All about the Songs

John Fullbright steps to the head of Oklahoma’s class of songwriters

Over the past few years, Oklahoma has produced a fistful of amazing songwriters. Perhaps spawning out of a Red Dirt heritage that includes Bob Childers, Greg Jacobs, and Tom Skinner (who released an excellent record of his own in 2012), then extending back to Woody Guthrie and outward to the likes of Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, and Robert Earl Keen, conversations about our state’s current class of songsmiths regularly includes names such as Wink Burcham, Jesse Aycock, John Moreland, and Parker Millsap.

The one troubadour who has truly stepped to the head of the class, however, is John Fullbright. After starting out inauspiciously with a shy demeanor and subtle stage presence, his voice and confidence have grown just as his lyrics have. Tireless touring built his name, but the 2012 release of his studio debut, “From the Ground Up,” revealed a new and growing maturity as a songwriter. It garnered him a 2013 Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album and expanded what is now a national audience.

Fullbright’s follow up album, “Songs,” is set for release May 27 and promises to set the stage for a whole new chapter in his career. By largely stepping out of third-person narratives and singing instead in the first person, many of the songs take on a new intimacy. Fullbright connects immediately with the listener.

Album opener “Happy” debuted on the Wall Street Journal’s Speakeasy page a few weeks back and reveals exactly what draws Fullbright’s listeners into his songwriting. It’s a straightforward story of heartbreak, struggle, and the search for healing and redemption. Fullbright asks with a broken spirit, “What’s so bad about happy?”

In “The One Who Lives Too Far,” as standout among his performances at SXSW 2014, Fullbright laments a long-distance relationship, uttering the words, “Truth be told, the odds are stacked against us; Truth be told, they always often are…” It’s heartbreak, and everyone can relate. “Until You Were Gone” opens so eloquently that the first line paints the picture for the entire track: “I didn’t know I was in love until you were gone…”

That struggle with hope, heartbreak, and redemption is a common thread throughout “Songs.” Fullbright’s gift he revealed in “From the Group Up” for painting pictures with his words hasn’t gone anywhere. The inclusion of “High Road,” a track that reaches back to the beginning of his solo career, alludes to his powerful debut as well as to what’s to come.

Tulsa gets a preview of Fullbright’s next audio masterpiece. He’ll appear at Guthrie Green on May 3 as part of the Woody Guthrie Center’s one-year anniversary celebration. An official release show at UCO’s Mitchell Hall in Edmond on May 10 will also present the album and make it available to Oklahoma fans before its national release on May 27.

Whether attending either or both performances, you won’t want to miss John Fullbright as he unveils what may be the strongest album Oklahoma will see all year.