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Last week, singer/songwriter Ben Danaher shared "Still Feel Lucky," the redemptive title cut from his full-length debut album. He's now sharing a bare-bones acoustic version. Danaher, along with videographer Ryan Nolan, filmed the flagship song in an old abandoned warehouse in West Nashville.
Still Feel Lucky finds Danaher facing unimaginable tragedy—the murder of his brother and the loss of this father to cancer.
"You can hurt and still feel lucky," sings Danaher on the hopeful chorus. It's often the simple truths that carry the most weight. It's as genuine a sentiment as they come and is a mighty reminder that life goes on and gets better despite struggles and tragedy. Danaher offers a reassuring pat on the back that's as comforting as it is inspiring.
"'Still Feel Lucky' was the last song that was written on this album and ended up being a way of 'turning the corner' from a dark couple of years for me," says Danaher. "I got the opportunity to go live with my 94-year-old grandmother for a summer, in an attempt to write a new record. I didn't write very many songs that summer, but I was able to watch a lady who had served in World War II and basically [had] watched all of her friends pass away before her, mention every morning how lucky of a life she had. I stopped feeling sorry for myself that summer. When I got back to Nashville, there were suddenly a lot of things, that despite just losing my dad and my brother, that I still felt lucky about. In a way, I consider myself a torch carrier for my family who showed me how to approach a career in the music business. I am very lucky to be considered a songwriter and musician."
Danaher, who wrote "Still Feel Lucky" with fellow songwriter Dustin Christensen, says they stumbled upon the topic while writing when "you can hurt and still feel lucky" fell out during the writing process.
"I was trying to write a song about what kind of man I was hoping my parents raised," says Danaher. "It was more of a reminder that I did have a lot to feel lucky about. So after quitting drinking, and eased up on choosing that as an identity, it became more of a battle cry."
Throughout Still Feel Lucky, Danaher offers up hard-won wisdom with candid honesty and cinematic storytelling that's wise well beyond his years. He makes keen observations through character sketches and heartbreaking ballads. Danaher's dedication to the craft of songwriting and performance is rooted in family tradition as well as studying the likes of Texas troubadour greats such as Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Rodney Crowell. Still, Danaher isn't simply delivering color-by-number replications. Still Feel Lucky finds Danaher coming into his own as a gifted storyteller with his own merits.
Danaher's Still Feel Lucky will be officially released September 7. He is currently on a short run of shows with Bruce Robison. For more details, click here.
Still Feel Lucky Track List:
1. "Hell or High Water"
2. "Silver Screen"
3. "Jesus Can See You"
4. "My Father's Blood"
5. "Fred and Jonell"
6. "Still Feel Lucky"
7. "Little While"
8. "Time Never Moves Slower"
9. "Getting over Someone"
10. "Silver Lining"
11. "Over That Mountain"
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