As “American Kids,” the percolating celebration of what life is made of, hits the Top 10, Kenny Chesney peels off another anthem from his eagerly anticipated The Big Revival – due September 23 — to give people a compelling sense of where his next album is heading. If you pre-order now HERE, you will receive “American Kids” and “Flora-Bama,” a sweeping song about laying back at the seminal bar on the Alabama/Florida state line.
“It’s a very specific song about a very specific place,” Chesney says, “but it’s also a song for anyone who has somewhere they go to let their mind unwind. It’s about bein’ easy, but bein’ engaged. Because – as I’ve said – places like the Flora-Bama are what life is all about.”
Written with David Lee Murphy (“Livin’ In Fast Forward,” “Dust On The Bottle”), “Flora-Bama” is a fistful of postcards from the sort of lazy afternoon that is no hurry, but feels absolutely alive. Inspired by a real place, the pair sought to capture the perfect suspension between having the time of your life and being so relaxed you don’t really care about what happens, you’re just enjoying the moment.
“I got a call from a good friend who’d been sittin’ in the Flora-Bama all afternoon,” Chesney explains. “He’d just ducked in for a beer, and six hours later, he’d emerged with a bunch of new friends, a great time and the sort of memory you keep going back to. David Lee and I were trying to write, and of course, he’d been there. We got to talkin’ about it, and next thing you know, we were halfway through the song!”
With the 4-time Country Music Association and 4-consecutive Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year slated to play his only 2014 show – deemed the Flora-Bama-Jam – August 16, “Flora-Bama” is the perfect song to get ready.
“It’s one of those songs that could almost be the National Anthem for the No Shoes Nation,” Chesney marvels. “The idea of a place where when you unplug, you can kick back, be with your friends and really enjoy the time. I love that the Flora-Bama is an actual place; but, it’s as much a state of mind… and being. When you listen past the details, the melody really brings that – and you can feel what I’m talking about.”
Co-produced by Chesney and Buddy Cannon, the 11-track release runs the gamut. From the deep pocketed title track to the rhythmic shifting of “American Kids,” the wistfully stark country of “Don’t It” with Alison Krauss and Dan Tyminski and the swirling “Wild Child” featuring Grace Potter, The Big Revival may be Chesney’s most diverse, yet infectious project yet.
The Big Revival
1. The Big Revival – Dennis Linde
2. Drink It Up – Rodney Clawson/Vicky McGehee/David Lee Murphy
3. Til It’s Gone – Rodney Clawson/David Lee Murphy/Jimmy Yeary
4. American Kids- Rodney Clawson/Shane McAnally/Luke Laird
5. Wild Child (with Grace Potter) – Kenny Chesney/Shane McAnally/Josh Osborne
6. Beer Can Chicken- Kenny Chesney/Ross Copperman/David Lee Murphy
7. Rock Bottom – Craig Wiseman/Matt Dragstrem
8. Don’t It – Brent Cobb/Chase McGill
9. Save It for a Rainy Day – Andrew Dorff/Matt Ramsey/Brad Tursi
10. Flora-Bama – Kenny Chesney/Ross Copperman/David Lee Murphy
11. If This Bus Could Talk – Kenny Chesney/Tom Douglas
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