interviews with artists by singer-songwriter, music journalist neal mcalister.

   check out JD Gray's CD on CDelicious

Mississippi songwriter JD Gray started writing country music in the late '70s. He lists Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, Curly Putman and Bobby Braddock as some of his major influences but also says that the Beatles sparked his interest early on.

JD: "Everybody my age that was into music was influenced by the Beatles in some way - I guess I saw A Hard Days Night when I was nine. I remember thinking when I heard them do "If I Fell" with Lennon singing the lead...I didn't know how to write a song but this was a great song." 

"When I got home that night I asked my Dad for a guitar and that was the start of it all."

"Later when I had a guitar and I saw "Help" I saw Lennon and noticed that he played his open G chord with both of the high strings on the 3rd fret instead of the B string open, and I started doing that too. It was just a few of the little things like that".   

CDelicious: What about country songwriters?

JD:  "I had heard "Sunday Morning Coming Down" a few times, the Johnny Cash version but I never heard all the words start to finish. Then later I happened onto an album called Willie Sings Kristofferson and it hit me. This was a great song - it described exactly how a specific person was feeling on a specific morning better than I had ever heard anyone do before. I still think that's one of the greatest country songs of all time and those fist 2 or 3 lines are some of my favorites..."no way to hold my head that didn't hurt" - and "the beer I had for breakfast wasn't bad so I had one more for dessert." - and on and on.

JD has never had a big monster hit that everyone knows but he has had many of his songs recorded by indie artists, country and Americana- in Nashville and Texas. And he has also used his writing skills for radio and tv ads.   He can write both commercial and yet still poetic and expressive -  he is constantly complimented by writers and artists on his great songs and his knack for saying something in a unique and sincere way. 

CDelicious: So how do you stay fresh and keep writing year after year?

JD:  "Well, I never get tired of listening and trying a new angle. When I was younger I used to look for new ideas and now I've learned to let the song to come to me - like when I see the story in a day to day event.  I think that a song is
better if it comes from a true event and sometimes you just gotta wait for something to happen to inspire you -  and I've learned how to see those things that happen and write about them."

“Show Me How”    -JD Gray

You’re the best I’ve ever seen at being strong
Starting up a brand new life and moving on
I’m a little green with envy
I wish I had it in me
I wanted to be like you for so long
Would you please share your secret with me now
And show me how

You always wear a smile upon your face
Your everything keeps falling into place
You leave behind the old days
In some forgotten suitcase
And move ahead to run a brand new race
Would you please share your secret with me now
And show me how

Show me how you do it
When true love falls apart
How you jump right over that big break inside your heart
How you see tomorrow
And past the yesterdays
How you know it’s time to let it drift away
Would you share your secret with me now
And show me how

I don’t have one bitter memory
You’re happy now and that’s how it should be
I just want the same chance
to get over you the way you got over me
Would you please share your secret with me now
And show me how