Ray Scott Live @ Horus Hall

BIOGRAPHY 

The term ‘country music’ has changed over time, but Ray Scott’s definition of it has not. Press play on any Ray Scott song and you’re going to get tried-and-true, salt of the earth, country music. That’s how the country music traditionalist built his first ten albums and that’s how he’ll build the next ten - which conveniently starts right here. 

Billboards and Brake Lights, Scott’s 11th release, is rooted in Ray’s signature traditional sound straddling the line of growth and remaining that same guy his fans have come to love. Selfeffacing and self-aware, Ray’s methods of storytelling shine brighter than ever before.

 “I wrote ‘Ripples’ with Tony Mullins and it’s got kind of an almost bluegrassy feel about it. ‘Long Black Cadillac’ is one people always liked and I thought fit well with this group.” 

This group consists of the title track which paints the stark reality (or is it Ray-ality) of life on tour while ‘Keeper’ highlights a different type of peril of the road where Scott’s lyrical masterclass on the art of polite decline is one for the ages. No stranger to delving into dark and/or intensely personal times, Billboards and Brake Lights is no different. Even when he didn’t mean to, different life events, such as the recent passing of his parents, make songs like ‘Old Roads and Old Friends’ cut to the core. 

“Honesty in songwriting is what it's all about. People respond to that and you realize there are a lot of kindred spirits in the room. As for performing, it's gotten easier for me to be able to go onstage and rip the scab off.” 

Honesty in songwriting is vitally important to Ray. Back when he was a staff songwriter on Music Row, ‘Bro-Country’ was on the rise. That didn’t sit well with Ray and he refused to discredit the music he loves. 

While 2020’s Nowhere Near Done and 2021’s Cover the Earth both fought Covid, that same pandemic birthed Ray’s award-winning Ray-ve In the Cave, Scott’s then weekly livestream show where he and guitarist Joe Cook would hang out in Ray’s basement and perform. Named one of Pollstar’s Top 50 Livestreams, Ray-ve gave him a more interactional relationship with his audience than he ever had. 

As Scott’s musical career eclipses the twenty-year mark, the whiskey-tinged baritone expresses a gratitude, even if he doesn’t completely understand it all. 

“It’s all been a blessing, not just here but all over the world. I recently went to Switzerland, Austria, Norway, and Spain and we’ve been playing overseas for years. When I first got to town, I never thought I'd be going to Europe playing my music for people. Not to mention being able to run up and down the highways here at home in the States, but here I am. I'm still doing what I love for a living.”

Tags: Music

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