AIR DATE: MAR 2015

Hey everybody, it’s Eric Church back for the second, count ‘em two, second episode of Outsiders Radio. Just got in off the road and as I have been most of my adult life, we’re always touring. I was thinking about this next episode, and what it should be, and it hit me… LIVE tracks. So, I’ve always believed, you know, it’s so important to get out there and take your music to the people. It’s not the record label, it’s not even radio that matters. The fans are what matters. I struggled a lot at the beginning of my career. I wasn’t, maybe, making the music that the gatekeepers wanted, but it was you, the fans… although in very small numbers, that were passionate… and you made my music YOUR music. I’ll never forget how we built this together. So, I was on stage this past weekend and it got me thinking about all those great artists that came before me. I always respected the ones that were great live, it just seemed the most real and raw in their natural habitat, if you will. So, like a great ball player, their skills were palpable. And speaking of palpable, here’s nine minutes and fifteen seconds of palpable… Here’s Humble Pie.

“I Don’t Need No Doctor” 9:15 – Humble Pie – Rockin’ The Fillmore

Humble Pie! Rockin’ the Fillmore. There’s a story that, during the mixin’ of the album, the band presented what they thought to be the finished project to their manager, Dee Anthony. Upon listening to it, he made one comment: "It’s great, but where's the audience?" It turned out that the singer, Steve Marriott, and the drummer, Jerry Shirley, were so stoned they had forgotten to include the sound of the audience in the mix—that’s understandable. So, it was back to the mixing desk. As you might have noticed, they did get 40 seconds of audience there at the end, so I guess they found it. And, here’s the important thing, and on guitar is the one and only Peter Frampton…talk about a guy with a definitive live record. Here’s “Do You Feel Like We Do” from one of my favorite live albums, Frampton Comes Alive.

“Do You Feel Like We Do” 13:47 – Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive

Talk to me “Talk Box.” The birth of the “Talk Box,” at least to my world. If you listen carefully, we borrowed, from Peter, that trick on our very first album. Listen for the talk box on “Before She Does” off the Sinners Like Me album… we actually discussed Frampton in the studio when we were putting it down. Enough of that, on with the show. Here’s a couple of the best music business songs that I know. One is from Lynyrd Skynyrd, and one is from my hero, Bob Seger.

“Workin’ For MCA” 4:40 – Lynyrd Skynyrd – One More From The Road

“Turn The Page” 5:03 – Bob Seger – Live Bullet

There’s Lynyrd Skynyrd, “Workin’ for MCA” off One More From The Road, recorded in 1977, and Bob Seger’s “Turn The Page” from Live Bullet. It was released in April of 1976. The success of Seger's music at this time was highly regional. While being wildly popular in Detroit, he still remained an unknown, even in cities as close as Chicago. In June ‘76, if you can believe this, Seger played the Pontiac Silverdome in metropolitan Detroit at a historic concert that also included Point Blank, Elvin Bishop, and Todd Rundgren, for 78,000 people. The concert lasted until nearly 1:30 a.m. The next night, Seger played for fewer than a thousand people in Chicago. Unbelievable, unbelievable. Not anymore, the world knows Bob Seger. Music is still like this today. Here’s a local favorite from Boston, now based in Brooklyn and starting to break out. Here is Lake Street Dive, “You Go Down Smooth,” live from Town Hall in New York City.

“You Go Down Smooth” 3:48 – Lake Street Dive – Another Day Another Time

Speaking of going down smooth… Y’all check this out.

“Seven Bridges Road” 3:05 - The Eagles – Eagles Live

Supposedly inspired by a rural thoroughfare in Alabama that leads from Georgiana to the Oakwood Annex Cemetery in Montgomery, the final resting place of Hank Williams. That’s The Eagles with the beautifully written “Seven Bridges Road.” Speaking of Hank Williams, that reminds me, we need to get to some stone cold country. One of my favorites from the great Johnny Cash, from arguably the best live album… Here’s “A Boy Named Sue,” live at San Quentin.

“A Boy Named Sue” 3:54 – Johnny Cash – Johnny Cash At San Quentin

A boy named Sue! Wow. I just had my second boy…Tennessee Hawkins. We call him “Hawk,” which is a little better than Sue. He’s gonna love Johnny Cash, a true, true rock star. Kinda like this guy…a guy that against his labels wishes recorded his first proper record live at the Apollo Theatre in 1963. When the label refused to support the idea, he paid for it himself, and it when on to spend 66 weeks on the charts. Come on man, 66 weeks! There was a point in time where no matter where you were in America, your musical taste was defined by whether you owned this album. The Godfather of Soul, James Brown, with “Try Me,” from Live At The Apollo.

“Try Me” 2:14 - James Brown – Live At The Apollo

The man! If you haven’t seen the movie Get On Up about Mr. Brown, do it. Just some great tidbits about the live music industry and about James Brown, and about the dedication he had.

Well, it wasn’t the Apollo, but the boys and I decided to record a show in a small theatre called the Tivoli in Chattanooga…2012 I believe. We were in the middle of an arena run, and we just wanted to touch our roots, so we jammed into this little place, and we played for two days. And after hearing Johnny Cash and James Brown back to back, it reminds me that we all have a lotta boot left to fill. Here’s one from us, from Caught In The Act.

“Lotta Boot Left to Fill” 4:21 – Eric Church – Caught In The Act

Alright alright, I think we may have filmed that, by the way. Hmm, see what happens with that. Anyway, I love playing with my band, it’s my favorite thing to do. Those guys, they’re my brothers on the road, ya know? And they’re my family. And I hope you’ve enjoyed these live tracks. Capturing a band in the wild has always been very cool to me. It’s a moment in time that will never be repeated. So get out there and see live music. It doesn’t always have to be on top of the charts, just get out and go see ‘em—little dives, clubs, theaters, and even in the big rooms. You can always find, no matter how big or small, you can always find those moments in a show that magic happens and that make it special. As I sign off, here’s one for MY band… Thin Lizzy, from Live and Dangerous… See you guys next time. I hope.

“Rosalie/Cowgirls Song” 4:14 - Thin Lizzy - Live And Dangerous

Eric Church hosts Outsiders Radio monthly on SiriusXM's The Highway. Eric explores his personal music influences and plays his current favorites. Church will also play exclusive, never before heard music from his own archives.

Outsiders Radio will air on the last Friday of every month at 10:00 pm ET via satellite on The Highway channel 56 and through the SiriusXM Internet Radio App on smartphones and other connected devices, as well as online at siriusxm.com. The show will also be rebroadcast on Mondays at 12:00 am ET and Wednesdays at 11:00 pm ET. Stream SiriusXM FREE for 30 Days. No credit card required. See Offer Details at www.siriusxm.com/freetrial. New SiriusXM Internet Radio subscribers only.