A Conversation with Lori McKenna (continued)

PM: As a Nashville-based webzine, I was really motivated to call you when I heard the rumblings of all the great things that are happening for you down here. I know that you can't talk about those specifically. But I am led to believe that you've been coming down here to do some writing.

LM: Yeah. I've been coming down about once a month, for a couple days at a time. And because of Mary Gauthier--Mary called me I guess late last summer or early fall and she said, "I'm writing for this woman Melanie--Melanie Howard Music--and she really loves your record Bittertown, and she wants to talk to you about a publishing deal." So we met and hit it off. And I ended up signing this deal with Melanie.

PM: She's fantastic. [Besides being a superlative publisher with great ears, Melanie also happens to be the widow of the legendary songwriter Harlan Howard.]

LM: She is great, and she loves the music. I guess I signed a deal with her in December. And since then I've been going down once a month for a couple days. She calls me up and she says, [laughs] "Hey, I got you a writing appointment with Darrell Scott and Mark D. Sanders, just a couple of guys that live down here. No sweat."

PM: Unbelievable...

LM: The first guy I ever wrote with was Mark D. Sanders--

PM: You gotta love that. [In the Al Anderson interview, we mentioned Tia Sillers' Song of the Year "I Hope You Dance"--Mark D. was her co-writer on that song, and many other huge Country hits.]

LM: --and I was petrified. I have to tell you, I had never really done that. I've done co-writes with my friends, like once or twice with Josh Ritter, or my friend Meghan Toohey, and Mark Erelli since then. But I really had never done that before.

PM: Yeah, writing with your friends is one thing.

LM: It's one thing, right. But Mark D. Sanders, I mean, for God sakes?

PM: So many hits.

LM: So many hits. So I was really petrified. But he's such a great guy. We've written four songs together.

PM: Really?

LM: If I was going to make a record, I would want three of them to be on there.

PM: I hear he's a really sweet guy.

LM: I mean, I just love that guy. He's so great to me, and he knows so much about the business. And he's willing to give you advice--some people aren't. Some people, it just doesn't occur to them. [laughs]

PM: Oh, yeah, or if it occurs to them, they make sure they don't.

[laughter]

LM: I just talked to him last night on the phone. And he's been through all this, and he knows. He says, "Your song is on the record when you're holding the record in Wal-Mart, and you read that your song is on the record."

PM: Right. And until then, you don't know nothing.

LM: Yeah. And until then just be happy that you get to do what you love to do for a living. Darrell Scott told me the same thing, and that's what I'm doing. These guys have been through it, and they know. So we're hoping for the best.

PM: Yeah, Darrell is one of my very favorite guys. [see our interview with Darrell]

LM: That guy, man--his record, that Live From New York City record? God, I think that's the best live record I've ever heard.

PM: He's a scary guitar player.

LM: I went over to his house, and he's just got instruments everywhere. You can't spit without hitting a musical instrument in his house.

[laughter]

LM: And he's like--well, I had this song that I just started, and it was kind of in trouble. It was in a lot of trouble, actually.

PM: [laughs]

LM: And I said, "I don't know"--and I was getting laryngitis, so I couldn't even sing. And he was like, "Let me try this." And he picked up a mandolin. And then, "Let me try this," and he sat down at the piano. And I was like, "Oh, my God, this guy"--

PM: Wow.

LM: I sang it to him once with laryngitis, and he just picked it right up.

PM: And fixed it.

LM: And fixed it!

[laughter]

LM: He sure did fix it.

PM: That's so amazing when you give somebody something that's wounded and they fix it.

LM: It was sort of more than wounded--it was in intensive care for a long time.

PM: [laughs]

LM: And not only did he fix it up, but he ended up doing a demo, and it is just brilliant. I mean, I don't want to--I just listen to Darrell Scott's thing, and I don't want to sing the song again myself. Like, well, I got Darrell Scott to sing it!

PM: Right. "That's good enough for me."

LM: Yeah, yeah. So I was just having a blast. I really like Nashville. I don't like to travel much, but when I go down there, Melanie takes such good care of me. She puts me with these people who are fantastic.  continue

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