John Michael Montgomery Cut By Cut

Stories behind the new album Time Flies

"What Did I Do" (Jamey Johnson, George Teren)
That song is just cool as hell. It has real personality. There've been many times I've walked around on my bad days when I think, "How did I get myself into this or out of that, and how did I get here in the first place?" Sometimes it's hard to believe I have what I have, and this is just a cool song that deals with that.

"Let's Get Lost" (Arlis Albritton, Jamey Johnson, Jeremy Popoff)
That's just a romantic love song that I think was very well written. It just makes me feel like going out and getting a blanket and taking my wife and kids out on a picnic. It's a very sensitive yet to-the-point love song, the kind I always seem to find a place for on my albums.

"If You Ever Went Away" (Daryl Burgess, Randy Houser)
I think that's just John Michael from one end of the spectrum to the other. It's got a good story line and it definitely hits home with me. It was something we cut on the last session and I knew it had to be a single.

"Forever" (James T. Slater)
I would have to say that is pure power ballad, pure John Michael. It chases both sides--the sensitive side and that rock side. I think the thing just rocks, and I expect that one to be a single as well.

"With My Shirt On" (Kelley Lovelace, Lee Thomas Miller, Luke Bryan)
I think this song has huge potential. I'm doing it in my show right now and people are loving it. It's different than anything I've heard. I mean, who would have a song about a guy worrying about his belly showing while having sex? It's a real sleeper, a song that could really catch people off-guard and wind up in a lot of people's iPods.

"Mad Cowboy Disease" (Jamey Johnson, Jeremy Popoff, Jon Maddux)
That's my little strange sense of humor going on. This takes me back to those long nights of partying in the night clubs. I just thought it was funny, especially the Mel Tillis part, and I like a little humor on every album.

"Loving And Letting Go" (Gary Hannan, Greg Barnhill)
This has got that kind of Lionel Ritchie feel. There's nothing really deep about it--I guess it's just my "groovy" song of the album.

"Fly On" (George Molton)
I almost cut this a couple of albums ago, and when it came across my desk again I called the publishing company and said, "I want to do this. I've loved this song for years." There's a very epic, movie kind of feel about this thign that just pulls you in.

"Drunkards's Prayer" (Chris Stapleton, Jameson Clark)
My brother and I were riding in the back of a vehicle in Nashville and the guy driving said, "You've got to check this out." He played us this song and Eddie put it on hold for Montgomery Gentry, but they never did cut it. I was doing my vocals for this album in Eddie's studio and I asked him about it, and wound up calling the publisher and cutting it myself. I always reserve a spot on every album for a very traditional country song, and this is the one this time.

"All In A Day" (Daryl Burgess, and Dan Demay)
This song just blew me away. I remember listening to the demo and it put this big clock in my head. I was sitting there watching the hands go around as this guy sang, and I thought, "I can rewind this song and start it over but I can't do that with life. What's gone by has gone by." It was the most significant pitch of the album for me and it got the album going in the direction I wanted it to go.

"Brothers Till The End" (Gary Hannan, Phil O’Donnell, John Michael Montgomery)
I had been writing for the album but I wasn't coming up with anything I was really happy with. Then Gary Hannan introduced me to Phil O'Donnell, who grew up like did in a family band. I had always wanted to start a song with a line about my mom playing drums in our band, which she did, and as the song came together I talked about Eddie and me growing up a year and a half apart in this life we're in now. In fact, I wanted to bring Eddie in as a writer, but we could never get our schedules to work out.