West Virginia native Chris Haddox wears many hats: WVU professor, former Habitat for Humanity executive director, amateur musicologist, as well as a writer and singer of songs; and even that branch of his life extends into several directions: folk, bluegrass, country and blues. A multi-instrumentalist (guitar, open back banjo, fiddle) with a witty lyrical knack akin to Shel Silverstein, Haddox is set to release his self-titled debut album on March 25th. His most recent single “A Soul Can’t Rest in Peace Beside the Four Lane” was released last month followed by “Sunday Morning Stoplight” premiering exclusively with The Country Note today.
At the age of 61, Haddox shares the key characteristic of the great songwriters – life experience. His ability to write about everything – from the intimate to the communal, the serious and amusing – has provided Haddox with a catalog of songs that connect with people on various levels. And while many may not have the determination to see their dreams through, those years of experience and writing come to their rightful purpose on Haddox’s debut album.
Like many of his songs, “Sunday Morning Stoplight” was written based on a personal experience, a moment in Haddox’s life:
“Who draws enough inspiration from a stoplight to write two, yes, two, songs about them? Evidently, Chris Haddox does. Several years ago I wrote a song about our town turning into a “stoplight city” after hearing a remark from a Councilor at our City Council meeting where the topic of discussion was the addition of a stoplight at an intersection that was about to get a lot busier due to some recent development projects on the cross street. I wrote the song from the perspective of a muscle car and it’s driver being completely distraught over the chopping up of the straightaway with stoplights–putting an end to drag racing up and down the street. Well, I played that song at one of our local coffee house venues and an audience member–the storyteller in Stoplight City–came up to me after the show and said that someone should write a song about sitting stuck at a stoplight on an early, empty Sunday morning, while just trying to get to the church early to start a pancake breakfast for the community. Well, that was all it took to to envision this fine Christian man being so frustrated with the light, but not wanting to break the law by just gunning it through the light, even while knowing he could get away with it.”
Listen to the exclusive premiere of “Sunday Morning Stoplight” here:
Previously released singles from the upcoming album are: “Life Without Me” and “Says You, Says Who, Says Me“.
Click here to watch the music video for “A Soul Can’t Rest in Peace Beside the Four Lane” (also the first music video ever released by Haddox).
For more information on Chris Haddox, visit his website www.chrishaddoxmusic.com and follow him on Facebook.