

SPEAKER_01 (18:50):
They forgot to talk, they I'm doing it one time with
them on stage, and they forgotto cut Rich's mic off.
So he I'm trying to rap, andRich is in the talk back mic
going, yeah, Colt, yeah, Colt,give it to him, give it to him,
yeah, and I'm like, I'm tryingto remember my words, and I got
Rich in my ears saying this.
I'm like, Jesus Christ, this isdifficult.

SPEAKER_04 (19:11):
That's amazing.
I have forgotten about that.

SPEAKER_01 (19:13):
That was unbelievable.
I was like, dude, he's he's justand he's up there grinning like
a mule eating briars.

SPEAKER_03 (19:20):
That's it.
It is it I always love uh thesekind of episodes, and this uh
especially with people we havesuch history with.
It it does it does my heart goodto to see you doing well, and
and I really uh appreciate youryour work ethic.
Like I mean we I you weregrinding playing so I mean you

(19:41):
were playing so many shows backin the day.
We were we were doing close.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (19:47):
I mean, yeah, we had Kevin Neal was booking us.
Shout out to Kevin.

SPEAKER_03 (19:52):
Yeah, same ham and yam festivals and strawberry
briar patz festivals or fairs oryou were the you were always
there.
We were always there together.
You were we were playing thesame circuit.
So it's I I feel like some ofthe dogs and wherever.

SPEAKER_01 (20:06):
Yeah, some of that's lost today, you know, I think
with the with the the grind, youknow, and people I think some of
these youngsters out there todaywould shit themselves if they
went to play some of the placesthat we played.
I don't know that they wouldthey'd be like, I'm not going in
there.
I'm like, I played in placeslike Supper Club in Auburn,
Alabama, where they'd issue youa knife at the door if you
didn't bring one.

SPEAKER_03 (20:29):
Hey, there are there are some places I know you
played it too, because again,Kevin Kevin Neal had his hand in
in uh in in in both careers, butum you know there are some
places and I love by God WestVirginia, I love it, but there's
some places up there we playedKevin, and I'm like, and we're
playing two-a-days, you know, inin August, you know, in the in
the in the mountains.
I'm like, man, we boys, we mayor may not make it out tonight.

(20:51):
I don't know.
But it was uh you know, yeah, Idon't see a lot of the young
artists doing that, you know.

SPEAKER_01 (20:56):
A lot of great stories from it.

SPEAKER_03 (20:58):
So yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (20:59):
You've talked about uh Brantley a lot, and we have
too.
Give people a little backgroundon when you met Brantley and
that whole relationship.

SPEAKER_01 (21:08):
Well, we Brantley and I kind of started, came up
together in the in the business.
So he was heck, I was saw avideo that I was like, God, he
was I made him really feel oldthe other day when I said, you
know, your son and my son werethe same, his son the age that
he is now was the same age myson was when they met.
And now my son has a I have agrandson, my son has a little

(21:29):
boy, and Brantley just had I waslike, now y'all have babies the
same age.
I was like, does that make youfeel old?
I meant like, my God.
It's uh it it we didn't know.
We were just too do, you know,when I'm you guys were taking
off when we started, we werejust doing our thing.
We didn't know we were justbeing honest and raw and real.
I didn't know what kind ofrecords I was taking.

(21:50):
Yeah, I meant like honestly, I'mtrying to get back to that to be
honest with you.
Like, geez, I missed that.
Like, I didn't know rules, Ididn't know.
When I made ride through thecountry, the song was four
minutes and something, I didn'tknow they wanted it to be a
certain length or anything likethat.
I just writing what I wanted towrite.
And we wrote Dirt Road Anthem.
I picked Brantley up to writethat, to write with our other
friend Mike Deacle, who we wrotelots of stuff with.

(22:12):
And Brantley goes, hey, checkthis out.
What about this for you?
And we started, and then nextthing you know, we wrote Dirt
Road Anthem about 30 minutes,and then we went to our other
right, spent eight hours, and Idon't know what we wrote.
I don't know what we wrote.
I meant like, you know, you guyshave been there.
Like, I don't know how thatworked out, but it it just
worked out.
And Brantley's just been, we'vejust been like brothers, you

(22:33):
know.
I mean, I'm I'm the definitelythe way older brother,
unfortunately.
But uh, you know, he it was abig deal for him being out there
because everybody, I mean,Brantley happened to be in
Phoenix when we were at CountryThunder was going on, so he
immediately found out what wasgoing on, he got to the
hospital.
Uh and you guys know B.

(22:54):
B is the B is the sweetest guyin the whole world.
But he's also a little bit likea Sons of Anarchy character who,
I mean, like he's that in reallife, if you would choose to
find that.
And they weren't telling anybodyanything because nobody in the
band is related to me.
So they don't want to tellanybody any information.
Well, Brantley's gettingagitated with that.

(23:14):
I mean, and and and then theytell him there's nothing else
they can do, and he's standingthere with this doctor, this
young doctor, and he's like, I'mlooking at this guy, and he's
covered in your blood.
He's got and he's like, I don't,there's nothing else we could do
except possibly ECMO, and we wedon't have that here.
And Brantley just said, hey man,either you're gonna get that

(23:35):
squared away and get him tothere, or you're going back in
there as a patient, basically.
I mean, like he caught Ambercaught Jack was like he took his
Rolex off.
He he called Amber and said, I'mprobably going to jail if
they're I'm gonna tear this damnhospital up if they don't get
this shit figured out.
And, you know, thank God theydid.

SPEAKER_04 (23:57):
Yeah, that's your brother.

SPEAKER_01 (23:58):
They got me over to the Mayo clinic and got me on
that ECMO machine, which wasthat's the nurses call that
circling the drain.
That's what they call it.
They say at 40 years old inperfect health, you got about a
30% chance to survive ECMO.
And uh I went in there at about260 at 54, not in the best of
shape.
And uh yeah, so I'm really,really blessed to still be here,

(24:20):
boys.
I'm so tickled to be able totalk to y'all for real.

SPEAKER_03 (24:23):
Man, you're you're one of the great ones, man.
Just uh we love you to death,man.
Just it's all of us.

SPEAKER_01 (24:30):
Well, you guys, you know, you guys have always been
good to me.
All all all y'all at the tablehave always been good to me and
and kind to me.
And when I started, obviously,it it was things were again a
lot different.
I was always on the outsidelooking in, and now the stuff
coming out, and I'm like, how'sthat okay?
You told me I couldn't do thatat all.
You said that was not okay.

(24:51):
And I'm like, I was doingeverything you told me to do,
and you said that that's notokay.
But I'm just tickled to be stilldoing it, man.
I mean, like, I'm still playingmusic, that's what I love to do.
I mean, I can't go work like Iused to, but I still get to play
music.
I hope to get on the stage withyou boys and Jason again
someday, and I'd like to write asong with y'all.

SPEAKER_07 (25:10):
Yes, yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_01 (25:12):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 (25:12):
Hey, and do you do you feel like uh like as far as
your artistry stuff, that thattaking off, is it is it because
of Dirt Road Anthem, and then uhyou and Brantley had another
number one for him, that uhcountrywide, you know.

SPEAKER_01 (25:26):
Yeah, countrywide, and then I lucky I was lucky to
write George Burge's number onemind on you.
So that was cool.
I mean, I I still you know, Iit's I'm old though, man.
This town, I just feel so youngto me now when I'm there.
And uh but I I just love makingmusic.
Dirt Road Anthems certainly movethe needle.
I mean, like there's there's alot of people that do incredible
things in music, but I I feelsuper lucky, not everybody moves

(25:50):
the needle.
So I I mean I was super luckythat it it it certainly changed
the musical landscape a littlebit.
When I came out with Dirt Roadand all that stuff, it kind of
moved things a little bit.
And I didn't I wasn't trying todo that.
I was just that was I was justtrying to make whatever Colt
Ford could do, uh you know, toto pla make music, but it it
ended up doing that, and I'm I'mhonored to be a part of it.

(26:12):
I mean, uh there's some peoplethat you well, you guys know
there's a lot of people thatdidn't certainly did not like it
and probably still don't likeit, and then hell that's alright
too.
I can't help it, but I mean, uh,you know, I I'm just happy to
still be doing it, boys.
That's all.

SPEAKER_03 (26:27):
Another funny story about that song, I remember
after it blew up, it was likeright in the middle.
Uh or maybe it just peeked out.
It was huge though.
That that that wave lasted awhile in that song.
We were producing an artist, Ican't remember who it was, down
at soundstage.
And I remember I was out kind ofwalking down the hall and Billy

(26:48):
Decker, the engineer, had anoffice there and he where he
used to mix his demos.
And I'm walking by it and Iheard two or three songs he was
mixing mixing, and it soundedjust like Dirt Road Anthem.
The writers, everybody's tryingto write.
Oh, everybody.
And I I remember peeking my headand saying, I don't know who the
writers are in that song, butthat's that's not gonna work.

(27:08):
Yeah, that's not gonna work.
But every everybody's trying tochase it, and rightly so is so
different.
And it's you nail it, Cole.
It's easy.
We talk about it all the time.
You can look at it now, and allthese young guys out there doing
their thing, and yeah, it's easyto do that now, but when Dirt
Radiant Anthem came out, ithadn't been done yet like that.

SPEAKER_01 (27:29):
You know, yeah, Jason was really putting himself
out there doing that.
It hit where he was at, becausehe was right.
I mean, it was the the fuse waslit, the powder keg was burning,
and I mean it was about to belike, and that song that to me,
that's that song just sent youguys into the stratosphere.

SPEAKER_04 (27:48):
He says that literally on stage every night,
every night he credits thatsong.
Yeah, he goes, We've had someheads and we were we were doing
our thing, but until Dirt RoadAnthem came along, that's right,
that set it into thestratosphere.

SPEAKER_06 (28:01):
It didn't, yeah, and the first time I heard it, I
didn't I didn't hang my head andgo, damn, I wish I'd have
written that.
I was fired up.
I'm sure you didn't even.
No, dude, I was fired up to beon the record it was on.
Because I knew how big thatthing was gonna be.

SPEAKER_07 (28:15):
Yeah, it was a groundbreaking song.
I I would say, speaking formyself, but probably most
writers when we heard it, itwasn't it wasn't like, oh man, I
I wish I I should have hadsomething on there.
I was like, I couldn't havewritten that.
I wouldn't, I wouldn't havewritten that.
It was the coolest thing ever.
No, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 (28:29):
I mean, I see that all the time.
Like I I I'll listen to somepeople's stuff.
Like, I used to tell Jamie,John, I'm like, how do you I
couldn't I can't write like likethat's incredible.
How do you think that way?
Like it's I'm amazed bysongwriters and and you know,
guys do things.
I mean, we again sometimes itjust works out that way, you
know.
You just stumble onto it.

SPEAKER_06 (28:49):
I think uh I think I need to buy me uh I need to buy
me a house in Georgia and startdrinking some of that water in
Georgia.
There's something in the waterin Georgia.

SPEAKER_07 (29:01):
About 75% of all artists come from Georgia.

SPEAKER_04 (29:06):
You know what goes great with small town stories?
Original glory.
America's beer right here.

SPEAKER_06 (29:11):
You know, I've been drinking this every songwriting
session today.

SPEAKER_07 (29:14):
Man, that clean crisp tapes reminds me of summer
nights on the back porch after afresh mode.

SPEAKER_04 (29:19):
And they're not just not making great beer, they're
investing in America's smalltowns.

SPEAKER_03 (29:23):
Well, it's just like us, they believe in bringing
communities together.

SPEAKER_06 (29:26):
Not only do they invest in communities, but a
fortune of each sale goes to theveterans, the first responders,
and all the heroes of the Texas.

SPEAKER_07 (29:33):
For limited time, you can become a member of the
OG fam.
Invest in this beer atwefunder.com forward slash
original brands.

SPEAKER_04 (29:39):
Join our original glory family and help ignite
that original glory spirit.

SPEAKER_09 (29:44):
My name is Glenn Story.
I'm the founder and CEO ofPatriot Mobile.
And then we have fourprinciples.
First Amendment, secondamendment, right to life
military first responders.
If you have a place to go putyour money, you always want to
put it with somebody that's likemy coin.
That's the beauty of PatriotMobile.

(30:05):
We're a conservativealternative.

SPEAKER_02 (30:07):
Don't get fooled by other providers pretending to
share your values or have thesame coverage.
Go to Patriot Mobile.com forwardslash smalltown to get a free
month of service when you usethe offer code SmallTown.
Or call 972 Patriot.

SPEAKER_04 (30:24):
Hey Cole, when did uh when did you uh when did
average shows come?
About.
I don't know if a lot of peopleknow that you kind of co-founded
a label.
Tell them a little bit aboutAverage Joe's.
We obviously know about it andsome of the artists there, but
um give us a little background.

SPEAKER_01 (30:40):
Yeah.
Well, when I started working onthe music, you know, we we
quickly discovered that a lot ofpeople in Nashville, they were
like, we love this.
We have no idea what to do withit.
We're terrified of this.
I mean, you know, I mean, I'm a36-year-old 300-pound guy in a
cowboy hat.
I mean, although extremely goodlooking, I mean still, I mean,

(31:02):
it was a hard sell.
I mean uh and so and so I meanit was just so different that I
I I just I don't I didn't knowwhat I was I mean I I wrote the
whole Ride Through the Countryalbum in in a week.
Entire record.
I didn't know.
I didn't know when I finally wasjust honest about I said, I'm

(31:23):
gonna sit down and write what II write about what I think, my
life, not chasing anything else.
That's I wrote all that in aweek, and then it was like, oh,
and we didn't we just didn'tknow.
We didn't we had to start thelabel because again, everybody
up there was like, we love this.
We have no idea what to do withit, we're terrified, you know,
we don't know what to do.
So uh Shannon, my best friendand partner at the time,

(31:45):
producer, you know, he sold alot of records as a producer,
ran other record labels, and butwe got we didn't know anything,
we didn't know anybody inNashville, and uh didn't have
the money either.
So I I went to Zach McEroy, mymy good friend, the found
founder of Zaxby's.
I said, Hey man, uh we want todo a record label, and he's
like, How much does that cost?
And I gave him a pretty stoutnumber and he's like, I mean, he

(32:08):
doesn't know Shannon at all.
He's like, You're who's gonnarun it?
I was like, Shannon.
So he took a leap of faith too.
There was a lot of leaps offaith because we were crazy.
And doing it, I mean, there wasno other way to do it.
Nobody would sign me.
They would tell I mean, I mean,if I'd come to town now, I mean
maybe maybe so.
But I meant like then they werelike, uh-uh, we don't know what
to do.
You we don't know what to dowith you.

(32:30):
So hell, they still don't knowwhat to do with you.
So that's all right.
And so we just didn't have achoice, but we we had to start
it ourselves, you know.
I meant we just so uh it waskind of by there wasn't no other
way to put Colt Ford out, and welike, well, if this don't work,
then we'll go back to doingsomething, find something else

(32:50):
to do, I reckon.
You're right though.
You know, at that time 20 yearsago.

SPEAKER_04 (32:54):
Yeah, you're right.
At the time, no, none of thelabels would go off uh off the
road like a script.
Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (33:03):
Oh no, that they they weren't detouring, no, they
weren't going where I was at.

SPEAKER_04 (33:08):
And you're right, maybe now they do it a little
bit, but you were you weredefinitely a trailblazer in that
respect.

SPEAKER_01 (33:14):
And again, man, just trying to make the best songs
you can make.
I mean, you know, I that'sthat's all I've ever tried to
do.
So we started the label, andwe've been really lucky that
it's been successful and turnedinto a a film company, and we're
doing tons of stuff with filmand TV and movies, and yeah,
it's really pretty pretty crazyfrom where it started, really.
I meant uh, you know, but youguys, look at you guys, three

(33:38):
kings, just out there playingsome music together, and who
knows?
Look at you now.
We got a podcast.

SPEAKER_03 (33:45):
Making tons of money.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (33:47):
You've made all the money there is to make.

SPEAKER_04 (33:54):
Let's go back to how Neil started this podcast and
ask if you played any golf.
Another thing that people mightnot know is that you were a
professional golfer or you wereon the nationwide tour, right?
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (34:08):
I played professional.
Most people just thought malemodel, you know.
Well, that is what's a given.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
No, I I did.
I played professional golf for aliving, and it was uh
interesting.
And it's been an interestingthing.
People always ask me, like,music and golf, and I'm like,
well, the difference, the maindifference is I know what I'm
making in music before I start.
Golf, you don't know until youget finished.

(34:30):
That's a that's a good piece ofinformation to have.
Uh and the schedules do notmatch up.
I'm like, when I get when I wasgetting up to play golf for a
living, that's when we go to bedplaying music for a living.

SPEAKER_00 (34:40):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (34:41):
So uh they're very different.
But golf's been good to me, andit uh I'm disappointed that I of
what's you know, hopefully I'llbe able to get back and play a
little bit.

SPEAKER_06 (34:50):
I know I was I was gonna ask you physically, like,
is it like step by step?
Is it slowly coming back?
Muscle memory and all thatstuff, is it slowly coming back?

SPEAKER_01 (35:00):
Yeah, I'll let y'all, and it's a little
something I'll share with youguys since y'all are friends.
Uh so when I when they got me tothe second, when they got me to
the Mayo Clinic, there was athey had an issue at the first
hospital where they had messedup some return lines and my so
my leg, my right leg was aboutto explode from no blood flow.
It it and so they had to do thisfasciotomy, you know, which is

(35:21):
slice me down my leg on bothsides to keep it from exploding.
The doctor told me, he said,Man, normally I would really
take my time, do it.
He goes, by the time I gotthere, there was no time.
There I meant like everymillisecond was something.
So he said, I uh it was a lotfaster and not precise.

(35:42):
So I can't really feel anythingbut pain from my knee down and
neuropathy really bad, and I'llprobably lose my leg from the
knee down, they said at somepoint.
Uh it's operating on about 20%blood flow and oxygen because I
it just it's such a weirdfeeling.
I meant uh to not feel you know,just don't feel anything but

(36:03):
pain.
I mean so that's weird, but I'mdealing with it.
I'm dealing with it.
And I've I've done looked it up.
You can do a bunch of thingswith it with one of them uh
bionic legs.
So we'll see what happens.
There's no it's not a guarantee,but it's just it's something
pretty heavily on the radar.
So I'm that's what's caused me alot of problems with my golf,
because I my right leg, I can't,when I try to turn, it doesn't

(36:25):
stay stable because yeah, Ican't post up.
You you get it.
I cannot post up on my rightleg.
And one of my friends my fiddleplayer, Rylan, goes, Well, man,
you can go out there with that.
I shot 89.
I'm like, if I shot 89, I willpunch a baby.
Like, I cannot do that.
I cannot do that.

SPEAKER_07 (36:44):
Well, so I don't know.
Well, I know whatever's coming,you're you'll you'll make
through you'll get through it.
Your perseverance is amazing.
I mean, you because you thinkabout we kind of talked about
you went from being aprofessional golfer, which is
unbelievable, it's that'simpossible to make money playing
golf, and you you did it.
Then you went to anotherimpossible thing, trying to make
money playing music, writingmusic, and you've done that and

(37:06):
excelled to an amazing degree.
So I know it's a lot of hardhard work too, though.
It's not just not just luck,it's a lot of hard work.

SPEAKER_01 (37:14):
Yeah, but you gotta work hard, there ain't no doubt
about it.
But I mean, I I've just a lot ofluck, a lot of breaks.
We all catch them along the way,and I'm you know, guys sitting
at this table, letting me sharethe stage with them.
I mean, it's it's uh yeah, it'sit's humbling to still be able
to do it and still be friendswith you guys.
The guys have been doing it solong, so successful, and uh I'm
just I'm just still trying ashard as I can.

(37:35):
I don't I don't know what elseto do.
I got a new record coming out uhNovember 7th.
Uh probably be uh out uh and I'mexcited about it.
I I actually cut a song thatJason had had on hold, which is
y'all will be surprised, boys,when you hear a couple things.
Uh, because I didn't work for ayear, so I started working on my
voice a little bit, and all of asudden it's like, oh, I didn't I

(37:57):
didn't know I could do that.
I mean, and I played some of thenew stuff, and they're like,
wait.
Brantley's like, that's you?
Because Jason had called usseveral years ago.
Brantley and I were onBrantley's cruise, his first
kicking in the sticks cruise.
He goes, I need another song.
We wrote this song called TheTracks.
Because you know, Jason lovestrains and stuff, and he loved
it, but then y'all, I don'tknow, y'all didn't cut it,
whatever.

(38:17):
And I just kind of stumbled backonto it and cut it.
And that I mean it, it sound Imean, I don't sing like Jason,
obviously, but it sounds likeit's like rocking country like
that.
And I'm people like, wait,that's you?
I'm like, Yeah, yeah.
Maybe I can get me a NeilThrasher song.

SPEAKER_03 (38:34):
He's stingy with those, you gotta be careful.
Yes, he is.
I know I got a great, I got agreat I I I I I may have told us
I got a I love the my this Neilstory so good.
Back in this time period, thisis a great story.
Around the same time, DirtRodanthem is blowing up.
We start producing ThompsonSquare, you remember this stuff?

(38:54):
And we start producing we startproducing some other people.
We were producing this girl andand and Neil had this song.
And I I can't remember the titleof it, and I wish I could right
now.

SPEAKER_04 (39:06):
Farther away.

SPEAKER_03 (39:07):
Farther away.
And back in those days, it waslike Wow, this this would be
great for this girl, and andlet's just let's just cut it.
Because I don't want it todisappear.
So let's just cut it becauseit's great.
Oh, it's very true.
This is this is very true.
So we cut the song.

(39:28):
Comes out great, and I think I Iemailed like Neil's publisher at
the time, and she sent me Neil'sphone number, and I called Neil.
I said, hey man, love the song.
Want to let you know that we wecut it.
You know?
We cut it like a week ago.
And all I said he goes, asknext.

(39:49):
Ask next time.

SPEAKER_05 (39:50):
I did not say that.
It's not even funny.

SPEAKER_07 (39:55):
That doesn't sound like a lot of people.
Ask next time.

SPEAKER_05 (39:58):
That doesn't sound like a lot of people.

SPEAKER_06 (40:04):
I wish I I can't even fathom me saying that to
you.

SPEAKER_03 (40:10):
Ask next time.
That's exactly what you said.
You said ask next time.
No.
This is very this is actuallyvery much nailed.

SPEAKER_01 (40:23):
Telly's been holding on to this for a while.

SPEAKER_03 (40:26):
I told this story before, but not on the mic, I
don't think.
I think we joked about it at itspast.
But yeah, I've got enoughhaters.
It's because the song is good.
It's good.
The song was still great.
And it was like it was it wasthe uh you know Neil's thing in
the demo, but it was like uhthis female artist, like this is
perfect for female artists, youknow.

(40:47):
And um so we didn't we couldn'tget a hold of anybody because
you know Neil wouldn't give ushis phone number back then.
So personally, you only had toemail Neil.
And um reading email?

SPEAKER_08 (41:00):
Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_03 (41:01):
So we had we had to cut the song and it came out so
good that I remember calling himand hey Neil and just quiet hum
on the other end and goes, asknext time.
That's it.
I don't I don't know.
That's how it went.
We will stir for sure next ask.

SPEAKER_06 (41:21):
There had to be more to my answer than just ask next.
No, that was it.
That was the answer.
I would never say that too.
And then he hung up on you.
It was it was pretty quick.
Colt used to like me.
I feel like you did it.

SPEAKER_01 (41:33):
You ain't never done that to me.
I don't care.

SPEAKER_06 (41:35):
No, there's you think of I don't I don't want
you to I don't want your imageof me to be tarnished at all.
And Cole just did it.

SPEAKER_01 (41:44):
He did not tarnish it for me, did he?

SPEAKER_03 (41:46):
I love that story.
You know why?
Because that's something that Iwould say.

SPEAKER_01 (41:49):
Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (41:57):
I I mean I love it.
I mean it's it's true.
We should have asked, but youknow what I miss, Cole.

SPEAKER_06 (42:01):
I miss seeing you on the Pebble Beach Pro amp, man.

SPEAKER_04 (42:04):
Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (42:05):
Boy, I miss being there.
I ain't gonna lie.
I told I told us I told uh SteveJohn, the tournament director, I
I told him he called me in thehospital.
I said, boy, if I'd have knownthat last time there, I sure
would have walked a littleslower.
I mean, I you you don't I did Ididn't know.
I didn't know.

SPEAKER_06 (42:21):
I know the only reason I'd watch, the only
reason I watched that was youand Joe Don.
That was the only reason that Iwatched.

SPEAKER_01 (42:28):
Don't nobody care about seeing Jake.

SPEAKER_06 (42:30):
I mean, no, it was Joe Don.
For sure.
It was you and Joe Don.
That was it.

SPEAKER_01 (42:36):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 (42:38):
Yeah.
How were those days, man?
Do you miss going out there andhanging with him?

SPEAKER_01 (42:43):
Yeah.
A lot of fun to be back in thatelement.
The first time I went out there,Neil, it's funny.
So the first time I got invitedto Pebble, I, you know, of
course I'm super excited.
I'm fired up.
I get in there early, and thisis back in the way bigger Colt
Ford days, uh, when I was about3 30.
Uh and and immediately Irealized, oh shit, I got you
gotta walk everywhere.

(43:06):
Ain't no carts out here.
You ain't riding the cart.
Ain't nobody.
You gotta walk.
But I went back when I got thereon Monday or Sunday evening and
Monday, I'm out there, you know,early.
Eight o'clock in the morning,I'm out there.
I've spent all day hitting, I'mgonna hit thousands of balls.
I could not move on Tuesday.
I could barely walk.

(43:26):
But I'd got back in my mind, Iwas like, I'm back playing on
tour again.
I'm gonna act like when I playedon tour, which is practice all
day and all this shit.
I couldn't walk.
My big ass was dying.
Dying.
Jim Nass.
Yeah.
Jim Nass loved you, man.
I got Toby, and Toby came andplayed, and him went, him and I
would be in the same grouptogether, and we just have a big

(43:48):
time.
It's a lot of fun.

SPEAKER_04 (43:50):
Yeah, I missed that.
Who in the mission?
You mentioned Joe Don.
Who in the music business couldgive you a run for m your money
on the course?
What when I was when you werestroking.
Yeah.
Yeah, when you were hittinggood.

SPEAKER_01 (44:03):
Nobody.

SPEAKER_04 (44:04):
Nobody.

SPEAKER_01 (44:04):
Nobody.
No, no.
There's some that like to thinkthat they could, but I meant
like a big thing.
What about there may be onesitting right here?
What about Vince?
Anybody can write a hit song?
Well then by God, you ought towrite one.
I know, I know, right?

SPEAKER_07 (44:19):
What about Vince Gill?
Was AV ever close?

SPEAKER_01 (44:21):
Every money, every dollar I made derived by me
playing golf for a living.
That when that two-footer,whether you can pay your
mortgage or not, it's a wholedifferent, it looks way
different than a$5 Nassau.
But again, it was fun.
I mean, there's a guy Jake canreally play.
I I think George Burge is one ofthe best, maybe the best player

(44:42):
overall.
You know, George played at theUniversity of Texas.

SPEAKER_08 (44:45):
Oh wow.

SPEAKER_01 (44:46):
So George can really play.
George is really I mean Morganand Hardy are both pretty good
players.
Charles Kelly can can play good.
Darius plays good.
There's a lot of guys that playa lot now.
A lot of guys can play.
But I meant during the pandemic,I wouldn't qualify.
I I started couldn't work, so Istarted practicing.
And a lot of people don't evenknow because there wasn't much
press about it.

(45:07):
I wouldn't qualify and played intwo champions tour events.
So it was pretty interesting toget back out there and play at
that in that environment againand do it.
It was it was it was fun.
It was a lot it wasnerve-wracking.
I mean, I could stand on stagein front of 50,000 and not even
not worry at all.
But all of a sudden, out thereit's like, oh, this is.

SPEAKER_06 (45:27):
That's exactly what I told these guys.
Because I I played in the the uhthe senior am at Bell Mead the
state at this year, and I toldthem, I'm like, okay, because
the first it's the first TGAevent I've ever played in.
And you were right.
It's like when you have a footand a half, it doesn't even have
to be two feet, it can be a footand a half for for par.

(45:49):
On any on any given hole, I'venever felt that kind of pressure
in my life.
On stage, it's a it's a wholedifferent deal.

SPEAKER_03 (45:58):
You can't just pick them up that close.

SPEAKER_06 (46:01):
I wish you wish you could drag them.

SPEAKER_01 (46:04):
See, Tully, that is the problem.
Everybody rakes those back, andthen all of a sudden you gotta
play for real, and you're like,oh shit.
Yeah, and you miss them everytime.
That's not good.
Yeah, those guys miss them everyday.
They don't play in the leatheron the champions tour.
I tried, they wouldn't do it.
That's a fact.

SPEAKER_07 (46:21):
Have you ever uh played around with Vince Gill?
And if so, did you finish theround with Vince Gill?

SPEAKER_01 (46:27):
I played several rounds with Vince, and quite
honestly, I wasn't thinkingabout that.
Vince Vince is a fantasticplayer.
Vince uh when I first came totown, you know when they used to
do the rankings of the on Goth Ijust used to do the musicians
and the and the and all thatstuff, and and they they got
down to it was one and two, itwas me and Vince.

(46:49):
And they were just calling me,wanting me to just wanted a
quote saying that I was, youknow, I was better.
I'm like, listen.
Am I gonna win a prize orsomething if I say that?
Like I mean, like, I'm not gonnamake this argument.
I played for a freaking living.
There's not an argument.
I don't argue with Vince whetherI can play guitar better than he

(47:12):
does, because I can't.
He can't sing better than Vince.
I don't argue that.
And I can't throw a fit on thegolf course like Vince can.

SPEAKER_08 (47:22):
Let's go.

SPEAKER_01 (47:23):
He's the most un when I tell people stories of
Vince Gill on a golf course,they're like, You're lying.
I'm like, I no.
Nope.
I know I'm not.
It's unbelievable.

SPEAKER_03 (47:33):
I don't know about this.

SPEAKER_06 (47:35):
Oh, it's true.
I've played Vince.
You can get a little mad.
I played with Vince, I don'tknow, probably ten times.
And maybe half of those, he'sfinished the round.
Does he yell in a soft voice?
No.
No, no, he just leaves.
He just without telling me.
You don't understand.

SPEAKER_01 (47:52):
It's not even, it's not, it's I meant you could
watch him sing go rest high onthe mountain on the first T, and
then if he hits a bad T shot onthe first first T shot, you're
about to hear something youain't never heard.
You're gonna hear some toughwords that go together.
Like, you're like, that shitdon't even go together.
Like, why would you put themwords together?

SPEAKER_05 (48:11):
I know.
I meant I don't think he evensays anything anymore.
I don't think he says anythinganymore.
I think he just leaves.

SPEAKER_01 (48:17):
He's gotten way quieter now.
Yeah.
Yeah, no, he doesn't he doesn'tsay much now, but I meant, but
but Vince could really, reallyplay.
Very good player.
Very good player.

SPEAKER_06 (48:25):
He can out, he can play.
He can play.

SPEAKER_01 (48:28):
Interesting.
And lots of Vince Gills told merecently one of the funniest
things I've ever heard, boys.
He said, Colt, you know, I'veworked my whole life to be elite
guitar player, musician, elitesinger, elite songwriter.
He goes, now all my works for 99cents right next to a fart app.
That's what he told me.

(48:48):
And I was and he goes, andthey'll buy the damn fart app
and steal the music.

SPEAKER_04 (48:53):
Wow.
It's a different kind ofperspective.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (48:57):
Ouch.
It's a different way to look atit.

SPEAKER_06 (49:00):
I'll just say this.
You haven't played golf untilyou've played with Vince Gill.

SPEAKER_01 (49:05):
That's all I'm gonna say.
I think I knew he could playreally well.

SPEAKER_03 (49:13):
No, I didn't either.
I didn't know about thetemperature.
I knew he could play, but notabout the So there's a reason.

SPEAKER_01 (49:18):
So like there's a reason Vince never played in ATT
in Pebble Beach.
And it's because of that.
He never played in those proamps.
And he'll tell you.
He said, I I couldn't control II know I couldn't control it, so
I can't I can't play it.
Harry Taylor's like, I can'tinvite him to Pebble Beach.
There's no telling what he'lldo.

SPEAKER_06 (49:36):
I know it'd be all over for the world to see.
Jim Natchez will be talkingabout it.

SPEAKER_01 (49:41):
See, that's what I meant like that's my complaint
with golf.

SPEAKER_03 (49:45):
That's why I'm so terrible.
I'm so terrible because golf'sthe only game that can take a
legendary guitar player, singer,songwriter, soft spoken, great
man, and turn him into anabsolute animal.
That's how frustrating that gameis.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (50:02):
That's crazy.
You're right.
He's he's all those things yousaid, and he's quiet, soft
spoken, and then man, he'd gohe'd get bum after it out there
when he gets on the golf course.

SPEAKER_06 (50:16):
You know how you know how laid back Al Dean is?
Al Dean's pretty laid back.
I watched him throw a club 30yards today.
I watched him fling a club.

SPEAKER_03 (50:27):
I don't think that's out of character, though.

SPEAKER_06 (50:30):
I'm just saying I've never seen him do that to a
guitar.
I mean, he smiled.
Well, you guys got in thestreet.

SPEAKER_01 (50:37):
I'll make sure I send him I'll make sure I'll
send him a message and tell himI saw something posted online
about the exact log.

SPEAKER_03 (50:42):
Cole, that would be great.
That would be I'll do that.
That would that would that wouldbe amazing, actually.

SPEAKER_06 (50:48):
But actually, Al Dean, I gotta stick up for him.
He actually plays better nowthan I've ever seen him play.
He slowed everything down.
I think somebody at Troubadourhas been working with him and he
slowed everything down and he'she's making much better content.

SPEAKER_01 (51:02):
He's playing a lot.
Jason is a very good athlete andvery good baseball player,
hand-eye coordination.
When we back in 2009, 10, I gothim some club.
I was full of help trying tohelp him then.
We were playing at the wharf andwent out and played.
And uh I he could play, he justdoesn't, he just in the he's
just going all differentdirections.
If he worked at it a little bit,Jason would certainly be a

(51:23):
single-digit handicapper.

SPEAKER_04 (51:25):
Yeah, golf is one of those things.

SPEAKER_01 (51:26):
And Luke, Luke, Luke Bryan actually swings it decent.

SPEAKER_04 (51:29):
Oh, I don't believe that.

SPEAKER_01 (51:32):
I don't believe that.
I was surprised by that.

SPEAKER_06 (51:37):
Luke plays good when he's not playing with Dallas
Davidson.

SPEAKER_01 (51:42):
Oh, Dallas.
Yeah, that's all I mean.

SPEAKER_07 (51:48):
That's another podcast.

SPEAKER_01 (51:50):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (51:51):
Oh my gosh.
Listen, brother, you know, we'veused the word perspective a
couple times in this podcast.
Uh and I I truly hate that ittakes something like that to to
give someone perspective likeyou you're seeing the world now.
But I hope that it gives us alesson.

(52:14):
I mean, we get wrapped up in ourdaily lives all the time, and
then we come in here and talk toyou, and you're like, oh my
gosh, this this man has gonethrough it all.
And brother, we love you likeyou can't even imagine.

SPEAKER_01 (52:26):
Yep.
I appreciate it, man.
I do.
I appreciate you guys.
It has been it has been hard.
Uh I've always been prettytough, alpha male dude.
Like, I ain't scared nothing.
I'm in it, but this was this hasbeen the fight of my life, and
uh luckily I have an amazingwoman and family and some
friends like you guys that havecontinued to encourage me and

(52:49):
and still let me hang around.
And uh I'm just trying to stillpoke around there and still see
if I can make some good musicand play a couple shows.
And uh, you know, just lucky tostill be here.
And but it it changes the wayyou look at everything about
what's important and what's not.
Like I the things that I'vechased for my whole life, I'm

(53:10):
like, man, y'all can have that.
I don't know.
I'm trying to make everythingmore simple.
That's all I'm everything I'mdoing is about making things
more simple now.
Just again, be still, be presentwith the people that you're
with.
Uh and if you and if you lovesomebody, man, let them know.
Tell them.
Don't if you our our world ishard because we're constantly,
it's so frantic all the time.
When I think about it, I need todo it right then.

(53:31):
So when I think about it, whenyou think about it, just call
them.
And you know, as brothers,that's another thing I've
learned, you know.
Men, we gotta, we gotta, that'sthe try that in small town.
I mean, like, we gotta takethese small towns back.
You gotta stand up as men, yougotta help one another, support
one another, and and you know,get some of that back and still
it in our young'uns and kids andbring up that next generation

(53:53):
where they can understand that.

SPEAKER_07 (53:56):
Amen, bro.
Amen.
100% agree.
And you've been doing a greatjob with uh the giving back
also, you know, because I youknow, with the MS, and then
you've got uh the mental health,you're really an advocate uh for
that as well.
And is that was that post wasthat before uh everything
happened?

SPEAKER_01 (54:15):
Yeah, that was before.
Yeah, that was before.
I mean, you know, I was dealinga lot with this myastania gravis
stuff, and uh, you know, I justhad never had health issues
before, never had anything wrongwith me, and then all of a
sudden to have something make mehave to be still, I just I never
had that.
But I mean, when you havesuccess, I mean, and and you
guys, you guys know, becausey'all all give back.

(54:37):
I mean, like going out, you toldus talking earlier about Brett
Saberhagen, the pitcher, thelongtime pitcher in the Major
League Baseball, a great friendof ours.
Like, there's charity work.
You're supposed to give back,man.
What are you doing?
Like, that's what you're you'resupposed to give back when
you've had some success.
You're supposed to pick up youngartists, you know, and give them
a shot and try to tell them whatI mean.

(54:57):
That's that's what it's that'swhat it's all about.
That's what it was for me whenespecially 20 years ago when
when I first met you guys.
It was such a camaraderie, and II I still love that.
And I want to keep trying toencourage that.
It's not as much as it used tobe because everybody, it's the
same on the tour.
Like when I go out and visittour players now.

(55:17):
When I was growing up, we alltraveled together, we stayed
together, we ate dinnertogether, you know.
Shit, these dudes got eightdifferent dudes traveling with
them now.
They I mean I mean you got aphysiotherapist and a trainer
and a manager.
I mean, they got in all kinds ofa cook and a chef.
I mean, like, they don't hangout with each other anymore.

SPEAKER_08 (55:36):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (55:36):
I miss that.
I I miss just hanging out withone another, you know, just
after shows, kicking it down,you know.
That's that was a lot of fun.
We all grow up a little bit, geta little slow, slow down a
little, I reckon.

SPEAKER_04 (55:47):
Yeah, we talk about that all the time.
It's like we're lucky to havewhat we do right now, especially
when we're on the road and wealways say, you know, yeah,
we'll miss playing, but reallywhat I'm gonna miss is before
the show in the dressing room,just hanging out after the show,
just talking, being with theguys that those that
relationship.

SPEAKER_01 (56:05):
Yeah.
On that stage, everything goesaway for me, no matter what.
I meant like getting back outthere.
I meant, look, I don't know ify'all know, I meant I I Brantley
was gonna take me he Brantley,you you guys know my microphone,
the shotgun on the Americanflag.
Brantley took it from thehospital that night in Phoenix
and carried it on stage with himevery single show he did till I

(56:28):
stepped back on that, till I gotback on the stage and took that
mic back.
He put it on every single stagehe played on.
He brought it out and he said,and he'd sing Dirt Road Anthem
and and he and and so I couldn'tcommit to going back on the road
with him this year because Ididn't know when I I I don't I
had no idea.
So that you know, our worlddoesn't work like, oh, you want

(56:49):
to play a show next week?
Okay, we'll book it.
That's not how this works.
So they're trying to book atour, and I'm like, I I think
I'll be ready.
Maybe I don't know.
I just didn't know.
And so I couldn't commit.
So what he did that reallyallowed me and made me think it
was I could co-do it again washe took me out for two weeks on
the road.

(57:10):
He took me out on his bus.
I didn't have my bat, I didn'thave no stress, nothing to deal
with.
And he brought me on stage inthe middle of his show every
night and let me do 15 minutesin the middle of his set.
And he would sing the chorusesand let me be the star.
And it was un unbelievable.

(57:30):
Because I I was terrified to getback up there.
And and that made me go, okay.
And and to do that, I meant likeit's your it's a tattoos tour,
it ain't got shit to do with me.
And he stood aside, and thenwhen I'm about to walk off, the
crowd he just wouldn't let me dothat either.
The crowd, he would they wouldstand there and give me a
standing ovation for a couple ofminutes, and they just it was

(57:53):
unbelievable.
It was unbelievable.
And that made me go, okay, I canI can get back up here and try
again.
So I would be a lot for that forsure.

SPEAKER_07 (58:01):
I don't I don't know, Bradley, but that that's
that's about the most selflessthing that that's a good idea.
Well, you guys you guys know theworld we live in.

SPEAKER_01 (58:09):
I mean, and that's not even disrespectful to even
somebody like Jay.
It's no disrespect to nobody.
I mean, you're it's that's notthat just doesn't happen.
I mean, not even promoters don'teven want that to happen.
It's like going, I don't give ashit what y'all say.
This is my brother, and I don'tcare what what what happens.
We're gonna do this.
And and that that was that wasbig for me being able to go,

(58:32):
okay.
So I I'm I'm back out here, I'mdoing it now, playing.
The shows are rocking, it's fun.
Hopefully, I get back and playwith you guys again sometime,
and we'll just we'll just keepon rocking.
We'll keep trying to do it in asmall town.
I like that.

SPEAKER_06 (58:46):
Come on.
It's so good to see your face,brother.
Absolutely.
It's so good to see that you'redoing good.
You look good, your color'sgood, you look great.
I don't like that hat, but youlook good.
I know you don't.
You look fantastic.

SPEAKER_01 (59:00):
I made Tyler Farr you're talking about Tyler
Farrah.
When he found out how much Iweighed, he nearly killed him.
He said he was gonna killhimself.
I don't know.
He said, I never thought there'dbe a day where I wear heavier
than Colt and wear biggerbritches.
Hey man, times have changed.
Times have changed, man.

SPEAKER_04 (59:18):
Times have changed, and guys, I love y'all.

SPEAKER_01 (59:20):
I'm so thank you.
Congrats on the the podcast andcongrats on that song.
That was a big great song.
Hey, thank you.
When you get back going, we needmore, we need more of that.

SPEAKER_06 (59:35):
We need to get you, I need to get you out to the
grove, man.
When you get that swing back,that leg, hey, that leg's gonna
come back.

SPEAKER_01 (59:42):
I played with Kevin a few times out there.
Place is good.
I I'm gonna work on it.
I'm gonna work on it and try toget back where I can play.
Maybe next spring I'll get outthere with you and we'll do it.

SPEAKER_06 (59:50):
No, I just all I want you out there for is for
tips.
That's all I want you out therefor.

SPEAKER_01 (59:54):
I can do that.
I can go give you tips now.
Hell, I can ride around now.
I can do that.

SPEAKER_06 (59:58):
I want Coach Ford out there.
I got it.
Yeah, you do.

SPEAKER_01 (01:00:03):
You know, it's fun.
I still enjoy giving guy.
I've I still have tour playersthat are friends of mine that
I've worked with that'll call meup sometimes, be like, hey man,
can you have you looked at this?
Because I you TV now coverage,you can see so much more, and
I'm like, oh yeah, maybe yourball position's a little off or
something.
So I still enjoy it a lot.
I still love talking about it.

SPEAKER_04 (01:00:22):
Well, we love you, brother.
Uh like you said, uh, we'regonna make it a point to see you
soon, and I can't we can't waitfor it.

SPEAKER_01 (01:00:30):
And I look forward to all that.
I look forward to seeing youguys in person.
And uh thank y'all.
God bless you.
Have a wonderful Thanksgivingand Merry Christmas.
And I can't wait to see youboys.
You too.
Thank you very much forwarding.
Love you, man.
Thanks, guys.
Appreciate you.

SPEAKER_04 (01:00:42):
We've done a lot of episodes, and um not many make
you sit back and go, oh man.
Like I he said it a couple timesand I said it, but the
perspective that you hopefullygain from that is uh is actually
overwhelming to me because Ijust today, this week, I've got

(01:01:05):
a lot of stuff going on.
I feel like, oh man, I'm gettingstressed.
And then you talk to Colt, andit's like, oh man, okay.
He that's a whole differentthat's a whole different thing.

unknown (01:01:16):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (01:01:16):
And what he's been through and his newfound
perspective is it's it'sactually beautiful, even though
you have to go through some ofthat to to gain it.

SPEAKER_07 (01:01:26):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (01:01:27):
Anyone got a thoughts?

SPEAKER_07 (01:01:29):
No, I just thought I'd just the same.
You're just kind of uhencouraged and motivated by that
because we're very close to thesame age, you know, and you
know, he said he went to thedoctor like ten days prior, you
know, to having uh the incidentand stuff, and then that
happened, and you know, youthink you're kind of in the
clear, then that happens and andum and and he's having to

(01:01:50):
relearn things, you know, samething like walking and uh
filling a cup up with ice andstuff like that, and um it's
just just different.
And then also I love the youknow what he talked about, the
appreciation he has for hisfamily and his friends.
Not that he didn't before, butif that happened to any of us,
we're gonna have it's gonna bethat times 10.

(01:02:12):
Yeah.
You know, because like, oh thankGod I'm still here, you know.
And uh so anyway, I just thoughtthat was that was really cool.
And the fact that he's not andhe's working through things like
like now he has different thingshe's never had, like anxiety.
But he never had anxiety before,so now he's having to figure out
how to deal with that going onstage in front of a you know a
ton of people.
Um so just a lot of new things,but he's still a lot of people

(01:02:35):
that they would kind of shrinkback into a shell.
Yes, I'm not so sure I wouldn'tshrink back.
I might I might say, hey, we'vewe've done good.
I I'm done with that.
Now I'm gonna now I'm gonnawatch the grandkids and stuff,
you know.
But he's still out thereworking, it's very inspiring.

SPEAKER_06 (01:02:49):
No, day by day.
He's gonna he's gonna he's gonnahe's got a plan, he's coming
back.
I want our listeners to pray forhim.
And his healing.
Yeah.
And his mind.
So it can take some time, yeah.
Absolutely.
Because he his his his his wholeattitude, his whole demeanor
seems really, really positive.
And everybody just keep him inyour thoughts and prayers,

(01:03:12):
please.

SPEAKER_07 (01:03:12):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 (01:03:13):
Well said.

SPEAKER_04 (01:03:14):
Yeah, it's great.
Um we appreciate you guyslistening.
You know, if you're watching onYouTube, leave us a comment.
Uh, we'd love to hear yourcomments on this episode
specifically, actually.
Leave us a review, download theepisode.
We uh, as always, want to thankPatriot Mobile eSpaces, original
glory, and we want to thank youguys for watching and listening.

(01:03:36):
Uh, we'll be back next week totry that in a small town
podcast.