Hell, the Stones were one of the best country bands in the world.” We always said let the music speak for itself. Once we get in the studio, there’s no telling how the songs will turn out: a rock song can be a country song, a country song can turn out to be a rock song. “We understand what kind of music we play,” adds Jeffers, “in that we can go and tour with Lynyrd Skynyrd, open for the Stones, and then go play with Jamey Johnson and Miranda Lambert, and then do a tour with Shinedown. It’s a cliché, but it’s honest, and it really just comes out that way, being true to your own sound.” “But we never thought about cutting anything like that to fit a format. We’re from the country, and we grew up on that,” says Cannon. “We write the songs as to how we want them to sound, and we like to rock, especially live, but we have country songs too.

Whiskey Myers, even at 14 tracks, is a concise, focused effort and proves the band can be just as compelling, hard-rocking, and genre-crossing on record as they are onstage. While 2014’s Early Morning Shakes was their breakout, and 2016’s Mud their most commercial success, both LPs had moments where they lulled. After four previous albums, two with super-producer Dave Cobb, this is the record the band was poised to make. “After a couple of beers and a glass of wine or two, I ended up writing how I was feeling that night.”īy the time the album gets to the fifth track, “Gasoline,” it’s at fever pitch. “I heard the same lyrics in every single song I listened to,” he says. boogie of “Mona Lisa,” which sets up the one-two punch of “Rolling Stone” and “Bitch,” the latter a song that Jeffers says he wrote with a “chip on his shoulder” after hearing too much similarity on the radio. “Die Rockin’,” written with Texas icon Ray Wylie Hubbard, steamrolls into the B.T.O. The first five tracks are irresistible rockers with a hint of country twang peppered here and there. Even some of the song titles allude to the Stones: one is called “Bitch,” another simply “Rolling Stone.” The self-titled LP, their fifth, was produced by the band - Jeffers, singer Cody Cannon, guitarist Cody Tate, drummer Jeff Hogg, bassist Jamey Gleaves, and keyboardist Tony Kent - and it explodes out of the gate.

On their new album, Whiskey Myers channel their heroes in both swagger and vibe. He’s watching videos, scrolling through and we got handpicked by him.

“We learned that Mick picks bands off an iPad. You’re opening up for one of your idols,” says Whiskey Myers guitarist John Jeffers a few months later, still high on the Stones buzz. “It was the most hectic, but coolest day in the world. Fortunately, the Texas six-piece have been training their entire dozen-year career for this night, and they nail it, gaining the crowd’s attention and even earning a shout-out from Mick Jagger when the Stones take the stage. Such a massive gig can go either way: it can be a triumphant win or a total crash-and-burn. It’s late June and Whiskey Myers are onstage at Soldier Field in Chicago, opening for the Rolling Stones on the rock giants’ No Filter Tour.

Jamey johnson whiskey myers tour