Music

LISTEN: Tyler Farr’s ‘Soundtrack to a Small Town Sundown’

It’s no secret that Tyler Farr is a sucker for a good story song. He proved it seven years ago with “Redneck Crazy,” and on his June EP, Only Truck in Town, Farr continues to show heavy favor for evocative lyrics and powerful storytelling.

He’s also got a knack for framing well-trod country subject matter in a fresh light. This time around, the singer turns his attention to a lost relationship. The metaphor for that love story is a song he hears on the radio: It comes on when he’s driving to work, and reminds him of the nostalgia he feels for his long-gone love.

But ultimately, it’s too late. After all, a story song is only as powerful of the story that it calls to mind. A country song is only as beautiful as the dirt road you’re driving down when you listen to it, and only as magical as your relationship with the person who’s riding shotgun. He still knows all the words, but the song no longer sounds the same.

It’s a complicated message to convey, and the song suffers a little bit because it’s a thinker; it lacks the clear, simple punch of the message behind his EP’s title track. Introspective, offbeat lyrical delivery is often Farr’s strength, but in this case, it bogs down the song’s message.

Still, it’s tough to go wrong with strong melodies and production courtesy of Jason Aldean. There’s still plenty to love about listening to “Soundtrack to a Small Town Sundown.”

Though this song — along with the other tracks on Only Truck in Town — sound deeply personal to Farr, he didn’t write it. Music City mainstays Jonathan Singleton and Jon Nite co-penned “Soundtrack to a Small Town Sundown.”

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Tyler Farr’s “Soundtrack to a Small Town Sundown” Lyrics:

I heard it on the way to work this morning / I remembered every word and line / Even after all this time / I could smell that perfume like / She was sitting right there beside me / Like it was July junior year / Yeah, I still love that song / Still sing along when it comes on, but …

Chorus:

Shoulda heard it in a parking lot dark / Like a match lighting backseat sparks / I knew I had her when the Silverado speakers / Started singing what I couldn’t, what I shoulda, yeah / Shoulda heard it first time I kissed her / Just don’t sound the same now / That light it was perfect / It was like a soundtrack to a small town sundown

It ain’t the same in Tuesday traffic / From a stage in a cover band bar / It’s just music, it ain’t magic / Like it was in your daddy’s car

Repeat Chorus

It sang us through that firefly July high / First whiskey buzz staying up all night / Without her, it just ain’t right

Repeat Chorus

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