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Last Wednesday, we went to Mickey Roos here in Franklin, Tennessee for their very first Songwriter Night.

More about Mickey Roos & other unique “live music” hotspots in Franklin, TN.

The singer-songwriters we saw on this night were:

• David Lee
• Wynn Varble
• Bob Regan

Call me out of the loop, but I hadn’t heard of these guys before this night where they performed their mega hit songs for nearly 3 hours!

Check ’em out…

[The only downside to this night was the fact that I didn’t have my good camera! And there’s more to that story, but I’ll save it for later.]

 

Singer-Songwriter David Lee

He served, more or less, as the ringleader for the first songwriter night at Mickey Roo’s. He’s a Texan, so it was appropriate to have him kick of this new series of songwriter nights at a Texas mesquite barbecue place.

David Lee is the one with the smile you can spot from a mile away.

He’s also got a really deep voice in many of his songs. Some non-Country fans might remember the former lead singer of The Why Store, Chris Shaffer. David Lee’s voice sounds remarkably similar to that classic “Lack of Water” sound on several tunes.

Lee landed his first cut by Terri Clark with “This ‘Ol Heart” and has had songs recorded by John Michael Montgomery, Clay Davidson and Lee Ann Womack with her Top 10 single “Now You See Me Now You Don’t”. Lee’s first #1 hit came with Mark Wills’ “19 Somethin'” and in 2004 John Michael Montgomery’s smash hit “Letters From Home”. Lee’s recent cuts are by such artists as Trace Adkins “Come On Strong”, Lee Ann Womack “Last Time”, Billy Currington “That Changes Everything” and Tim McGraw and Faith Hill’s new duet “I Need You” which debuted on the Oprah Show and was seen by thirty million viewers. –“The Songwriter’s Depot” Live from the Old Country Store in Casey Jones Village

 

Some Songs David Lee Sang:

“Now You See Me, Now You Don’t” – LeAnn Womack
A song David Lee got some early success from.

“Drink, Drank, Drunk”
A fast & fun song about the mishaps associated with drinking too much.

“Letters From Home” – John Michael Montgomery

“[I forget the title of the song]” – George Strait
He said “the Holy Grail if you’re from Texas is to get a George Strait cut and I’m proud to say I just got a George Strait cut!… It’s about dern time.”

“Honey Do” (co-wrote with Wynn Varble)

“That Changes Everything” – Billy Currington

 

Singer-Songwriter Wynn Varble

He’s the one with the spittoon. (I’d be surprised if he didn’t already have a song about “spittin’ chew” in his repertoire.)

David Lee commented on how brilliant and funny the Toe Roasters show is (of which Wynn Varble is a major player). It’s been said it’s “an original musical comedy about three everyday guys sitting around a campfire“.

Check out all these great reviews from Toe Roaster shows!

After hearing Wynn perform this night at Mickey Roos and seeing the type of songs he writes (including a take-off from “Brokeback Mountain”), I can’t help but picture the Toe Roasters show as something like “a comedy of Brokeback Mountain… on stage!” I’m hoping to go see the Toe Roasters show myself sometime soon. (The Toe Roasters got their start opening up for Garth Brooks.)

Several of Varble’s songs featured in Toe Roaster also can be heard on the records of national recordings artists such as Brad Paisley and [Garth] Brooks. Varble’s biggest writing credit to date is Have You Forgotten, which he wrote with Daryl Worley and topped the country charts for seven weeks. His songs also include cuts recorded by Leanne Womack and Montgomery Gentry. —The Renaissance Center

 

Some Songs Wynn Varble Sang:

“Have You Forgotten” – Darryl Worley

“Right”
His personal tribute to Johnny Cash — because the key line is mumbled in his best Johnny Cash-like harmonic chuckle “…Right”. One line from the song is: “…Wrong place, wrong time… Tainted fruit’s best left on the vine… Right!” (It may be known to some as “The Bud Light song”.)

“Waiting on a Woman” – Brad Paisley
It’s on Brad Paisley’s latest CD called Time Well Wasted. Wynn said he was told it would be the second single released from the album, but they’ve just released the 3rd single, and it still wasn’t this one. Ah, the politics of the music biz.

“Cycle Chick” (co-wrote with Jameson Clark)
An ingenious play on words, including the line: “…when she gets on her cycle she runs right over me.” This song contains more references and slang terms for PMS than I could’ve imagined ever existed!

“That’s Tough”
He said Trace Adkins almost cut this song, but he chose not to, so as to not “offend” any of his fans or future fans — since certain audiences might be offended by this song. (The only one I can remember is baggy-pants teenagers who also wear a lot of bling”).

“Sounds Like Life To Me” – Craig Morgan

“Brokeback Mountain”
Satiracle songs like this are Wynn’s strength. He’s got a knack for picking virtually any topic that’s mainstream popular… if not global (September 11th, PMS, Brokeback Mountain movie, etc.) and turning it into a hilarious, yet meaningful song. It’s almost like, “Hey, I’ve thought that same thing before!”

I would venture to guess there’s hardly anything that Wynn Varble wouldn’t poke fun at… in a song.

 

Singer-Songwriter Bob Regan

He’s the senior member of the trio… well-connected and every songwriter’s friend.

Bob is the current president of the NSAI (Nashville Songwriters Association International).

In terms of songwriting, this guy is HUGE!

 

Some Songs Bob Regan Sang:

“Your Everything” – Keith Urban

“Busy Man” – Billy Ray Cyrus

“Thinkin’ About You” – Trisha Yearwood

“Here’s Hopin'” – Roy Rogers

“The War After The War”

Bob’s songwriting credits include Keith Urban’s “Your Everything,” Ty Herndon’s “Steam,” Billy Ray Cyrus’ “Busy Man,” Terri Clark’s “Every Time I Cry,” Rick Trevino’s “Running Out Of Reasons To Run,” Trisha Yearwood’s “Thinkin’ About You,” Tanya Tucker’s “Soon” and Reba McEntire’s “Til Love Comes Again. —NSAI

 

Next Wednesday at Mickey Roo’s:

• Dave Turnbull
• Brett Jones
• David Lee