Cut By Cut
It's a Love Thing (Monty Powell, keith urban) ..........It's a guy thing – don't let your friends know how much time you'd like to spend with the woman in your life. It makes you look whipped, right? Well, keith decided to 'fess up. "I wanted to say something for the guy who would rather go home to be with his wife or girlfriend than have drinks with the guys," keith says. "The idea came from being in that situation myself and finding out later that a couple of other guys in the group also would have preferred to be home. Most guys won't admit it to their friends, but if just one would speak up and say, 'I'd rather be home,' let's face it, a lot of their friends are thinking the same thing.
"the Blacktop Ends (Steve Wariner, Allen Shamblin)........Steve Wariner played a demo of this song for Capitol Records Nashville President and CEO Pat Quigley, who immediately thought of keith. "We're using a lot of drum loops on the album and I've always loved bluegrass-style harmonies, and this song had the rhythm and harmonies," says keith. "I knew it would be a great song live and it is. We start our show off with it every time." Wariner plays guitar and sings on the track. "What he did on the demo was so stunning, I just told him to do the same thing for me," keith says.
For The Grace of God (Charlotte Caffrey, Jane Wiedlin, keith urban).......mutual friend brought keith together for a songwriting session with Charlotte Caffrey and Jane Wiedlin, formerly of the '80s band, The Go-Gos. At first, the three of them sat around in awkward silence, as somebody would throw out an idea and someone else would reject it immediately. "Nothing was working," keith says, "and I was thinking, 'Oh, this is a disaster, how do I get out of this? These poor girls are wondering what the heck they're going to do too.' Then Charlotte said, I have this title, 'But For The Grace of God.' I loved it. I started playing this guitar riff immediately, getting the tempo and the feel. Jane just started scribbling, scribbling, scribbling. In a matter of less than three minutes, I had worked out the intro and the feel of the first verse while Jane had the story for the first verse." The result: A song about seeing the good in your relationship, despite its problems, and being thankful for what you have.
Your Everything (Chris Lindsey, Bob Regan)......beautiful love poem, this song touched keith the first time he heard it. "There's a line in it that says, 'I want to be wind that fills your sail,' and I thought, 'yeah, .' Then it goes, 'I want to be the hand that lifts your veil,' and I was covered in goosebumps," says keith. "I had to have this song, for that line alone.
"Wanna Be Your Man (Forever) (keith urban)..........by the long romance and wedding plans between keith's friend Jerry Flowers (former bass player with The Ranch) and his high school sweetheart. "It's a simple message about a couple deciding to commit to each other," keith says. "There's something about zydeco music that's so infectious, so happy, so positive; and that seemed appropriate for this song. It's such upbeat music and for this story, the music and the message, (pardon the pun) marry so well." keith's pals Emily Robison and Martie Seidel add their voices to the track. keith played guitar on a song on the Dixie Chicks' second album, and two of the trio returned the favor with harmony vocals on this track. And now for the kicker: Jerry Flowers currently plays bass for the Dixie Chicks on tour.
