Part 2 of the 3 Ring Circus Reunion is here! This episode includes not only our two guests from part 1, but three guests! Jeffery Steele is joining Bart Allmand, Danny Myrick and Kip Raines to continue their conversation about writing for Jeffery’s publishing company and so much more! Tune it to hear the joy in their voices as they reminisce, you won't want to miss it!
Meet Danny Myrick: Danny Myrick achieved his first No. 1 in gospel music as a writer at age 17 before moving to Nashville and spent much of the 1990s singing lead in the band Western Flyer before pursuing writing full force. He’s the co-writer of hits like “She’s Country,” “I Love This Life,” and “International Harvester,” among others. He is currently writing for Deluge Music.
Meet Kip Raines: Not long after moving to Nashville from the mountains of Northeast Georgia, Kip Raines learned that his high school jazz band would be making an album with Johnny Cash. “The first recording studio I ever walked into was RCA Studio B. Everyone kept whispering that Elvis recorded ‘It’s Now or Never’ in that room. It was a magical thing for a kid…I guess I was hooked.”
Kip credits his early drumming experiences with his love for songwriting. “I was always fortunate to play with great singers who were singing great songs. Wynonna was a great influence. What a singer! If you’re really listening, you can’t help but learn.” He would go on to play drums on Blackhawk’s self-titled multi-platinum album (including the hits “Every Once in a While” and “Sure Can Smell the Rain”), and sing on gold albums by Steven Curtis Chapman (The Great Adventure) and Keith Anderson (Three Chord Country and American Rock n’ Roll), as well as numerous others.
While writing for Warner/Chappell, his first single, “One of These Days (I’m Gonna Love Me),” became a #1 for Tim McGraw. In 2003, he signed with Windswept Pacific Music and over the next four years, penned songs for Clay Walker, American Idol artist Bucky Covington, and the brother duo from Lynyrd Skynyrd, Van Zant. “Help Somebody If You Can,” won a BMI Award as one of the 50 most-played songs of 2006.
In 2007 Kip took a break from the music business to write two books: a fiction novel called The Ink Stain and a non-fiction book The Message in the Mirror based on his own life experiences. He returned to songwriting full time in 2010.
Jeffrey Steele: A five-time Grammy Nominee, Jeffrey Steele has been recognized by BMI for over 63 million airplays for hits he penned for a multitude of artists including Keith Urban, Eric Church, Zac Brown Band, Jimmy Buffett, Montgomery Gentry, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cher, .38 Special, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Trace Adkins, LeAnn Rimes, Rascal Flatts and Van Zant, Joe Cocker, Little Feat ft. Bob Seger, Joe Bonamassa, Cascada and more.
Among his many accolades over the past few years, Jeffrey Steele has been named to the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, honored by the Country Music Hall of Fame as a Poet and Prophet, twice awarded BMI Songwriter of the Year and thrice the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) Songwriter of the Year. CMA has twice awarded him the coveted “Triple Play Award” for three No. 1 songs in a year. His country and A/C mega-hits include a string of chart-toppers including: “Raise ‘Em Up”, “Knee Deep”, “Here,” “My Wish,” “The Cowboy In Me,” “These Days”, “My Town”, “Something to be Proud of”, “Everyday” and the groundbreaking “What Hurts The Most,” nominated for Best Country Song at the Grammy Awards.
Additionally, he has won over 35 BMI Country and Pop awards, was nominated for a Golden Globe and Critic’s Choice Award for Best Original Song “I Thought I Lost You” for the Disney/Pixar animated feature BOLT, performed by Miley Cyrus and John Travolta, been named one of Billboard Magazine’s top 5 writer’s 8 years in a row, as well as Music Row Magazine’s Songwriter of the Year Award. Steele’s latest album features performances with Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Jamey Johnson, John Rich and others.
What Bart has to say: I love what Jeffrey has to say about how it took 16 years for our song to be recorded….’these songs are like fine wine and just get better with age.” It was a blast to be able to have all 4 of us on the podcast at once.
In this episode, you’ll hear
Jeffrey Steele joins Bart, Danny Myrick & Kip Raines to talk about their Trace Adkins cut/single “Just The Way We Do It Round Here”
The guys’ reminiscence about when they used to write for Jeffrey Steele’s publishing company, 3 Ring Circus
Links to Connect: