Songs dedicated to other musicians, especially those that have made an impact on the artist, can be so special. This week’s classic clip is a deep cut from Texas-born singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves and was inspired by a friendship she imagined with one of her inspirations, John Prine.
Musgraves wrote ‘Burn One With John Prine’ early on in her career, soon after she moved to Nashville. While it was never officially released, the song remains both a moving portrait of two artists and a good omen of the themes that would later feature in her music. In fact, one of the lines in the first verse, “Grandma cried when I pierced my nose”, later appeared in 2018’s “Golden Hour” on the first track, ‘Slow Burn’.
Those familiar with Kacey Musgraves will know that she’s always done things on her own terms. In 2013, her song ‘Follow Your Arrow’ was entirely blacklisted from country radio stations due to its pro-LGBT lyrics, which alienated her from the industry. “I never liked doing what I was told”, she sings in ‘Burn One’, and it has rung true throughout the rest of her career.
‘Burn One With John Prine’ discusses Musgraves’ rebel streak and her “idea of heaven”, which is sitting around with Prine, talking about music and lighting up a joint. When Musgraves finally met her muse at a Christmas party, she asked him if he’d like to go smoke in the parking lot. He declined.
Years later, after a mentorship had formed between the two, they did a set together on the Cayamo: A Journey Through Song cruise, where Musgraves got to sing ‘Burn One’ to John Prine. It’s a beautiful intersection of two musicians, one in the last couple of years of his life, joyfully passing the torch to a new generation of singer-songwriters who do it their own way. Prine has lived on in Musgraves’ music, inspiring her 2024 song ‘Cardinal’.
