Josh Travis – “Poor Johnny”
Americana Highways presents this premiere of Josh Travis’ song “Poor Johnny,” from his forthcoming album Few of Days & Full of Trouble, slated for release on September 22. The album was produced by Al Torrence (Charles Wesley Godwin) and Josh; recorded and mixed by Al Torrence at Music Garden Studios and mastered by Garrett Haines.
“Poor Johnny” is Josh Travis on vocals and acoustic guitar; Sam Krahe on electric guitar; Dan Cephas on drums; Kasi Borden on bass and Read Connolly on pedal steel.
This a song of desperation, despair, wrong choices and choices that lead to consequences that can’t be changed. “Why they shot poor Johnny down / No one understands / He just did the best he knew / For his loving wife.” Josh has a distinctly honest and trustworthy vocal delivery. Enjoy the tale.
A story about a desperate man who robs a bank to pay for his wife’s medical bills. To be honest, I was listening to a lot of Bruce Springsteen’s album Nebraska at the time — the only record of his that I own. I had also finished watching Breaking Bad for the second time, so themes of desperation and crime were heavy on my mind. It’s not the crime alone that makes the story enticing, but it’s the desperation driving it that makes it relatable and heartbreaking. This is one of my favorite songs on the record.
I was particularly excited to track this song, and I think I had particularly high hopes for how it would turn out. I can’t say I’m disappointed with it, but I often have full arrangements in my head for a song, so it’s always a bit of a challenge to not micromanage and just let it be how it turns out. You might not get things exactly how you want them when other people are contributing to a song, but ultimately that’s a benefit. — Josh Travis
Find, order, and save Josh’s music here: https://ffm.to/fewofdays