Walker Hayes Quotes

There are albums that I listen to religiously just because I'm such a big fan: any Bruce Springsteen album, or old George Strait albums because the songwriting's so strong.

I always like story songs, Dolly Parton, Tom T. Hall, Mel Tillis, Red Stegall, when they'd do their story songs. I was totally enthralled.

I think of a song in terms of lyrics and stories, and that's what keeps it country for me.

Certain songs like 'Enjoy the Silence' - to me, it always fits anywhere. There's something about that song that's really timeless, and I never get bored or feel like I have to muster something up.

Some artists will tell you that's all they want to do is write their own music, and that's great, but George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Garth Brooks, they didn't write everything they recorded, and they've had major, major careers. I think it's all about the best song.

I draw inspiration from anything and everybody and that's what country music is to me... real life stories and real life emotions.

I try to write like the writers I admire - I rip them off in form. It comes from George Strait and Merle Haggard records, and country music in general is really good at that, the twisted phrase... So I'm always looking for that angle in my own work.

When I was 3, my mom sent in a video of me singing George Strait to 'America's Funniest Home Videos.'

I always wished I had a song like that George Strait song, 'The Chair', 'cause it's basically just a guy trying to pick up a girl at a bar.

As far as heroes thorough the years, I'd say definitely Alabama and Randy Owen, Conway Twitty was a big influence of mine, George Strait, Lionel Richie.

Country is bringing in a little rock element... a little '80s element. Melody is king now. But its just in the music, its not so much in the songwriting, which is still very basic to the storytelling aspect of it.

I do think I'm country, but your definition of that word might be different from my definition. In my opinion, country music, the sound of country, has always evolved. But the one thing that has not changed is the story element. And I think country songs are truthful songs about life written by country people.

We have that storytelling history in country and bluegrass and old time and folk music, blues - all those things that combine to make up the genre. It was probably storytelling before it was songwriting, as far as country music is concerned. It's fun to be a part of that and tip the hat to that. You know, and keep that tradition alive.

'Tailgate Blues' is kind of a lyrical masterpiece of a country song.

Country music is three chords and the truth.

Of all the songs I've recorded, 'Amarillo By Morning' always sticks out in my mind.

One of the things that I think is such a constant in country music is that the song is so much a story. I believe it is supposed to be based around a story.

I've had mentors who were kind of the troubadour singer-songwriters, like Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan and Neil Young, and that's just what I've always liked - people who would talk real honestly about their lives and their circumstance.

The first movie was mostly about George and Julia. This one is mostly about me and Catherine and our love story and our whole history. So it's a very different movie.

A good country song takes a page out of somebody's life and puts it to music.

I was a very romantic, overly dramatic young lady, which served me well as a songwriter. Especially as someone who had to focus on lyrics and melody, because if you're a dramatic and romantic person, lyrics come easy, and you turn every single short-term relationship into the biggest 'Romeo-and-Juliet' story ever.

What I'm trying to do is tell good stories through music. I think some of the best songs, the best country songs, are stories.

I love songs, and I love to tell stories, and so a lot of times, if you really want a good story, you got to flip the radio dial over to country.

Country music's really good about telling a story, so I want songs that tell good stories where people can say, 'That happened to me!'

I know some of the best Dolly Parton jokes. I made 'em up myself.