Kenny Chesney and Steve Miller Discuss Their 'Crossroads'

Friends since 2008, Kenny Chesney and Steve Miller recently sat down with CMT Insider to discuss their CMT Crossroads collaboration.

 

The two performers met at San Francisco’s AT&T Park when the rock veteran made an appearance during Chesney’s first stadium show in the Bay Area.

 

"That was a lot of fun," Chesney recalled during the interview. "It was just one of those things where we didn't really know each other, and once we strapped the guitars on and started singing, we realized we had a lot in common."

 

Over the years, their friendship continued to grow and ultimately led to their collaboration on CMT Crossroads. CMT Crossroads is a series that pairs Country Music stars with performers from the rock world.

 

Miller is best known for leading The Steve Miller Band and for such hits as "The Joker," "Fly Like an Eagle," "Jet Airliner" and “Abracadabra." Miller recently released a new album, entitled Bingo.

 

Prior to the CMT Crossroads taping at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, Chesney and Miller talked about their musical influences and how all the elements seem to mesh when they perform together. Here are some excerpts from that interview:

CMT Insider: Kenny, at this point, you've had the chance to play with several different people you grew up listening to. Is it still a thrill for you?

Chesney: Yeah, and the great thing about Steve is that it's everything you thought it would be growing up -- meeting a guy like him. ... I was telling him a story earlier on the bus that, as a kid, I remember being in the car with my mom and hearing "Abracadabra" for the first time. I said, "I don't know what that is, but I love it." And little did I know that I'd ever meet the guy that sang that song and become friends with him. That's the great thing about what's happening in my career. I've gotten to meet a lot of guys that really influenced the way we play music onstage and the way I approach making music. He plays guitar a lot better than me, but he plays guitar better than about anybody.

Miller: What I think is funny about all of this is, like, in another 20 years, Kenny's going to be me. And there is going to be this kid talking to him about how he was driving in the car with his mother and hearing "I Go Back." ... But the really great thing about Kenny is he was so gracious and so hospitable when I came to visit. And that really means a lot. ... I've been playing since 1956, and I've met a lot of people. Meeting somebody who's hospitable and as gracious as he is as a host, I was just blown over in a heartbeat. And I hope that you get that same kind of treatment later.

Chesney: I hope I do, too!

Miller: When I was watching him over at the stadium, it took me right back to 1976 when we used to play football stadiums. We used to go out and play all these football stadiums. It was the first time people had played them. When I was looking at Kenny's band, I was going, "Damn, that sounds just like my band in 1976." He's got three Les Paul guitars, and he was out there just knocking them out. It really felt good, Kenny.

When the two of you have so many hits and a limited amount of time, how do you decide what you're going to play?

Miller: Well, he let me pick what I wanted to do, and I let him pick what he wanted to do. And it came together pretty easy. I mean, it just took a second.

Chesney: We wanted to keep the show pace pretty rocking.

Miller: We didn't want to show our sensitive side.

Chesney: No, we did not. If people are going to come see us, they'd expect a rocking show -- and especially if they come to see Steve. We didn't want to sit. Whatever we picked, we wanted to be in their face.

Miller: I tried to get him to let me do "Down the Road," but he wouldn't do that.

Chesney: He loves that song.

Miller: Yeah, everybody loves that song. ... And your version is just great. But, still, this is a chance for us to get our two bands together and really have some fun. ... I grew up outside of Dallas -- if you've ever been to Mesquite, Texas -- and my upbringing was kind of like blues and Country. I used to go to the Big D Jamboree [a country music revue that ran on radio station KRLD in Dallas]. I know who Riley Crabtree is. Those are the people I was watching when I was a little kid -- Okie Jones and Riley Crabtree and all of those guys. The Big D Jamboree was on, so country music for me was very familiar. And so for us to be able to get us together like this, man, that's really cool.

Chesney: The biggest thing for Steve was ... he wanted to make sure we had steel guitar all over "The Joker."

Miller: Oh, yeah. See, I love steel guitar -- and I never get to have it.

Chesney: We're down there doing "The Joker," and he's got the steel guitar. I'm like, "Are you crazy? What!?"

Source: CMT.com