(photo by Chris Davis)

“A smokin’, long black cadillac, the engine windin’ down…”

Todd Snider, cosmic Americana cowboy played the Tower Theater last Saturday night, and I had the pleasure of attending. The few times I’ve gotten to see Todd, I always walk away feeling better and happier about the world. He is the true embodiment of the modern folk troubadour. His style is part of the East Nashville sound that has given us so many other great performers today. 

“He’d park it up on the sidewalk, like he owned the whole damn town…”

Starting off with some new songs, he spoke of his latest record and how he recorded it at Johnny Cash’s old studio because he had a dream where Johnny Cash kept pointing the way. He and his other band Hard Working Americans went out to the studio to spend the night, and that’s when he got the “inspiration” to make the record there. I’m anxiously awaiting this album, as Todd’s the giant of a songwriter where every song makes a difference.

“I’d hear him talkin’ to some chick through a thick ghost of smoke…”

The rest of the show was pure Todd Snider…lots of stories and jokes and fun. And, the fun is always the songs. “D.B. Cooper,” “Alright Guy,” “Too Late to Learn,” the list goes on and of course, my personal favorite (hence the subliminal lyric insertions), “Play a Train Song.” You can feel the truth in Todd’s songs. They pass the test of great songwriting in that they make you feel glad to be alive while at the same time they make you reflect on the harsh realities of this world.

“Through a thicker haze of Southern Comfort and coke…”

Go see Todd if you have a chance. Buy his latest records and some of his older ones, too. I almost wore out my copy of “Live: The Storyteller.” It’ll make you feel better and reflect on the value of this life, or as Todd says, “at least be a distraction from our impending doom.”

“Play a train song, play a train song.”

Todd Snider’s Cash Cabin Sessions Vol. 3 will be released on March 15, 2019.