Try this sometime. Go outside, sit down, and take off your shoes. Then, just walk around in the dirt like you used to as a kid. Yep, there’s nothing better. Who cares if your feet get dirty? Sometimes the simple things feel best.

See, our world has become incredibly complicated. Twenty years ago, if someone wanted to drink a Coke, making a choice was simple. Either they bought a regular Coke, a regular Coke, or a regular Coke. Life was good. Today, one has to navigate down an aisle of possible Coke selections, including Black Cherry Coke, Diet Coke, Diet Caffeine- Free Coke, Splenda-flavored Coke, Caffeine-free Coke, and Banana- flavored Coke. OK, I made up the last choice, but you get the idea. Sometimes simplicity feels good.

Sort of like being a Texas Music Times reader. Yep, if you love reading this magazine, chances are you’re a fan of music that is uncomplicated, straight to the point, and good for the soul. Take a listen to Stoney Larue, Mike McClure, or Brandon Rhyder. Is a degree in Philosophy required to understand their messages? Nope. Their tunes come from the heart. Listening to those guys is like feeling the earth under your bare feet. It’s simple, straightforward, and cleansing for mind and body.

Speaking of straightforward, you’ll be hard pressed to find a guy more direct and grounded than Jarrod Birmingham. Sometime soon, take a trip to his website (www.jarrodbirmingham. com) and simply click on any page. Across the top you’ll see him leaning against a building with a plowed dirt field behind him. Nope, it’s not a Hollywood set, or a site scouted out by his representatives to make Jarrod look like the “common folk.” This is Jarrod’s farm in Tivoli, Texas. He’s standing on his plot of land, in his field, on his dirt. If given the chance, look closely at his black boots. One won’t find the gleaming shine of freshly-lacquered footwear that was once the skin of an endangered animal from the jungles of South America. Instead, you’ll see the scuffed, scratched, and broken-in footwear of a guy whose feet have been firmly planted in the soil all his life. A former professional bullrider whose songwriting skills and traditional style have spawned comparisons to Waylon and Hank Jr., Jarrod has been labeled “the first real singer of the 21st century.” Jarrod Birmingham is an honest, direct man who plays music. Good, solid music for the soul.

What else is good for the soul? One sure bet is a goodtime Friday night in Houston, Texas—one that signals the end of a long workweek. At about 30 minutes before his scheduled showtime, Jarrod ambled into the kitchen area of his tour bus to say hello. After all the introductions had been made, he poured himself a generous Jack Daniels and Coke, leaned back on his couch, and started talking. Immediately, his straightforward, honest nature shone through.

On the state of country music: You know what I miss about country music the most? I’m not bashing music, but we need more guys like George Jones. We have folks singing about being country, but in a lot of ways it’s more like pop music. What do we really know about some of the people making country music? They spit out a hit and then disappear, because some of it’s just not real. There are exceptions, like Dierks Bentley. I’m a huge Dierks fan. I hope real country circles back around, I really do. You can look at the circle and anytime something like that returns; it comes back in a huge way. Honestly, the last person I can think of was Dwight Yoakum, and before that, maybe Waylon or Hank Jr. Now, there’s lots of good music in between that, but that was when country hit big.

On Nashville: I’ve never bashed Nashville. Never. I go out there quite a bit. You know, Jack (Ingram) and I have always had the same view about it. There’s been some great music made there, and there’s also been some horrible music made there. But, if someone buys the record, how can you say they’re wrong? It’s not my job to say, “They’re wrong and I’m right.” I’m from the country, and I don’t like snakes, but if I make shirts that say, “Snakes Suck,” and that’s all I do, snakes aren’t going to go away. To me, bashing someone’s music is like talking bad about their kids. I don’t have to like your music, just as I don’t have to like your kids. But, I also don’t think I should tell you that your kids are ugly, because you’re partial to them. Some people think I’m bashing Nashville when I say, “Where’d you go, country music?” But that’s not it. I’m not taking a shot. I’ll never say anything bad about other people’s music. It’s just that I miss that particular style and the honesty, like I miss a past girlfriend or a past love. On critics of his music: Man, if you take it all personally, it’s going to be a long ride for you. The biggest song I’ve ever had is “If You Don’t Like Me, I Probably Won’t Like You,” ( a #1 single and Best of Texas top ten hit off his 2006 release, No Apologies). It was a way to underline the fact that we put so much emphasis on what everybody else thinks and not enough on people who really believe in what you do and who you are. Yeah, I’ve had the critics on it. They called it ‘arrogant.’ Hey, it’s music. It’s not an addendum to the Declaration of Independence or anything like that. Loosen up. It wasn’t me on my soapbox. If I had written the song in a much deeper way such as, “Well, we pay too much attention to the people who dislike us,” hey, who wants to hear that?

On his early days: Chris Wall became such a mentor to me. I can ask him anything about my music, and he’ll be honest with me. Anyway, we had done some acoustic stuff together, and he came to see me play. Afterwards, I asked him what he thought about it, and he said, “Quit defending yourself during a show. People can tell you’re country, and they can tell who your heroes are. There are all kinds of guys saying that Waylon is their hero, and if they have to say it, then they’re looking for people to see it. With you, it’s so obvious. Just leave it alone.” After that, I became so much more comfortable with who I was.

On his hometown of Tivoli: They’ve got mosquitoes as big as dump trucks, so good luck in trying to get anyone to live there. Great Mexican food, though.

On being a performer: As a writer and a player I’m not so conceited that I think that everything I say has to be heard. I just want the people to have fun. They have to listen to everybody else all week long. It’s not about numbers, either. We did a show a couple of weeks ago in Wichita Falls for about 50 people, and they were hanging on every word. I just look for people having fun, and the domino effect can be huge. It’s great to be the underdog. I have been all my life. The day when you think you’ve got this business all figured out is the day you need to find something else to do because you’ve become too nonchalant.

On his time off: Time off? We played two out of every three days last year, so I like quiet. I definitely don’t go to bars. I like any type of peace and quiet. I like to ride horses, feed cows—stuff like that. And I try to write. Life on the road can reach a point that I ignore the writing. Your soul gets fed two ways: as an entertainer and as a writer, but it’s easy to lose the writing side when you’re so busy.

On writing songs: I started writing rodeo songs before I got into country music. It was more cowboy- type stuff. Songs like “Holdin’ On,” that’s on the album (No Apologies), but I didn’t want to get pinned in a corner where I’d be the next Chris Le Doux. Chris is one of my biggest heroes, God I love him. I thought it would be easy to get caught up in that cowboy singer-type deal, and there’s more to me than that. It was only a small part of my life, and it was what I started writing first. Sometimes I overthink writing now, so I have to be careful now that I don’t lose the fun side of it all.

On his friends: I’ve made a lot of friends. I’ve never met an Oklahoma artist that I haven’t bonded to. Jason Boland and I used to tease and say we’d take a bullet for each other. One day during a radio interview we were asked, “Would you really?” And we looked at each other, laughed, and said, “Nah.” Boland was quoted as saying that guys like him and me don’t play music to kill time. We play music to keep time from killing us. That’s why I love him.

On venues he loves to play: I always love to go to Billy Bob’s. Another one of the coolest places is Railroad Blues in Alpine. Man, you’ve got 200 people stomping their feet so loud that you can hardly hear yourself. They appreciate it when you go out there. There’s places like that everywhere. River Road Icehouse is another. People come there to really listen to music. Everytime we’re booked there, I think, “Alright.”

On his influences: Tell you a story. I got in trouble once when I was playing this venue sometime around early 2000. This guy kept heckling me, calling me Dwight Jackson. My temper at that time in my life was pretty rough, and about the third time he came around dancing and saying “Dwight Jackson,” I just kicked him right in the chin. Jumped off the stage, you know, the whole bit. After I got back on stage, the first thing I said was, “Alright, I’m here to play music, and I hope you like it. If you don’t like it, I hope you shut up.” I didn’t know about the big Waylon quote when he was in New York when somebody said, “Who are you?” And he said, “I’m Waylon f*&king Jennings and I’m here to play country music. I hope you like it, but if you don’t, just shut up.” That’s how all that came about. I had one of his old road managers, say, “Man, your personalities are the same. I can tell you’re influenced by him, but it freaks me out how similar the two of you are.” For me, being a singer and having someone say, “I can see Waylon Jennings in you,” is a helluva compliment. As long as people know it’s not contrived. If you think it’s contrived, I’d rather you not think at all.

With his glass empty and the interview over, Jarrod excused himself to head over to the stage. The weekend had begun and the good times were just about to roll.

Talking with Jarrod Birmingham is a great experience. Ask him any question, and he’ll give you an honest answer. He’s sincere, direct, and makes no apologies.

Jarrod’s also waiting for “real” country to return in a big way.

The wait is over. He’s here.

You can contact our TMT writers from our contact page.