Guitar Man

Album: Slowheart (2017)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Penned by Kip Moore with Dan Couch and Westin Davis, this intimate ode to a musician's life is told through the story of a guy Moore spotted one night performing at a bar.

    "I remember being that guy, having all those dreams. Constantly feeling like, 'Am I ever going to get where I want to get?'" Moore recalled to Rolling Stone Country. "And that night, I overheard someone say, 'Man, that guy is good.' No one knew his name, he was faceless. I just remember being him, giving everybody the time of their lives one night. And then I would go home by myself and feel empty, because there was so much more I could accomplish."
  • Moore held nothing back emotionally during his recording of the tune. "It's my life in a song - of chasing where I want to go," he told Billboard. "It's my tip of the hat to all those dreamers who are still in those honky-tonks and bars."

    "I did it just like they did for so many years, playing other people's music," Moore continued. "But, I always had the dream of playing my own. It's a song that faces all the vulnerabilities that you feel, the honest pieces that you face every day when you are outside that hamster wheel of life, and you are trying to chase a dream, and you're not making any money. You face all the vulnerabilities that you feel inside, and that's what that song is about."
  • Kip Moore sang his entire vocal part live to tape as musicians Tom Bukovac and Dave Cohen unknowingly played the tender guitar lines in the adjoining room. "That's why you hear me taking breaths and catching up with my phrasing," he said with a laugh. "I loved it."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Christopher Cross

Christopher CrossSongwriter Interviews

The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.

Into The Great Wide Open: Made-up Musicians

Into The Great Wide Open: Made-up MusiciansSong Writing

Eddie (played by Johnny Depp in the video) found fame fleeting, but Chuck Berry's made-up musician fared better.

Marvin Gaye

Marvin GayeFact or Fiction

Did Marvin try out with the Detroit Lions? Did he fake crazy to get out of military service? And what about the cross-dressing?

Macabre Mother Goose: The Dark Side of Children's Songs

Macabre Mother Goose: The Dark Side of Children's SongsSong Writing

"London Bridge," "Ring Around the Rosie" and "It's Raining, It's Pouring" are just a few examples of shockingly morbid children's songs.

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)

Chad Channing (Nirvana, Before Cars)Songwriter Interviews

Chad tells tales from his time as drummer for Nirvana, and talks about his group Before Cars.

Desmond Child

Desmond ChildSongwriter Interviews

One of the most successful songwriters in the business, Desmond co-wrote "Livin' La Vida Loca," "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" and "Livin' On A Prayer."