BUDDY THE ORIGINAL TEXAS MUSIC MAGAZINE JULY 2014 VOLUME XXXXII, NUMBER 1 Provoked and emotionally honest Sunny Sweeney proves that learning from one’s mistakes makes for provocative music By Tom Geddie He’s really level SUNNY SWEENEY WROTE A LOVE SONG. headed. I’m not. He SAnd recorded it. It’s on her new album, said we both have to SProvoked, which in its adjective form — pro- stop second guess- ing our mistakes, or vocative — is a pretty good one-word description of our marriage is the songs from an artist who titled her first, inde- over,” she recalls, pendent album Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame and then smiles. “I said, ‘I gotta go,’ because turned that in-your-face approach into 40 perfor- that was a great idea mances at the Grand Ole Opry. for a song. Our pasts The love song isn’t ordinary, — she was seemingly headed for were following us of course. It’s about a second country stardom when too many around. I started marriage and it’s called “Used things went wrong — as teach- thinking about it, Cars.” ing moments, and for being her- and I thought, “One day I was sitting there self. ‘Wow, we definitely and thought, like man, I’m so in She got her college degree in do learn from our love with my husband. I thought public relations, but decided she mistakes. And until it would be nice to have a love wanted to do something where you stop, you can’t song, but not a sappy, typical she didn’t have to sit at a desk. move forward. love song,” she said. “I was in a “I always enjoyed music,” she When you move on, parking lot and I saw this used- said. “I just wanted to try it. It you realize you car dealership. All the cars were was like I dared myself more won’t do that again. kinda crappy, but then there was than anything else.” I cherish the mis- this one bad-ass shiny car. She learned some songs. She takes.” “That’s what I think my hus- began to write some songs. Sweeney’s hus- band is. I found a brand new (to Her first gig is a “vivid” band is a motorcycle me) shiny car even if it’s got memory: at the Carousel Lounge cop, which adds a nicks and dings, and he’s perfect in Austin, across the street from new element to a re- for me.” a halfway house where she shared lationship. Sweeney co-wrote the song a stage with a huge pink elephant “Every day he with Natalie Hemby, claiming (not a real one, but somebody’s goes to work, I say a Hemby, once she heard the idea, idea of art). prayer that he comes “wouldn’t let me write it with “I don’t remember the first home at night. That anybody else.” song I did, but I do remember puts a lot of strain “I find joy in an old joyride that it was a cover song because on a relationship. It’s that needs a jump start every I only had two or three originals definitely a crazy once in a while . like a dia- at the time. Probably Merle Hag- world.” mond in the rough, there’s a gem gard or Ray Price or Tanya Which brings us waitin’ in the junk yard . just Tucker.” to the love song when I was thinkin’ all the good She played for tips. She played “Used Cars.” And to ones were gone I found one for meals. She eventually played other fine songs on woman’s wreck and made him for money. She released the new album: someone I could count on.” Heartbreaker’s Hall of Fame on “You Don’t Know her own in 2006, and within a Your Husband (like Longview year the Big Machine label picked you think you do):” COUNT ON THE LONGVIEW- it up for national distribution. stated by a woman raised Sweeney for honest self- She followed with Concrete. She was sitting on a reflection, for seeing hard times made it into the top 10 on the man’s lap while he was on the phone She was nominated for best new female vocalist at the 2013 Academy of Country Music Awards: Sunny Sweeney with his wife; “Bad national country music charts ing things other people don’t Sweeney believes she’d be Girl Phase:” a woman is going to and was nominated for best new want to say.” Along with the quick bored and bland and more — or lose her lipstick to a whiskey ““I just don’t have a problem female vocalist at the 2013 Acad- success, Sweeney’s personal life less — without mistakes. glass, deciding she can’t love just emy of Country Music Awards. plummeted. For a while. She “I’ve been through a lot in the one man; “Second Guessing:” a talking about things that have Her song “From a Table Away” doesn’t regret a moment of it, last few years, good and bad, and woman listens to bad advice, spent 36 weeks on the Billboard though. this record is me for the first time takes too many pills, marries the happened in my life or my country chart, making it, at the actually coming to grips with the wrong guy, and finally meets the time, the highest-charting Bill- Learning experience mistakes that I’ve made,” she said. right one, wondering if she would friends’ or family’s,” she said. board debut single from a female “I DON’T CONSIDER IT “And I have made a lot of mis- have met him without her mis- country artist in four years. wasted years, but it was defi- takes. I was hell-bent that this takes; “Carolina on the Line:” “When I sing these types of She sings country music, she nitely a learning experience. In album was going to tell that story. “Before you say I love you, I need says, because “when I opened the music business, you have to “Mistakes make you who you to say goodbye; “Everybody songs, these are the ones people my mouth, that’s what it sounded work very hard to make mar- are,” she said. “My current hus- Else:” “Tonight there’s beer that like.” riage work. It’s a lot of growing band and I, we had a rough needs drinkin’ . here’s to the come up afterward and say it’s It’s true that her “ing” words pain,” she said. couple of months with some workin’ class, everybody else can all seem to replace that final “g” “When your personal s^&* heavy stuff between the two of us just kiss my ass.” about their life. If can help one with an apostrophe. starts getting in the way of busi- — not between me and him but Sweeney calls Provoked an Here music is described as ness s^&*, you kinda go, ‘Now outside stuff. It almost tore us emotionally honest album. person get through a hard “edgy,” although coming from a what?’ Basically I had a meeting apart in the first four months. I “There’s gotta be something that man it would be simply hardcore with myself, like, ‘Okay, this isn’t was in Nashville. He was at home. brings out emotions. situation, then I’ve done my traditional country. working. You need to make it We were screaming and fight- “I want to hear somebody cry “I’m not doing anything on end.’ That was a really hard deci- ing. Maybe I thought I was stron- or laugh or get chill bumps or job. purpose,” she said. “I’m just do- sion for me, just very dramatic. It ger than I am, then I thought it miss their ex or be proud that –SUNNY SWEENEY ing what I do, and it turns out sucked going through it, and it was too much for me to handle. they’re not with their ex. As a that way. I like saying things, was mostly just a learning expe- “He was like, ‘I love you. music fan myself, I love those ■ ○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○○ ○○○○○○○○○○○○○ and I don’t have a problem say- rience.” Everything’s going to be okay.’ songs.” JULY 2014 BUDDY 9.