Bill's Blog

BILL BLOG Tuesday May 30, 2025   Friday morning at the end of May is on us with the weekend ahead. It’s going to be nice in weather for us in Nashville. Today we get sunshine and a high of just 73 degrees.   YESTERDAY I had nothing big on the calendar yesterday. So, I spent some of it working ahead, and some of it catching up on things I’ve been behind on. The “behind” list is much longer. Always.   NEW DATE I did put a new show on the books. Saturday, September 20, my long-time friend Steve Dean and me will return to the Songwriter Series at our Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The songwriter show is held inside the beautiful Ford Theater starting at noon. It’s a 45-minute show that includes a question-and-answer session that’s always fun. Admission is free with your museum ticket that day.   I think this might be the 5 th time Steve and I have had this privilege. Thank you to the Hall for having us again.   SONG OF THE DAY ...

BILL BLOG Thursday May 29, 2025   Thursday morning already. We had a small storm roll through last night. Big enough to knock our power out for an hour or so in the middle of the night. Today, a high of 80 with a little more rain on tap this morning.   YESTERDAY I wrote with Lauren Mascitti & Kristen Leigh Bearfield at the publishing company. Both girls sing great, and they both sing great harmony. I brought an idea that needed some three-part harmony that they loved, and that’s what we wrote, and then recorded before we left. Such a pleasure to hear either of them sing.   Kristen brought her mandolin, which was a perfect instrument to use for the kind of song we wrote. Think about some of those old songs from The Trio with Dolly , Emmy Lou Harris , and Linda Ronstadt.   It was so much fun singing a harmony part with the two of them. And now, we’ll try to find a home for the new tune if we can. FREEDOM SINGS USA I want to sha...

BILL BLOG Wednesday May 28, 2025   Wednesday morning, and I’m back home in Nashville. Sunshine with a high of just 79 here in Nashville today.   YESTERDAY A long drive home from Pensacola from our Freedom Sings USA songwriters retreat with our veterans. 2 traffic jams with detours, and one last traffic jam as I was 5 miles away. So, a normal 7 to 8 hour drive took 9 to get home this time. But we made it safe and sound with a bag full of great memories from the Memorial Day weekend, honoring those who gave so much. And what a pleasure it was getting to write with my friend and Viet Nam veteran Larry Hudson who had quite the story to tell that we turned into a song.   NEXT UP Our next Freedom Sings USA weekend will be in the small town of Heyworth, Illinois June 18 and 19. We were there last year, and it seemed like the entire town showed up on the night all the writers performed those songs we wrote with their veterans. We are certainl...

BILL BLOG Tuesday May 27, 2025   Up early this Tuesday morning, headed back to Nashville from a great Freedom Sings USA weekend in Pensacola.   YESTERDAY It was some kind of great Memorial Day concert at the Warrior Beer Company in Pensacola with Freedom Sings USA.   4 songwriters sang 4 songs on stage, written with veterans this past Sunday morning. And I got to sing mine, that I wrote with long-time friend Larry Hudson .   The song went over so great, and Larry got a standing ovation. And then every veteran that was there walked over and shook his hand. A goose-bump kind of moment for him…and me as well.   Thank you to Gary Hefner at Warrior Beer Company for getting behind such a special event. Word is, we may be back down here to write with other veterans come this November. Stay tuned for details.   Oh…and our accommodations were great. You can’t beat a room with a view of a rooster or two.  And you can...

BILL BLOG Monday May 26, 2025  And a good Memorial Day Monday morning to you from Pensacola, Florida.   THE WEEKEND Mine started Saturday morning by jumping the car with Steve Dean and making the trip from Nashville down here to beautiful Pensacola for this event with Freedom Sings USA.   The event was held at Warrior Beer Company in Pensacola, owned by veteran Gary Hefner .   We rolled into Pensacola around 5 pm Friday, dropped our bags at the hotel, and then made our way over to the Warrior Beer Company for a little meet and greet with our veterans.   Imagine my surprise when I found out that a long-time friend of mine, Larry Hudson , from nearby Gulf Shores, would be the veteran I would be writing with. More on that in a bit.     After our dinner, our songwriter group got on stage and sang a few songs.   After we wrapped up, we headed to a favorite Irish Pub, “McGuire’s,” and closed out the ...