Tony Scott: 0:13

Welcome to The Jay Franze Show, a behind-the-curtain look at the entertainment industry, with insights you can't pay for and stories you've never heard. Now here's your host, Jay Franze.

Jay Franze: 0:42

Well, hello, hello, hello and welcome to the show. I am Jay Franze and this is your Backstage Pass to the Music Industry. This week we get to talk with a country music recording artist. We get to talk with Chad Bushnell. We'll talk to him about what it's like growing up in a rodeo family playing music with Christian standards, and we'll talk about waking up on Christmas Day with a number one hit on the radio. Now, chad, he is not only a great recording artist, but he has three number one hits to his name and I can't wait to talk to him about that tonight. So if you would like to join in, comment or fire off any questions, please head over to jfranzycom. Now let's get started. Tell us what it was like growing up in a rodeo family.

Chad Bushnell: 1:30

Rodeo man. You know I grew up in a rodeo family. Both my parents were rodeo family Rodeo man. You know I grew up in a rodeo family. My both my parents were rodeo athletes. You know my dad rode bucking horses and bulls and my mom was a barrel racer, and so you know they. They ended up moving to Red Bluff, california, so they could rodeo. They rodeo as much as they could, and when my sister and I were born they took us to junior rodeos and so that you know I grew up just doing rodeo most of my life what's that like?

Chad Bushnell: 1:54

it's great. You know a lot, of a lot of great people. You know lifelong friends have made. It's a great part about bringing uh teaches you work ethic. I mean happened to practice team roping every week, steer wrestling. You know taking care of my horse. Uh, you know working on my horses, and so it was you know. It just taught a lot of life lessons so what is steer wrestling like?

Chad Bushnell: 2:16

yeah it's. It's like in between team roping and bull riding, you know, because bull riding you got to be kind of pretty much half crazy to ride bulls and then team roping is a little bit more like golf and you know. So a lot of times for me I don't know if I was quite bull riding material, but I got a little bored team roping. So steer us. That was my event, you know, and it happens quick. I mean you got to get out of there. You're jumping off a horse 30 miles an hour. Hope that you don't miss.

Jay Franze: 2:41

It sounds very dangerous. How dangerous is it?

Chad Bushnell: 2:45

Yeah, I mean, you know it takes being able to ride a horse really well, and I was fortunate I grew up riding horses my whole life. So by the time I was in high school, you know I could at least ride good. I just needed to be maybe just a little bit bigger to throw those steers well, you say you've been doing it your whole life.

Jay Franze: 3:00

Is that because your family owned a ranch?

Chad Bushnell: 3:03

my grandparents did, and they ended up moving to Red Bluff too and uh, I just you know I grew up basically doing ranch work, though I built fence, worked with my dad shooting horses, just anything you would do on a normal ranch, and so basically rodeo kind of tied in with that.

Jay Franze: 3:19

You make it sound like it's just no big deal. But that's a lot of hard work, isn't it?

Chad Bushnell: 3:24

Yeah, yeah, that's great. I had a great upbringing.

Jay Franze: 3:28

Very cool.

Chad Bushnell: 3:44

I saw on your website it says that you play music with Christian standards. What's that about? And I couldn't wait. He's a singer. He does a Frank Sinatra tribute, he's involved in Cowboy Church, and so ever since I learned to play, I was always playing at church and singing wherever I could. So the church was a big part of my upbringing, so Christian country has always been a special part of it.

Jay Franze: 4:05

You said Cowboy Church.

Chad Bushnell: 4:09

What is Cowboy Church? Yeah, so Cowboy Church is just, you know, they just it's like going to normal church, except a bunch of cowboys and cowgirls, basically what it is. When I was one, they used to do it at the auction yard in cottonwood, california, and so really made it western and, uh, we do it actually in the in the show ring, and so it was. It was pretty neat that's too funny.

Jay Franze: 4:28

You said you did, you did both, so is it the same concept at both places?

Chad Bushnell: 4:34

It was, yeah, Basically. You know, when we did Cowboy Church, it was Wednesday or Thursday night a lot of times, so we'd go there. It'd be in the show ring you know, if you've ever been to an auction and there's the cattle run through in the sawdust. That would be where the pastor was and we'd be up in the stands listening and that's where I first started playing. And then I'd be at normal church, sometimes on Sunday, with my great-grandma and I would play guitar beside her while she played piano.

Jay Franze: 4:56

All right. So how did we go from playing at Cowboy Church to opening up for some of the best of the best?

Chad Bushnell: 5:04

Yeah, you know, basically started there and then started singing national anthems at rodeos and football games, and I can't remember how exactly it was. I got asked to sing the national anthem at a PBR event in Red Bluff when I was about 16.

Jay Franze: 5:17

How stressful was that.

Chad Bushnell: 5:19

It was stressful. I got to know the promoters so I sang the anthem there, got to know some big promoters and when I was 18, just about ready to graduate, they, two years later they said, hey, you want to open for James Otto at the local fair. And so that was the. And James Otto was my first official opening act.

Jay Franze: 5:35

All right, hold on a second. Two things real quick. The national anthem did you play with an instrument or did you sing it, a cappella?

Chad Bushnell: 5:43

Always a cappella for me.

Jay Franze: 5:45

Okay, how tough was that.

Chad Bushnell: 5:48

Yeah, it took me a while. You know, when I was really young I sort of went for it and then at a certain point my dad, mom kind of got me vocal lessons. I did join choir in high school. That helped a lot. That's when I actually really started doing it seriously.

Jay Franze: 6:05

All right. So then you get that first gig and you go to open up for again a biggie. How nervous were you.

Chad Bushnell: 6:15

For all of them. I was pretty nervous. I remember the most nervous I was, though, I think in my life, playing music when I was 16 or 17, 16 years old and went down to the state FFA convention in Fresno for the talent show and I sang solo acoustic in front of 5 000 people. So I'm like after that I said, if I can do that, I can, I can open for james auto in front of 300s how many songs do you get to play when you're opening for them?

Chad Bushnell: 6:45

man, you know anywhere from about 20 minutes worth to 45 minutes, so you know 8 to 12 songs, usually somewhere in there.

Jay Franze: 6:53

All right, Now the highlights. Let's talk about some of the highlights. How about Dwight Yoakam?

Chad Bushnell: 6:59

Yeah, that's Dwight. Dwight Yoakam is my favorite country singer. It's between Dwight Yoakam and Vince Gill.

Jay Franze: 7:05

There's a variety right there.

Chad Bushnell: 7:07

Yeah, it opened for Dwight. That was just a lifelong dream of mine and, thanks to my booking agency, they got me in on it the wind hills casino in 2018 and I got to open for him what was that like?

Chad Bushnell: 7:21

it was great, definitely top two three best shows I ever got to do. There's there's probably 4 000 people and I didn't actually get to meet dwight that night. He was very you know. He just kind of came in, got off his bus, sang and went and that was it. But I did play his after party one time at the Peppermill and I got to meet him there.

Jay Franze: 7:40

What was it like meeting him?

Chad Bushnell: 7:42

It was quick, they had all these rules and I, you know, I mentioned that I was friends with Ben Haggard and he actually stopped and talked to me for a second, you know, and basically shook his hand, got a picture and had to keep walking.

Jay Franze: 7:54

Now they say don't meet your heroes. Did you have that experience, or was it a good experience?

Chad Bushnell: 7:59

I think it was a good experience. I mean that you know. The only thing is that I'd like to visit with him a little bit more. But Of course you know that was how it was, and I did have a chance to meet Vince Gill, but I just didn't do it. I chickened out.

Jay Franze: 8:12

You chickened out? Were you too nervous to meet him?

Chad Bushnell: 8:15

A little bit. Have you ever been to the 3rd and Linsley in Nashville?

Jay Franze: 8:17

Yeah, absolutely.

Chad Bushnell: 8:19

So I went there. He was sitting in with the time jumpers that night when he used to do that. I don't know if he still does, but we went out and watched him and he was just kind of putting up his guitar, getting ready to go backstage, and I was way up high on there and I'm like, do I run down and shake his hand or die? And I shake him down.

Jay Franze: 8:34

I used to spend a lot of time with his fiddle player and had an opportunity to meet him a couple times because of that Super nice guy, I heard he does. Yeah, very nice. So is his wife. So again, let's focus on the Dwight Yoakam for a second, because that's your hero and you get to open up for him, even if you don't get to meet him. How nervous were you that night and what was it like. Do you remember performing, or is it just a blur?

Chad Bushnell: 9:03

No, you know I remember quite a bit of the stuff and you know I grew up obviously the Bakersfield sound. You know Buck Owens, merle, haggard, dwight, that was all that's what we listened to growing up. So there's some influence there and with my stage presence I tend to do some of the moves that Dwight does just kind of I've always had since I was little.

Jay Franze: 9:21

On purpose or by accident.

Chad Bushnell: 9:24

Yeah, I don't do, I don't go quite as like he did. I mean he, you know, obviously Dwight gets really into it and it's his gimmick. But certain songs I'll do a few of the moves. And I remember my bass player came up right before he went on. He's like, hey, you know we're open for dwight tonight, so don't do those moves always. You know, we both kind of laughed. I said yeah, you're right, and so, uh, so I held off on that show. But no, you know, I got up there, I had a lot of friends and family and I just I just enjoyed. I think we actually had 45 minutes on stage. So it was just, it was great looking out to, you know, people up on the Hill and it was just a great experience.

Jay Franze: 9:59

You mentioned your family being there. Do you get more nervous when you perform in front of your family?

Chad Bushnell: 10:04

A little bit, just because they've seen me perform so much. You know they're critical and I'm like, yeah, I don't want to mess up.

Jay Franze: 10:14

I always say that I would rather perform in front of strangers than in front of my family because strangers don't know what to expect. Family knows, they just know every mistake you've ever made along the way. It's a little bit more stressful to me.

Chad Bushnell: 10:23

Well, sometimes it shows, sometimes certain shows. I'll get a text on stage from my mom. She helps run my merchandise and helps us things, and so that's, if I see a text from my mom, automatically I know something. I need to do something different.

Jay Franze: 10:37

Well, I mean, you've got so many people that you've had a chance to perform with or open up for talk about Lee Bryce. I've had a chance to work on a couple of his albums. Now what was it like working with him?

Chad Bushnell: 10:48

Oh man, I tell everybody Lee was the absolutely coolest guy I've opened for and it was at the Reading Convention Center in Reading. I tell everybody Lee was the absolutely coolest guy I've opened for. It was at the Reading Convention Center in Reading. It was a little while ago. Some of us were just out of college my band To me I just for some reason didn't see Lee.

Chad Bushnell: 11:05

I thought he was going to be more just in and out. He walks by after we opened. He says, hey, you guys drink beer. I said, yeah, I guess we do. Yeah, I guess we do. Well, as soon as I'm done with my show, you guys all come on the bus and we're gonna have some beers and I'm like no one's ever, you know, done that. And he, he followed through and by the whole band on we had some beers and, uh, he actually gave me his number. Then from there we kept talking he's all right, we're gonna go sign autographs. And we get off the bus and there's about 300 screaming girls and I walk behind him and we all we sign autographs for about 20 minutes. And so, yeah, and his honestly, his brother, lewis bryce, is just as friendly too. I opened for him last year and uh. So both lee and lewis are super great.

Jay Franze: 11:46

So yeah, I've had a chance to work with lee on a number of occasions on a couple of his albums, but before that he was writing songs for other people. Even from those days of going in and doing his songwriting demos, he's just an amazing guy and he's he's a big dude yeah, I didn't see him.

Chad Bushnell: 12:04

Some of the others I kind of expected to be more nicer weren't Lee was just.

Jay Franze: 12:07

He was the coolest, honestly so yeah, he was that way in the studio too. He's nothing but a great guy the whole time.

Chad Bushnell: 12:14

So and then the other one was exile yeah.

Chad Bushnell: 12:17

so that was uh, that was through diamond productions for the rebel frowned up and uh, it was even cooler because I just met them about a year before I opened for him. So I have a connection with teddy gentry and it's been a little while back. I got to play at his birthday party and Exile were the featured. They came and did a free show for Teddy for his birthday and so I got to meet him all there. It was a private deal and about a year later I get to open for him. So they all kind of remembered me or acted like they did. What a talented band too. Exile was just amazing.

Jay Franze: 12:55

Oh yeah, we had Tony Cottrell on the show. Tony's their front of house engineer. He's a nice guy and that's my introduction to the band. All right, well, enough about the others, let's talk about you. You've had a chance to have some pretty popular music out on streaming platforms, radio, all these places. Let's talk about what would Jesus do.

Chad Bushnell: 13:17

Yeah, so that you know, I entered a contest Lisa Daggs, you know she's a Christian singer and she encouraged I was playing at Calvary Church in Nashville and she encouraged me into this contest and I ended up winning the California region, going back to Nashville, and I ended up in about second region, going back to Nashville, and I ended up in about second or third, up against Dustin Steen who won the contest, and I think the top five got single song recording contracts with the Sin Music and so basically that meant I got to fly to Nashville and write with Corey Lee Barker, who's a Christian country writer, and we wrote what Would Jesus Do?

Jay Franze: 13:54

You mentioned Cowboy Church again.

Chad Bushnell: 14:02

I lived in Nashville for 20 plus years and never once knew there was a cowboy church there. Where were they? What city were they in? Yeah, so the best one is it's called Music Valley Cowboy Church now and it's the Texas Troubadour Theater behind the Opry in Music Valley. That's where they let me perform there and showcase the songs. I was nervous for that because Corey's written hit songs. He's written songs for movies. My biggest thing was they wanted me to present the idea. I'm like man, I've never really written a full-on Christian country song in 2018. So I'm traveling there, I'm on the plane and I'm thinking like, what am I? I have one day to think about what am I going to write with Corey and this kid walked by with a WWJD bracelet on it.

Jay Franze: 14:42

Hey there we go?

Chad Bushnell: 14:43

What would Jesus do? And I started. So I got to work on the plane on my laptop and I presented my ideas to Corey and that's how we wrote it.

Jay Franze: 14:51

How much time was it on that flight? About four hours. So you spent four hours, you know, thinking about the song what Would Jesus Do? Yeah, because I saw that kid.

Chad Bushnell: 15:01

as soon as I got on the plane I said there we go. I know there's already another song called what Would Jesus Do, but I even wore the bracelet as a kid too, so it's kind of special.

Jay Franze: 15:10

Sure, now the song. It's kind of got a slower feel to it and it comes in with a big kick drum and has some traditional instruments piano, steel, that type of stuff. Were you thinking about that on the plane when you were writing it? Were you just writing lyrics on the plane? What was that experience like?

Chad Bushnell: 15:28

Basically, I was just thinking of lyrics and just basic picking. You know, jeff Bates put the music to all that. He's the one that kind of did it. I didn't expect that. When I heard the track I was like wow. And then he brought me in to do vocals and it was like being in the vocal military with Jeff and I actually liked it. It really pushed me to sing it, you know, as best I possibly could.

Jay Franze: 15:50

So did Jeff produce it.

Chad Bushnell: 15:54

Jeff did produce. What Would Jesus Do? Yeah, that was part of the deal for you know, getting to do that and I got in the vocal booth room with him for about an hour hour and a half and I probably sang it like 20 times until I got it right.

Jay Franze: 16:08

Yeah, talk about that experience for a minute.

Chad Bushnell: 16:11

Yeah, it was great. You know, actually I was supposed to work with Lisa Daggs, but the timing changed. When I was able to be there, jeff Bates just happened to be in the studio, so he got in there. I think he did some of the instruments. He hired out some people and I just basically showed up and sang. I mean, we went through. You know, I sang the song multiple times, went through each phrase. Okay, I sang the song multiple times, went through each phrase.

Jay Franze: 16:37

okay, chad, I need you to sing it like this I need you to go up.

Chad Bushnell: 16:39

So he was kind of a hands-on producer then. Yeah, I think it was great. I mean, jeff's had a couple of hit songs and so it was kind of an honor to get to work with Jeff.

Jay Franze: 16:45

Well, some producers come in with just a feeling and they walk you through it or they just orchestrate the, the studio session by hiring musicians and hiring engineers and stuff. But some people get in there and get hands on and tell you, like you said, how to sing a line or a phrase. So he was more of that type of producer then.

Chad Bushnell: 17:06

Yeah, jeff and Dave Gibson are my two. You know those guys really pushed me to get better and you know I I needed that Really, I was, I was, I needed that really. I was glad they did that At the time I was kind of going, hmm.

Jay Franze: 17:18

So overall, you enjoy that type of experience, or at least looking back on it now, you enjoyed it.

Chad Bushnell: 17:24

I did. Yeah, it was great and I hope to get to work with them again.

Jay Franze: 17:28

But at the time it may have been a little rough.

Chad Bushnell: 17:31

A little bit. I'm like do I really have to sing it three more times? Okay?

Jay Franze: 17:34

So talk about the success that that song had.

Chad Bushnell: 17:38

Yeah, so you know, we put it out through Ascend Music and I woke up Christmas morning and it was number one on Christian Country Radio. So I just what a cool Christmas present.

Chad Bushnell: 17:47

That's awesome all around for multiple reasons, right, yeah, so describe that feeling, describe what it was like for you yeah, and it was, it was great uh getting to go and, you know, call my parents that morning and my wife, everybody, and be like, hey, what would you do is number one. And the coolest thing about the whole experience is about two or three weeks later I get calls from radio stations saying, hey, where's your next song? And I'm like so, hmm, so you know, because as an artist you're, you're usually reaching out to radio stations. I actually had radio stations calling me. I was like, wow, how cool, you know so. And that's when I called Corey and was like I need another song.

Jay Franze: 18:23

So so that's a good point too, because a lot of artists don't experience that where radio stations are reaching out to them. So when a radio station reaches out to you, first of all, how do they reach out to you?

Chad Bushnell: 18:36

Some of them via phone, email, Facebook, a few of them, all kinds of different. That's why I check everything pretty regularly, you know. I'm sure, yeah, I've been blessed getting to be, you know, played all you know a lot of down by the Bible Belt, they call it.

Chad Bushnell: 18:50

you know a lot of down by the Bible Belt, they call it. You know a lot of Tennessee, south Carolina, north Carolina, a lot of the stations, and I recently started a tour there. Finally, I did some shows in North Carolina and South Carolina earlier this year, so I'm really, really hoping to start doing more touring down there. That's my main focus.

Jay Franze: 19:09

So that's going to be pretty cool too to get to a point where you have to go out and support what's being played on the radio. But you mentioned in there that you made that phone call to say, hey, we need to put together another song. So how quickly was it till that next song came together?

Chad Bushnell: 19:20

Well, so the second one, that Ain't my Church. Actually I didn't write that song. I was kind of in a position where I couldn't get over to Nashville in time. So I just said, corey man, you know I love what you did with what Would Jesus Do? Could you send me six to eight songs? You know, and a lot of artists do that. I mean, you know, it just depends on the timing. And the second I heard that Ain't my Church. I just knew that that's a hit song.

Jay Franze: 19:40

When he sent it to you, was it fully demoed out?

Chad Bushnell: 19:43

It was, I think, just acoustic, vocally pretty sure, and Pastor Barry Smith and Corey LeBar and Corey Lee Barker wrote that song and we took it. Lisa Daggs produced that, which you know. Lisa Daggs is great and the coolest thing about that Ain't my Church was that Brent Mason, my favorite guitar player, played the guitar on it.

Jay Franze: 20:01

He's awesome.

Chad Bushnell: 20:03

He's probably the number one guitar player that's called out in Nashville all the time I was a little embarrassed because we went to dinner with Lisa and her husband, ronnie Ronnie's a great Christian singer as well and there was this little miscommunication. Right before I left, ronnie said see you at Omni tomorrow. You know Omni Studios. And I said, okay. I showed up at Omni and walked in there and they said oh, who are you? And I said I'm here to record my song. And they said, oh, come have a seat and me a soda. Who are you? And I said I'm here to record my song. And they said, oh, come have a seat in Minnesota, you know, and they're all nice, and I'm sitting there. I don't see Lisa or Britt Mason. I check my phone and I have like 20 missed calls from Lisa. And so I so I get in the car. Luckily it was only 10 minutes, five, 10 minutes and I get all butt over to a fun house, oh yeah.

Chad Bushnell: 20:48

Fun house studios where the recording was Britt. Funhouse Studios is where the recording was Britt. Mason steps out the back and he says hey, we're waiting for you. So I said that was pretty cool. So what was the experience like over there? Great Funhouse Studios is my favorite studio to record at in Nashville. You know Ernie Raul whatever he's great and he oversees everything and Rodney the engineers they have the best of the best working in there. So that's where I normally record if I go over there.

Jay Franze: 21:18

So you mentioned Omni too. It's sad, but Omni's not there anymore.

Chad Bushnell: 21:22

No, and I never did get to record there. I just got to go in there and have a soda, basically.

Jay Franze: 21:27

Go over there and just hang out for a little bit. So when you went over there, that's when the instrumentation everything came to be, because that's what I wanted to mention earlier is when you received that demo if it was fully demoed out, because it has a pretty cool B3 part in there- yeah, and you know who was playing piano was Gordon Moat on that track. One of the best.

Chad Bushnell: 21:49

So I was just starstruck by the whole experience. I got Brent Mason Gordon, one of the best, so I was just starstruck by the whole experience.

Jay Franze: 21:54

I got Britt Mason Gordon, mote, who I've known about for a long time and yeah, it was just overall a great experience, yeah no, I mean he's awesome, yeah, and just the way he plays and attacks the keys when he's playing, it's very percussive, so it's just a cool thing to watch. All right, and then you followed that up with the third one, so tell us about that, thank God.

Chad Bushnell: 22:26

I went in and you know as much as I love Christian country music, I just I told Corey and the guys in the writing room said, hey, I kind of want to write something sort of middle of the road, you know, cause most people I sing for you know sort of I'd say beer and a Bible, you know, and so that's that's kind of how we came up and I told him about things that I'd been through and you know, and just and uh, and that's how we wrote the song basically off that.

Jay Franze: 22:46

That's got a traditional feel to it and especially in the baseline traditional feel to it and especially in the bass line. So we talk about the instrumentation for these songs.

Chad Bushnell: 22:59

Did you have any say in the instrumentation? Well, I not really. I just, you know, dave gibson ended up producing thank god, because I was doing my full ep with him and so he, you know, they basically picked the band that. We did that at funhouse studios and I, you know, really didn't know a lot of band members on that track, but I just I trusted dave and rodney who's the engineer there and ernie that they would have a great band and they did, and I just basically focused on my singing, you know, and let them handle the music part well, let's fast forward a little bit.

Jay Franze: 23:30

Let's talk about Whiskey to Work.

Chad Bushnell: 23:38

Going on the other side of the spectrum. You know, basically all the shows I play most of the time are places where people want to dance and have a good time and so thank God. You know it's a good song but it's sort of slow, mid-tempo and we just really needed something fast that people could you know, that people could line dance to. And I was sitting at the local for the porch fight pickers round playing the writers night and the song came on and we were like wow, that was a good song. And I asked Dan Hudson, who's the host. I said, hey, this whiskey to work song. I said I just want to know who sang it. You know, I just liked the song song.

Chad Bushnell: 24:09

He's like, oh, he's actually I wrote that, like co-wrote it with some guys and he's it was just basically kind of a demo singer that pretty much put that out. Or I should say there's a demo singer and the guy actually put it out, but he wasn't really touring with it and he was mostly staying in nashville and we just straight up, fast, dance, say, hey, could I record that? And put my own spin. I said I think the song has potential, it's great and maybe not on the West Coast a lot. So I took it to Texas. Instead of doing more of a Nashville sound to it, I did a Texas country rock sound to it. That's basically what happened.

Jay Franze: 24:43

Well it is. It's a more up-tempo tune and it's really driving. It's got heavy guitars, but it's also got some pretty cool piano licks and the B3 pad in it, I mean it's a full well-rounded song. I mean it just sounds really cool. So again, can we talk about the studio experience, putting that together?

Chad Bushnell: 25:02

Yeah for sure. That was a lot of fun. Actually I did that down in Houston, Texas. I'd been working with Aaron Watson's guys and Tyler and we did two or three songs and I ended up doing this program through Edgewater Music and they basically, you know, they have this whole program where you just start to finish, you work with them on finishing your album. And so I got in the studio with Derek Hames and he put the band together for me and I brought my bass player from Reading because he wanted to be a part of it. But we just went in there.

Chad Bushnell: 25:32

I man, I really just want to make this as rockin' as possible, Like think of something with a music video that people would be line dancing in. And so they took it and we ended up like doubling the vocals, Like everybody that was in the band got in the vocal booth at the end and we sang Whiskey to Work together. So if you listen to the end of the song, you can hear that where everybody's just singing, it doesn't matter how good or bad he sings, we want everybody to. Yeah, and I plan on doing a music video to that and at the end of it we're going to have people like singing in the video well, it becomes more of an anthem, you feel.

Jay Franze: 26:02

Do you think of it as an anthem? A little bit yeah so you go in the studio and you bring your own bass player and then der Derek, he hires the rest of the musicians yeah, yeah, he had an award-winning guitar player there and I collaborated with him.

Chad Bushnell: 26:19

You know, obviously I thought for a while I was going to play guitar on my own album, but then I started playing with him and I said I better let this go well, that happens a lot, right, and I don't know how often it happens with you, but when I've worked in Nashville, I mean everything we do.

Jay Franze: 26:34

Even though the singer can play guitars written the songs, they typically always bring in a studio musician yeah, and I throw in ideas.

Chad Bushnell: 26:42

I mean I feel like I play good enough to where. If it's something that's just simple and works for the song, I'll throw it out there, give them my opinion and then they'll you know, if they don't like it and want to do their own thing, that's fine too. You know, I'm pretty well and they're pretty open mind, especially with brent mason, and I didn't really you teach him a few things while you were there no, no, this other guy though I'm, you know a couple of the songs.

Chad Bushnell: 27:05

I had some real specific things. I played them for him and I said, hey, you like it great. If not, you know, do your own thing how?

Jay Franze: 27:11

How did that make you feel when somebody of that caliber accepts your idea?

Chad Bushnell: 27:16

I was pretty excited. As I said, I didn't want to say too much, but I just had made a specific song. I played this lick on it for a while and I said I really think it needs to be the intro lick to the song. He played it for me. He was like let's just have you do it. So I used his guitar and and went and did it. I thought that was pretty cool and they had me do all the rhythm tracks for the whole rest of the album. So I played 36 rhythm tracks that next day.

Jay Franze: 27:40

That'd be one hell of a day, Didn't want. Now I also see that guitar is not a guitar that I typically have seen in the past. What kind of guitar is it?

Chad Bushnell: 27:48

So this is a Breedlove, and Breedlove is originally based out of Bend, oregon, which is north of me, and this isn't really technically my guitar. This is one of my friends, jack Talbert, and he's one of my dad's best friends. He used to rodeo with him and he had this beautiful guitar, custom-made, and just told me hey, I want you to take this out on the road. I don't play much anymore, so when I was up there in Bend doing a show a couple years ago, he sent it home, sent me home with it.

Jay Franze: 28:22

No, it is a beautiful-looking guitar, for sure. You mentioned going in the studio and when you go in and you're around these people and you want to show them an idea or something that you came up with, how nervous are you at that moment bringing something like that up.

Chad Bushnell: 28:38

Yeah, it is pretty nervous and that is the thing sometimes, especially for me going in with vocals. That's because, you know you, you get a little intimidated. I mean, coming into Nashville, you know music city, you're playing with the musicians, you know. I mean, yeah, yeah, you do get nervous and sometimes it does affect the vocals. And something that I've been doing the last two or three years is we've been doing vocals. Separate from that, I'll do some demo tracks and it makes me comfortable and then I go into the studio for myself the next day and I kind of like that better oh yeah because you know it is a little intimidating.

Chad Bushnell: 29:10

You're sitting there with, all you know, brett mason looking at you while you're going to sing, and I mean you know it is a little intimidating. You're sitting there with, you know, brent Mason looking at you while you're going to sing, and I mean you know he's heard Alan Jackson and George Strait sing, so like you're a little intimidated.

Jay Franze: 29:19

Well, that's a great point. So when you go in the next day, describe that environment, because the whole point of you going in the next day is so you can focus on your vocal and be comfortable. So what's that experience like for you?

Chad Bushnell: 29:32

Yeah, I try to you know when I'm doing it. I definitely go to bed early the night before, you know, and get rest good and you know careful what I eat. I have all these little things I do and you know drink lots of water and stay hydrated. I like coffee. Some people say the caffeine.

Chad Bushnell: 29:45

You know I usually have to have coffee, no matter what you know, I usually drink just water and coffee, kind of a combo, and you know it's funny sometimes I actually prefer doing vocals in the late morning if I can. If I do in the afternoon, I try to stay isolated and not talk much during the day.

Jay Franze: 30:09

Obviously, I like to talk. So Well, most people wait till the later in the day because they feel like their vocal cords are warmed up, whether it be from talking or even singing throughout the day?

Chad Bushnell: 30:14

Yeah, usually, but I know some of the best vocal takes I've done have been at 9 or 10 in the morning for me. I don't know why.

Jay Franze: 30:19

Did you find your voice to be deeper at that time?

Chad Bushnell: 30:23

Yeah, deeper. And just like I say, I try to go to bed early the night before and take care of business the next day.

Jay Franze: 30:32

So we talk about you going in that studio and when you go in and do your vocals, are there any sort of rituals or ways you like the studio set up?

Chad Bushnell: 30:40

And, um, you know the vocal mic always just a little bit above. You don't want to be straining, but like kind of about you know level where you naturally would be with just a little bit above.

Jay Franze: 30:50

Right Keeps your throat open.

Chad Bushnell: 30:55

Keep naturally to be with just a little bit above Right. Keeps your throat open. Keep your throat open, yeah, and so that's something that's been different the last three or four years of recording. And you know, basically for me I do, I do warm up sometimes, but mostly I just sing. I'll sit in the corner, I'll get there a little early, I'll just sing three or four songs all the way through, and that's about as much as I'll do, and then I'll save it for my recording.

Jay Franze: 31:10

What kind of atmosphere do you create? Do you do anything like any sort of candles? You keep the lights dark, carpeting. I mean anything special for you.

Chad Bushnell: 31:19

No, everything. No, just just. Whatever I show up and do, whatever you know, I like a little effects in my headphones when I'm recording, I think that's. Some of them are like man, why do you need effects in there? I just, I really like that reverb. That's how I'm used to singing. That's the only thing I'm a little bit picky about, but other than that I'm pretty easy going.

Jay Franze: 31:39

Well, I spent 30 years as an engineer and that would be a key thing is to make the vocalist feel as comfortable as possible, and by adding a little bit of reverb it helps. It makes them feel a little bit bigger than they would normally feel. And it gives them that feeling of too like what it's like when they're playing live.

Chad Bushnell: 32:04

Yeah, my last person I recorded vocals with was Chris Latham. Yeah, he's worked with a lot of the big guys on you know, producing and different things, and so Kimo Forrest produced my recent songs and he I did vocals later with Chris Latham.

Jay Franze: 32:13

Earlier you mentioned having an opportunity to perform and win an award. Can you tell us what the first award was and how that made you feel I?

Chad Bushnell: 32:23

think the one in 2018 at the ICMAs, and I actually didn't get to attend them and so it took me about a year to get my award. So I was happy once I got that, but the you know, really going to the one that sticks out the most 2020 winning contemporary vocalist of the year at the Josie music awards, that was probably the coolest thing. That was my first Josie award and I got it was at Pigeon Forge that year.

Jay Franze: 32:49

Oh, very cool. Did you like going there?

Chad Bushnell: 32:53

Oh yeah, it was amazing.

Jay Franze: 32:54

Isn't that a beautiful place?

Chad Bushnell: 32:56

Yeah, it was at the whatever that theater there.

Jay Franze: 33:01

That was in 2020.

Chad Bushnell: 33:03

2020.

Jay Franze: 33:04

So was that pre-COVID.

Chad Bushnell: 33:07

I think it was during COVID. A lot of people didn't go, but I was bound and determined to get over there and do whatever I had to do and get that award. So I got one Contemporary Vocalist of the Year that year and then we all got tickets to go to Dollywood the next day.

Jay Franze: 33:22

Which is just something you have to do when you're there.

Chad Bushnell: 33:25

It was amazing, yeah, and we're working on a family trip there too.

Jay Franze: 33:29

It is a very cool place to be. Now you win a Josie Award, which is awesome. And it's for Contemporary Country Vocalist of the Year. Once you win an award now, do you start to feel a little bit more confident and comfortable when you go in the studio with these big guns?

Chad Bushnell: 33:47

It definitely helps, you know, and you know build your confidence. And just the more I do it, you know, I mean I try to be in the studio as much as I can every time I write a batch of songs. I write with Corey Lee Barker pretty much every trip, and Mark Bernowski and whoever he brings in to write with. That's my best experience From there. If I'm able to get to write with Dave Gibson or Brian White, that's just obviously a plus. Those guys have written big hits.

Jay Franze: 34:14

Oh yeah, especially Brian.

Chad Bushnell: 34:16

Brian. So Brian's cool and any chance I get I try to write with Brian.

Jay Franze: 34:22

So since then you've won several awards at this point and you've had some opportunities come from those awards. So what kind of opportunities have you had?

Chad Bushnell: 34:33

Man recording opportunities and really, you know, getting to write with Dave Gibson, brian White, that's been huge. I mean, that's just like wow.

Jay Franze: 34:41

So that came specifically from some of these awards.

Chad Bushnell: 34:44

It kind of did because you know, back home I've promoted the Josie Awards a ton. You know a lot of these venues have watched me the last four years, and so the reason I got to write with brian white I was uh, there was something happened. It was just a weird deal on two days notice, one of the hit songwriters got sick and couldn't make golfing guitars in sacramento, and so they the venue person called me said hey, we've been watching you even win all these awards. It says so we're going to invite you out to be our special guest on the golf and guitars. And I was stoked so I got to take the place of I can't remember who it was. Well, they sat me right next to Brian White, happened to be on his round and he and I hit it off really good, obviously having the Christian country background, right. So obviously, after we were done, shook his hand, got his number and got to write.

Jay Franze: 35:28

So you mentioned the Christian background again. You also had an opportunity to perform on the 700 Club. What was that like?

Chad Bushnell: 35:35

Yeah, that was great. That was Dean Scallon from SSM Records and one of those things happened to be in Nashville what are you doing? On Tuesday I didn't have anything going on. I was leaving Wednesday, so we want to come be on the 700 Club and be my actor. And I said yeah. So I was in one of the episodes and basically I was Dean's artist and so he had me sing a song, had me interviewed, just did all this stuff.

Jay Franze: 36:04

So you had some other TV opportunities. Can you talk about those?

Chad Bushnell: 36:09

Yeah. So Universal Huntress. I got to appear on there with Morgan. She's a singer. She sang with Colt Ford. They had a single.

Jay Franze: 36:17

Okay.

Chad Bushnell: 36:18

Don't tell her I forgot her last name. Yeah, so Girls With Guns. They're based out of Red Bluff, california, the founders, where I'm originally from, and so I ended up performing a song with Morgan and they aired it on the Universal Hintra show.

Jay Franze: 36:32

All right.

Chad Bushnell: 36:33

Yeah.

Jay Franze: 36:34

So I won't mention you forgetting your last name, especially since I don't know it to begin with. So that's, that's all right. You also had an opportunity to be part of a documentary. Can you tell us about that?

Chad Bushnell: 36:45

Yeah, so I'm trying to think how that actually came about. Obviously, where we're at, we don't have regular TV and we just have local stations, so we watch Kix DBS a lot and I actually knew the coordinator from the Reading branch which reaches Reading, chico Altura. It's pretty widespread and I finally reached out to him after I did my state theater I do a hometown show and I said, hey, what about trying to go? And he was all about it. You know, got some sponsors for the show and we did it. So that was good. I was a great experience I wanted. I'm ready to do another one.

Jay Franze: 37:22

so well, tell us about the documentary itself. It was North State roots. What was that about?

Chad Bushnell: 37:27

it's basically a story about me and how I grew up in small town, red Bluff, and have gotten to do all these great things, you know, thanks to our family support and the Lord. That's basically what it was about, and I interviewed my parents, interviewed my wife and a bunch of different people in town.

Jay Franze: 37:44

So the whole point of me mentioning it is it's not just like you made an appearance in something.

Chad Bushnell: 37:49

No, it was my own show this was a focus on you.

Jay Franze: 37:53

So obviously things are are taken off and people see, see something in you. Yeah, that's got to make you feel great, especially in your hometown.

Chad Bushnell: 38:03

It's great and you know it aired up here and they're they've still, they're still trying to get it to air in the Nashville CBS branch and that's my hope is that it actually gets to air over there.

Jay Franze: 38:12

We talked earlier about your time on the plane writing a song, but under normal circumstances, what's your creative process like?

Chad Bushnell: 38:20

You know I write a lot of songs on the plane. I just every time I'm heading to Nashville I just feel so inspired. I've written, you know written probably a quarter of my songs on the plane. But I like to write at home too, just on the back porch. If I have a morning off or whatever, I'll just go sit out there and start writing. Another person that I'm hoping to get the opportunity to write with at some point is Shane Miner. I don't know if you know Shane very well, but I sort of became friends with Shane, I think right now he only writes with Laney Wilson, so I'm a little busy, but getting to hang out and get to know Shane has inspired me to write a few more songs too, really.

Jay Franze: 38:55

But we talk about that. I mean, on a plane, I know it's got to be tough, but when you're home and you're on the back deck and things like that, do you write with a guitar?

Chad Bushnell: 39:05

Yeah, yeah, I just sit there and I just kind of think like, okay, what's been going on lately? What do I want to write about? Lyrics and music come first. I always try to get the hook first, but I'm such a love playing guitar so much, and Brent Mason's my hero. I usually start out noodling and come up with a little riff or something and I'm like okay. But sometimes just different life experiences. You know, I have a new song that I'm either hopefully going to pitch and get someone to sing it or just sing it myself, you know, depending on what works out with it. But after meeting Shane, you know I was pretty stoked and next couple of weeks I wrote one of my better songs based off of meeting him and the experience.

Jay Franze: 39:44

All right, well, a couple of things in there. Experience All right, well, a couple of things in there. You mentioned Brent Mason being a guitar hero of yours, somebody you look up to. He's known for that real chicken picking type guitar playing, so do you pull that away from him or do you pull his more traditional studio sessions out of him?

Chad Bushnell: 40:02

Of course the chicken picking thing. I mean that's always it Every guitar player's dream to be able to play like Brent Mason. I'm a long ways from that, but I do. You know part of my show. I do play Chicken Pick on probably four or five songs, but yeah, I know I mean it's. And Albert Lee's obviously another one of my favorite guitar players. I really am a big fan of him.

Jay Franze: 40:19

Do you have an example of one of your songs that has some chicken picking?

Chad Bushnell: 40:23

No, it's funny, None of the songs I've recorded I've really played any guitar on, and so I guess I've chickened out. No pun intended. But I've chickened out on my chicken picking because I say, well, when I go back to Nashville I have Matt Mason and people like that to play on it. I don't need to play on it. So you know, jeff King.

Jay Franze: 40:38

Oh, Jeff King is awesome.

Chad Bushnell: 40:41

Jeff is one of my other favorite people.

Jay Franze: 40:44

wow, this guy's such a great player. Jeff is amazing. He was on the show and I mean he's just a great guy. He's out with Brooks and Dunn and Reba. Was I on the show?

Jay Franze: 40:53

he came through town here last year and my nine year old daughter went to the show with me and he was so nice to her. He took her backstage, brought her up on stage. She just had the time of her life. I don't think I could ever just take her to a show, a normal show ever again. I mean, he treated her like a rock star.

Chad Bushnell: 41:12

No, he seemed like a great guy. Just a day or two I got to hang out in the studio with him and I've kept in touch with him.

Jay Franze: 41:18

He's another one. I always say he looks like a lumberjack, but he's just the nicest, most down-to-earth guy. He's this most down-to-earth guy and he's got a sense of humor like nobody's business he likes to joke around when he's in the studio.

Chad Bushnell: 41:30

He seemed cool. It was a great experience. He played on Whiskey Broken Heart, which is another one of my favorite songs. I got to record he played on that and I really love the guitar parts.

Jay Franze: 41:39

Yeah, he's definitely got some rocking solos and just guitar playing. I use them for a lot of you know the heavier stuff that I do. I always reach out to Jeff to come in and he's just an amazing, amazing guitar player and he just plays some really heavy stuff for me. He can play anything, but I ask him to play the heavy stuff. So you've made it this far in your career and you get a long way to go, but what kind of challenges have you come up with so far?

Chad Bushnell: 42:07

Challenges man, you know, just the traveling and playing the shows, you know, I mean it's a lot. So many people say, oh, you just jump up there and play. You know, they don't have any idea. You know, because anybody knows that it travels a lot. I mean, it's a lot, you know. I mean, and up here I mean touring so much in California, oregon, nevada. It's not cool during the summer, you know, and a lot of shows in the heat. Uh, it's tough. And then, you know, I mean financial, you know, I mean it's it's. You know you gotta have money to compete in certain areas.

Jay Franze: 42:38

That's a good point too. I don't want to get into your finances, but how hard is it to to live or make a living at your level?

Chad Bushnell: 42:47

It's tough because I'm still, you know, I still work as a farrier a little bit. Sometimes too, I shoe horses and I sell jerky and I mean it. Just you know it's a grind. So now I'm shooing horses a little bit during the week, I go off on the weekends and jump in the truck and travel, and I mean it's tough, you know, and I'm just, you know, on a normal type of budget. So it's tough, and I'm on a normal type of budget, so I do the best I can, I write the best songs and get them recorded the best I can and then go from there.

Jay Franze: 43:12

Did you have any luck when you get the number one hits? Did that help at all?

Chad Bushnell: 43:18

It did because I get to actually headline a lot of great shows at fairs and casinos. I also do a Garth Brooks tribute sometimes and it's even helped with that. We're pretty picky where we do that the agency doesn't, you know and they charge a decent amount and that's been working out really good between getting to do some of the headlining slots as my own thing and then some of the bigger Garth Brooks tribute shows.

Jay Franze: 43:41

So the songs, the number one songs, have helped you indirectly make money by getting some performances. You might not have got in the first place, but have you made any royalties from the songs? I know the. I know some of them aren't yours, written by you, but the ones that were yeah, not really a whole lot.

Chad Bushnell: 43:59

It's mostly the touring these days and merchandise, and that's where we're really known and, uh, my mom's sort of taking over the merchandise when we collaborate with the company and we come up with new stuff. Every few months we're coming out with different design hats, shirts, you know, and I'm going to do some collaborating with some other companies like Cowboy Fresh. That's a huge company that just sort of a friend of mine is the founder of it. So you know, really the touring and the merchandise is where the money's at.

Jay Franze: 44:25

All right. Well, we don't normally talk about education, but you mentioned school earlier and you went to school for marketing. So what I would like to know is how you apply that experience in marketing to your career, and is it working?

Chad Bushnell: 44:41

Yeah, I mean, I have to say my dad.

Chad Bushnell: 44:45

They encouraged me to do my music, but the one thing that my dad really encouraged me to do growing up was get a bachelor degree, and not really just because of the education but because of what it teaches you.

Chad Bushnell: 44:54

You know, and I won't mention any names, but I've had friends and other artists that I know that don't. They didn't have any of that. You know, they basically graduated high school and went and sang. They don't have any business skills. They don't treat the music like a business. So just those skills alone, away from the marketing, tell me tremendously just how to write a formal email, formal phone calls, where to put the money, and if you make a certain amount of shows, you don't just go spend that, you put money away to invest in your business, and so all these things it's taught me. Obviously, the marketing I've really stuck with more the authentic cowboy, so I've always constantly trying to figure out how to market my music to the right people so, as far as the marketing piece of it, you've created a brand for yourself and that brand is based off of, like you said, being a cowboy.

Jay Franze: 45:44

But we also have other things to consider when we're talking about marketing. I mean it. It could be as simple as your website and your social media. Are you doing your own website or your own social media?

Chad Bushnell: 45:53

Pretty much, yeah, and I have help here and there. You know, basically we've talked. The guy I became friends with is CJ Soler. He's written some hit songs he wrote Up Down for Morgan Wallen. He'd be a good person to get on here. And, uh, cj is a great guy and we did a show together opening for joe nichols last year and I talked to him for about an hour and we're just sitting there talking about marketing and I was telling him about my songs and he all he cared about is like, wow, you shoot horses, you know, and he kept going on about it. I'm going, yeah, whatever I don't want to talk about. They said, no, you really need to implement that in your, in your TikTok and Instagram. And, honestly, when he said that, I never really thought about it and it's helped.

Jay Franze: 46:34

So you're doing your own social media and you're including some of your personal life, which is absolutely the way to go to to create that bond and that connection with your followers or friends I like to call them friends, not necessarily followers, but you're creating that connection, that bond. Are you responding to all the comments yourself?

Chad Bushnell: 46:54

Some of them, you know it's. It's a lot. I I try to, but yeah, I mean, people seem to like it and we were trying to find the best way to implement it. There's different ways you can go about it, you know, but people, people like to see you being real, that you know you're not just right. Yeah, so I've been trying different strategies. I mean, I'll post a video of me shooing horses, but it's one of my original songs in the background. People like that. Uh, it's kind of hard to sing when I'm underneath the horse, so I've kind of freak out a horse either, right yeah, if I get kicked, maybe that would.

Jay Franze: 47:24

Uh, you know, so I'd get more views that way.

Chad Bushnell: 47:27

So we try different things. Sometimes I'll post just an original song. Sitting by a horse I'll do different things, but people like the implementation of me shooing horses and singing.

Jay Franze: 47:37

So that's a more visual aspect. So do you spend more time on Instagram than you do other platforms?

Chad Bushnell: 47:43

Probably I'd say Instagram is my number one. Yeah All right. It's tricky, I mean, you know, cause there's videos that I think are going to do good and they don't, and then the opposite happens too.

Jay Franze: 47:52

So yeah, that's kind of crazy. I mean, you're following on Instagram is how you get 12,000 followers. It's pretty impressive. You mentioned TikTok. I mean, are you liking it, are you loving it?

Chad Bushnell: 48:05

It's more challenging. Yeah, I mean it's just loving it, it's more challenging. Yeah, I mean it's just it's. You know, I'm trying to figure out what people like constantly, you know, and it's it's really hard to get on there. Just you know, do one of you singing and playing, because there's so much of that that people say, oh wow, you choose horses and sings, and then sometimes it gets more attention, you know. So I've been kind of going that route when I can, you know would you mind singing something?

Chad Bushnell: 48:26

yeah, not at all. What do you want to hear?

Jay Franze: 48:29

Let's hear your anthem.

Chad Bushnell: 48:33

Yeah, yeah. Well, Whiskey to Work's been my biggest song, so I guess I will sing that.

Chad Bushnell: 48:44

I got that double vision. Love my money, I don't drink. I've had it for a minute, no plan on waiting it.

Chad Bushnell: 48:52

Damn well. Sure as hell know how to put that whiskey to work. I put that whiskey over. Take that bourbon to church. Baptize me in being a drinking machine. Kentucky's so good it hurts. It's the rich in my thirst, Sweat and 90 proof right through my shirt. I put that whiskey to work. I'm already over the limit. Dust the bottle on the table, Got nothing left in it. So I hit the liquor store, Call the boss and tell. Tell my brother's name. I'm open to business. I'm drinking 24-7. Gonna let that Holy Spirit take me right up to heaven. There'll be seven drunken dames waiting on me at the pearly gates, LA. I put that whiskey over. Take that bourbon to church. Baptize me and me. I'm a drinking machine so good it hurts. Taste my thirst, sweat and diet food right through my shirt. I put that whiskey to work. I put that whiskey to work Hail.

Jay Franze: 50:32

Mary, that's awesome buddy.

Chad Bushnell: 50:36

I'm just a little horse from over the weekend. No pun intended.

Jay Franze: 50:40

Nice.

Chad Bushnell: 50:42

I got to perform for a wedding over the weekend, but I played three nights in a row.

Jay Franze: 50:47

Tell us about the wedding.

Chad Bushnell: 50:49

Oh, it was great. Olivia Harm, she's another person you should have on here. She's Oregon-based, but she's a Texas country singer, Very nice. And so she randomly married a buddy of mine from college and they hired me to sing their wedding, so she booked me some shows beforehand. That was a great experience and she got up and sang Her whole family sings and it was just a big jam basically.

Jay Franze: 51:12

That's really cool. It was awesome. All right, sir. Well, we do this thing here we call Unsung Heroes, where we take a moment to shine the light on somebody who's worked behind the scenes or somebody who may have supported you along the way.

Chad Bushnell: 51:29

Do you have anybody you'd like?

Chad Bushnell: 51:30

to light on man, just my, my mom and dad my wife and my sister.

Chad Bushnell: 51:31

You know, really, if that's, if that's what you're talking about, I mean family support, gotta give them a shout out because they've all helped me in different ways. Yeah, mom, dad, sister, my wife you know those people. And uh, shout out to my community reblof. I've had a lot of support from there. Uh, you know, walker printing keistings unlimited the state theater and reblof they've. Uh, you know, walker printing keistings unlimited the state theater and red bluff they've. Uh, you know, I get to do my own show every year there, which is probably my favorite show of the year, getting to perform there.

Jay Franze: 51:54

So what part of the year is that?

Chad Bushnell: 51:57

I've been doing it, uh, november 16th, which is president's week, kind of not too far before thanksgiving yeah, very cool. And this year, uh, I'm bringing ben Haggard, merle Haggard's son, to be the special guest, so I'm pretty much that's going to be the highlight of the year, I think.

Jay Franze: 52:13

What's it like playing with him.

Chad Bushnell: 52:15

Great Ben's been my friend, uh, for a long time. Uh, he's, you know, obviously we're from. We live not far from where Merle used to live and Ben Haggard and I have been great friends and I ended up meeting him officially through Bruce Turgan, who used to play bass for Foreigner.

Chad Bushnell: 52:31

Oh yeah.

Chad Bushnell: 52:31

And he's got a studio and he introduced Ben and I and we've just been friends ever since and he's played on some of my tracks and I've got to do shows with him.

Jay Franze: 52:41

A big thanks to Chad for taking the time to share his stories with us and thank you for taking the time to hang with me here. I really do appreciate it. If you know anyone that would enjoy this episode, please be sure to share it. You can do that and find the links to everything mentioned over at jayfranze. com/ episode 88. Thanks again for listening and I'll see you next week.

Tony Scott: 53:06

Thanks for listening to The Jay Franze Show. Make sure you visit us at jayfranze. com. Follow, connect and say hello.