Song Premiere: Josh Ward Shares the Spirited "Another Heartache" + Talks New Album

​Josh Ward once acknowledged, “I have this disease where I want every song to be a hit.” If his new album, More Than I Deserve [May 4th] is any indication, he isn’t shaking that affliction any time soon - and his fans are sure to be delighted. With nine consecutive #1’s under his belt, More Than I Deserve, with its balance of ballads and honky-tonkers, is guaranteed to not only secure him additional hits, but cement his place as one of country music’s finest neo-traditionalists.

Today, TDC is incredibly excited to premiere a new tune from the album, "Another Heartache." Penned by Terry McBride, Brinley Addington, and Brice Long, the spirited “Another Heartbreak” takes a page from the country music songbook of the 80’s and 90’s. Led by the always welcome pull of pedal steel, a sweet dose of jaunty keys, and a solid drumbeat, "Another Heartbreak", with its carefree take on finding comfort in another without opening the door to heartbreak, is 100% country gold. 

"'Cause I don't need another heartache
It never did me any good
One thing i know about a heatrbreak
It never heals the way it should"

Ward says of the track, '“Another Heartache” is one of those songs that immediately when I heard it, it said, ‘Add this one to your arsenal Josh Ward’ (laughing). It’s a good honky-tonk song that hangs you right out of the box on that first lick. And boy, it’s a fun one to play.’

Put your dancin’ shoes on, listen to, and share, the track below. Then read on as Ward talks in depth about the album, his headlining show at Gruene Hall, and much more!

Courtesy of the Artist

Once again you teamed up with producer Greg Hunt at Rosewood Studios and once again, you guys hit it out of the park. How did this particular group of songs come together for you?
I really enjoyed working with Greg and all those guys again. We work well together, and I definitely think we made magic this time. With these songs, there was a wide range of collaborations. I wrote three [on the record] with Wyatt McCubbin and the songs I didn’t have a hand in writing, I handpicked after thorough listens. We got a hold of some very good material and had the opportunity to collaborate with Terry McBryde, Brett James, and Jim and Brett Beavers. And while some of the songs might be a little outside of my box, they show what I can do as an artist, and honestly, I think this is, by far, the best project I have worked on so far.

Many of the songs that have signature Josh Ward sound listeners love, so in what regards are some of them out of the box for you?
People say Josh Ward is traditional country and yes, we carry one of best steel players in Texas with us, which makes us more traditional than others, but my sound is almost a neo-country thing now. It’s not your grandma and grandpa’s country music, and I don’t mean to sound ugly when I say that, it just has this new vibe where it injects a lot of 80’s and 90’s country, which I think is the heyday of country music. The songs have a roller coaster of emotions from the beer drinking, honky-tonk tunes to the anthems to the sexy stuff, to the rip your heart out sad ballads.

They do take you on an enjoyable ride. With the tunes you did have a hand in, did you travel to Nashville to write?
I flew to Columbus [Ohio] to Wyatt’s parent's place in Selma and we had what was probably the most relaxed writing session ever. The cabin had this old pot belly stove and we’d get up, look out the window and the snow would be three feet high. There were no distractions, and nothing was forced. If we wanted to write a song we did, and if we wanted to drink whiskey we did. We didn’t try to think of a subject or pick a feeling, we just said ‘Let’s reach down into our soul and just write.’ And I can tell you, we came out of it with some good songs: “One More Shot of Whiskey,” “More Than I Deserved,” and “A Cowboy Can.” I think every writing sessions should be that way.

A very relaxed and fruitful session!
The album’s opener, and first single, “All About Lovin’” is already climbing the Texas charts. It’s an incredibly fun, upbeat track which is a perfect way to kick off and introduce people to the album. Is there any reason you placed that song first?
I know some people tie songs into one another and make a story type of deal, but for me, if a song sticks, it sticks. We kick off our live shows with “All About Lovin’”; and talk about an opener, ripping those guitars, that cowbell, and the Vibraslap…man, it’s a fun one! I felt it deserved to be out there in front and as our first single.
Fun fact: Ward says, “The Vibraslap is the deal in the background that sounds like a rattlesnake. Nate Coon [Aaron Watson] played drums on the record and throughout the day he jokingly added that to every song and we were like, ‘Nope, ain’t working’ (laughing), but he hit the Vibraslap on this one and it stuck.”
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It’s so fun to listen to, I can only imagine how it comes across live. Have you been playing songs from the record at your shows?
We’re doing three out of the eleven, little sneak peeks. And the neat thing is we’ll play a new song they haven’t heard, and you can tell they like it and want to sing along, but they don’t yet know the words (laughing). Then, all of a sudden, the second chorus comes along and they’re right there singing along. It’s great to see they’re going over so well.

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The title of the album is also the closing track which has to be the most moving song on the record.  
Wyatt and I wrote that one and yes, before you ask, things are just peachy at home (laughing). I write about what’s going on and put so much emotion into my songs, that people were concerned when they heard this one, but really, I just pulled from my life with her and what she means to me. There’s a line, “she was stronger than the whiskey that built up this wall”, that’s a powerful line. And that’s my wife, she’s done so much for me and been there for me; she’s a saint.
Writing this one was like hitting these pinpricks, I would say a line and then Wyatt would come up with something similar and you know, we never say if she stays or leaves, we just say she is more than I deserve. It’s a three-chords and the truth song.

It packs a punch.
And you took that song title as the album title, flipping the meaning to represent how you feel about where you are in life.
Absolutely. I am blessed to be in the place I am now. Top to bottom, I work with amazing people. The good thing we have takes an army, or a village, to pull it off and we wouldn’t be able to do it without everyone involved. If you surround yourself with good people, good things will be put in front of you. More Than I Deserve hits the nail right on the head.
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Your fans showed their appreciation for you and the music a few weeks ago when you sold out your first headlining show at Gruene Hall, which must have been a bucket list item to check off.
It’s incredible, that was our first time to headline Gruene Hall and then to sell it out….that was an amazing marker. My nerves were up so much I thought I was going to explode, but everything leveled off as soon as I hit the stage and made it to the mic, I realized there was nothing to worry about because I was playing music in front of my friends. It was pretty amazing.

And you brought a special guest on stage with you for a song, your son.
My eleven-year-old Jayce is into music. I let him sing with me ever since he was old enough to say something in the microphone, but he hadn’t been able to make shows because he leads a pretty busy schedule himself. The day of the show, he was acting as the band’s helper, security’s helper, and tour manager. He was so grown up and as he stood there with his mother, I pointed to him and he joined me on stage to sing a verse and the crowd went nuts; he blew the roof off and stole the show. What’s funny is that ten years prior, my wife took a picture of me holding him in front of Gruene Hall, so it all came full circle with us coming back and him seeing his Dad perform a sold-out show in a legendary place.

What a special moment. With that under your belt, and the success you have on radio and touring, is there anything else you want to accomplish or is whatever comes next simply icing on the cake?
Oh yeah, there’s more (laughing). It was a bucket list item to team up with Terry, Brett, Wyatt, and all those guys and I would love to write with them again. I would also love to play the Grand Ole Opry one day, but I also want to get to travel the country, and Italy too, and play for people. There’s nothing like performing to a sold-out crowd whether it’s a dance hall, Carnegie Hall, a theatre, or any place that will have us. My band is one of the hardest working bands in Texas because we don’t ever quit, it’s not in our vocabulary. We just put our head down and keep chipping away.

As you chip away with over 200 dates a year, I imagine days off are rare. So how do you like to spend one?
I love nature and am an avid outdoorsman. I get stir crazy when I’m held up in a room, so when I have a day off the kids and I will get outside to hunt and fish and manage a deer lease we have. That’s our out.

Josh Ward's Tonk Fest and CD Release Party will be held May 5th at Montgomery County Fairgrounds in his hometown of Conroe, Texas. 
TICKETS HERE.
 

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