The Road From Hancock to Nashville: Part Two
Part two of U.P. musician Paul Smith's journey south to record with the legendary Cowboy Jack Clement.
Paul Smith, a singer-songwriter living in Hancock, Michigan, recently scored the gig of a lifetime: recording with legendary Nashville producer Cowboy Jack Clement.
Jack Clement has had one of those golden eyes for talent for decades. It was Clement who, in 1957, got Jerry Lee Lewis to loosen up in a recording session by suggesting the band just jam on some stuff its had been doing during live shows. Legend has it that the levels were set, and as the band launched into "Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On," Jack hit the red button and mixed it on the fly. That cut made it to the radio and the rest was history. Clement went on to work with musicians like Johnny Cash, Shawn Camp, John Prine and Nanci Griffith.
And now Paul Smith has caught his eye. In Part One, hear how Paul Smith, a father of 10, ended up making music in the Upper Peninsula—and get a glimpse of his journey leading him to Nashville.
In this segment, we travel with Smith from the U.P. into a Nashville recording studio. Along the way, we get some insight into how music works on legendary Broadway in Nashville and sit in on a Jack Clement/Paul Smith jam session.
Note: We were fortunate enough to hear about Paul Smith because he is related to one of our staff members, but we don’t want to miss out on any great stories. So if you or someone you know has something exciting going on in their lives, let us know!
