Kenny's Thoughts on The Road and the Radio

BNA Records released Kenny's thoughts on each of his songs on The Road and the Radio album. Don't forget... Kenny's new album goes on sale tomorrow (November 8, 2005)!


KENNY CHESNEY - The Road And The Radio

Song By Song

1. The Road And The Radio
Kenny Chesney/Casey Beathard (ASCAP/BMI)

No matter what has gone on in my life, there have been two constant things over the past 12 years and that’s been the road and the radio. No matter what it was, one of them had the answer, whether it was a long stretch of highway or a great song. And as crazy as my life’s gotten, this is the one place where it’s still the same…the broken lines and the truth I find in songs.

2. Living In Fast Forward
David Lee Murphy/Rivers Rutherford (ASCAP)

Definitely, it’s how I’m living my life right now and have been for the past several years. Funny thing about momentum: the more you get, the farther and faster it takes you and the harder it gets to slow down and take a moment to really reflect on what’s just happened.

3. Who You'd Be Today
Bill Luther/Aimee Mayo (BMI)

Everybody has one. Someone who they’ve lost too soon…who never quite got to become the person they were meant to be. I have a couple of friends who come to mind and I wonder what their lives would be like today if fate hadn’t stepped in. I really do believe like the last line of this song says, “we’ll see them again one day.”

4. You Save Me
Brett James/Troy Verges (ASCAP/BMI)

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t need this person- whether they know it or not. Funny too, most of us have them whether we recognize them or not. I’m surrounded be these kinds of people, whether I wanted them to save me or not.

5. Summertime
Steve McEwan/Craig Wiseman (BMI/ASCAP)

My favorite time of year. Summertime to me means people tailgating in parking lots, road cases, fans in the lawn seats, sunburn, laughter, good times, not to mention bikini tops, flip flops, and suntan oil. It is everything I love about the road and really getting to reconnect with the people who love the music.

6. In A Small Town
Cory Mayo/Jon McElroy (BMI)

I’m so glad I grew up in a place where the most important things were friends, church, school, and sports. Our lives revolved around all of those things. Out of all the places I’ve been, I know in the end that’s where I will end up - back “In A Small Town.”

7. Beer In Mexico
Kenny Chesney (ASCAP)

I wrote this song in Cabo at Sammy Hagar’s birthday party. There’re a lot of guys going through these same things — Looking at their lives, where they think they’re supposed to be, not knowing what to do, wondering if they are missing the boat. This song is about realizing that in the moment, you don’t have to make up your mind. You just need to take a deep breath and open another beer. The answer will come if you let it.

8. Freedom
Tom Douglas/Bill Luther (BMI)

Everyone has their own definition and sense of what this means and freedom isn’t always what you think. To a Wall Street guy, it’s giving it up and riding his Harley. To the soldiers, it’s defending our country and our ideas. To me, it’s being on a boat anywhere. It’s the place you feel like you belong, where you are most alive, where you have a reason to be and everything else doesn’t matter.

9. Tequila Loves Me
Jon McElroy/Arnie Roman (BMI/ASCAP)

This one was the one I couldn’t let get away. I recorded this song for When The Sun Goes Down album; it didn’t fit on the Be As You Are album so I finally found a place for this song on this record. I’ve been in this guy’s shoes — wandering around a small island, looking for somebody who just wasn’t there.

10. Somebody Take Me Home
Radney Foster/Randy Rogers (BMI)

We’ve all been there…can’t stay home...don’t want to go out. You wish someone would just take you away and wipe all the memories clean — even if it is just for a moment.

11. Like Me
Troy Jones (BMI)

This is my favorite song. Through all my years of touring and even all my years of dreaming, I’ve met many characters just like the ones painted in this song. We’re talking about people who were not afraid to dream- and dream big. These are people who take life as it comes and still live it to the fullest, no matter where they are or what they’re doing. And whether they make it or not, give that dream everything and don’t look back.

Courtesy: BNA Records