With nearly two decades of songwriting under his belt, Clayton Chaney feels more connected than ever to his craft, offering some incredibly heartfelt, pensive, and witty songs grounded in real human experience. “I try to keep my songs simple and have them live in the overlap of specificity and universality,” says Chaney. “I’m realizing that songwriting is my method of saying what’s important to me in ways that I can’t do in regular conversation. It’s a chance to say things that would otherwise go unsaid.”
At the age of 18, Clayton moved from Arkansas (“where I did most of my growing up”) to Los Angeles in order to explore occupations in the film industry. That didn’t work out, so he formed an indie/folk/bluegrass band called The Show Ponies. They released four studio albums and toured extensively before shutting down in 2018. “I’ve lived in Pasadena (CA), right outside of Los Angeles, for almost 20 years,” he stated. “I’ve come to love it and call it home, but my mind and mouth still move at the pace of the South.”
Chaney’s new album, Too Far, has lyrics that are hard-hitting and humorous, and his voice is incredibly expansive and crisp. The delivery sounds effortless. “I released my first album as a solo artist a couple months ago,” he said. “I’m happy to finally have it out there.”
He recorded the video for this AUK Mini-Gig at Montrose Church in Pasadena. In the background, you can see the hymnals in the pews. It is also the location of his music video for When the Light Comes In. “The first guitar I’m playing is a 1970 Lyle ‘lawsuit-era’ guitar. It is a Gibson Hummingbird knockoff. I bought it from a guy in a liquor store parking lot. The open-tuned guitar I’m playing is a Yamaha FG-140, which is from the same era and also made in Japan.” Chaney did not divulge if the latter was also acquired in a liquor store transaction.
He once believed success as a musician was a make-or-break deal. “I started to realize that commercial viability is just a tiny piece of the pie when it comes to making music. I just want to sing no matter what; whether it is in a living room, around a campfire, in a church, or at a massive venue.”
We are pleased he chose to add AUK to his list of venues. He wrote all three songs on the video and provides us with notes on them below. If you like what you hear and want to find out more, click on the links to his website, Instagram and Facebook.
1. Don’t Know What I’d Do: This one was written after a lover’s quarrel. It’s about learning how to feel and process pain rather than avoiding it and learning the difference between “being” and “doing.”
2. Roots Grow Deep: I wrote Roots Grow Deep about the first apartment my wife and I lived in after we got married. It wasn’t the dream spot, but it is what we could afford. We always dreamed of living somewhere nice, but it took us years to be able to find the right place that was within our financial means. The song is really about digging deep into where you are, problems and all, rather than constantly dreaming about being somewhere else.
3. Can’t Turn It Back: This one is about the preciousness of time. I wrote it as a way to embrace the uncertainty of the future in a rapidly changing world and resist longing for the past.
