After years of playing fiddle for the Turnpike Troubadours, Kyle Nix is releasing his debut solo album Lightning on the Mountain & Other Short Stories (out June 26). The western-inspired album was shaped by Nix's love of short stories and captures snapshots from his own life as well as characters he "may or may not have encountered" during his many years on the road.
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Nix says "Blue Eyes" is about choosing to love even when you know it will result in heartbreak.
"Sugar daddies have hearts, too! This is the story of one such fellow helping a beautiful, blue-eyed young woman get back on her feet and in the process, he falls hard for her," Nix tells Wide Open Country. "The kicker is that he knew that he would fall for her all along. Sometimes you have to decide beforehand if you're willing to have your heart broken and your guts ripped out (figuratively) just to feel those butterflies in your stomach."
Listen to "Blue Eyes" below.
The Perry, Oklahoma-raised singer-songwriter and instrumentalist joined the Turnpike Troubadours shortly after the band formed, when he met Evan Felker and RC Edwards at a co-billed show.
"It was around those guys that I first heard John Prine and Townes Van Zandt songs. I remember thinking, 'Wow, I've been missing out on a lot,'" Nix says in a press release. "It really lit a fire inside me. I wanted to learn how to tell a story like those guys."
Recorded and co-produced by Wes Sharon (John Fulbright, Parker Milsap, Turnpike Troubadours) in Norman, Oklahoma, Lightning on the Mountain & Other Short Stories features Nix's Turnpike Troubadours bandmates Ryan Engleman, Gabe Pearson, RC Edwards & Hank Early.
"I've really gotten into short stories these past few years. You have to sum your ideas up quicker- really trim the fat. I like what they do," Nix says, explaining that the album tracks are encompassed by a Spaghetti Western theme. "I'm into Ennio Morricone (composer). He composed a ton of classic western soundtracks. On the record I applied the 'spaghetti western' theme with instrumentals to imply a front cover, a back cover & picture pages... a short story collection."
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