Brave One

Album: Hope (2021)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jim Lauderdale was worried he'd never be able to perform live again, and his fears stifled his creativity until he found hope and started writing songs to help others find it too. On "Brave One," from his 2021 album, Hope, the singer-songwriter encourages frontline healthcare workers to press on in the face of adversity.

    "During this nightmarish period, these folks are real heroes that are putting their lives out there for us," he explained on American Songwriter's Off The Record podcast in 2021.
  • While healthcare workers were at the forefront of his mind when he wrote the song, Lauderdale said it could apply to any other brave ones who risk their lives for others. "Anybody that's in some kind of service, whether it be military or what - just people that are risking their lives and sticking their necks out," he told Paste Magazine in 2021.
  • In the lyrics, Lauderdale tries to make sense of the state of the world and asks that the third eye on our heads would be opened and the meaning to be revealed. This is a reference to Eastern spiritual philosophies that suggest there's an invisible third eye on the forehead that represents wisdom that can't be attained through ordinary sight.
  • Lauderdale co-produced the album with his longtime collaborator and bassist Jay Weaver. It was recorded at Nashville's Blackbird Studio, where students at the Blackbird Academy, the studio's in-house audio-engineering school, engineered the bulk of the release.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Edwin McCain

Edwin McCainSongwriter Interviews

"I'll Be" was what Edwin called his "Hail Mary" song. He says it proves "intention of the songwriter is 180 degrees from potential interpretation by an audience."

Church Lyrics

Church LyricsMusic Quiz

Here is the church, here is the steeple - see if you can identify these lyrics that reference church.

Julian Lennon

Julian LennonSongwriter Interviews

Julian tells the stories behind his hits "Valotte" and "Too Late for Goodbyes," and fills us in on his many non-musical pursuits. Also: what MTV meant to his career.

Jay, Peaches, Spinderella and other Darrining Victims

Jay, Peaches, Spinderella and other Darrining VictimsSong Writing

Just like Darrin was replaced on Bewitched, groups have swapped out original members, hoping we wouldn't notice.

Who Did It First?

Who Did It First?Music Quiz

Do you know who recorded the original versions of these ten hit songs?

Judas Priest

Judas PriestSongwriter Interviews

Rob Halford, Richie Faulkner and Glenn Tipton talk twin guitar harmonies and explain how they create songs in Judas Priest.