Waylon Payne has two brilliant studio albums to his name: The Drifter and Blue Eyes, The Harlot, The Queer, The Pusher & Me, having carved out a name for himself as a storyteller in a modern carnation.
On Friday, July 17, Payne released his much-anticipated third studio album Wayward, via Big Loud—an authentic, vulnerable and truthful masterpiece that reflects how the life he has led has accumulated in an omnipresent wisdom.
From tracks like Weed to the Wall, Holding on to Lonely and Hell is Empty, Payne’s 54 years of life assume musical form in an evocation that is bound to hold resonance for any listener. He beckons the audience to immerse themselves in the narrative thread by taking a journey of sorts.
“I will challenge you all to do this,” invites Payne. “For fans who want to know about this album, I would like to extend an invitation to you to just download it, get behind the wheel and take a drive somewhere beautiful.
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“Push play and let it be a scenery to or let it be the music to what you see. I was on the road so much while it was being made; it seems to have taken on a rather cinematic quality, at least in my mind.
“When I listen to it, I can see it so much more. And that's the way that I grew up listening to music. I could make my own videos in my head when I would hear a song that moved me. It’s neat to have that imagination come back that I had as a kid. Because it doesn't always happen with music.”
There will likely be opportunity for audiences to connect to this complementary thread, and yet Payne’s upbringing, within the context of music, was as unique as they come—his father being guitarist Jody Payne and his mother the widely acclaimed country singer, Sammi Smith.
Both parents played and performed with Willie Nelson over the years, whilst they remained tangled up in the country music scene that influenced the USA time and time again throughout the last century.
This early influence of being surrounded by storytellers has permeated into Payne’s expression of himself and his craft, an exposure that he holds deep gratitude for.
“My mom sent me to live with her aunt and uncle when I was growing up,” outlines Payne. “No matter what anybody ever said about my life, my aunt and uncle that raised me probably didn't want me to go into a country music career because they saw the absence of my parents. But it just hooked me from the beginning. It hooked me so good.
“And I'm so thankful that I got to know the people that my parents knew: Nelson, Kristofferson, Waylon Jennings, etc. They were instrumental in my life. And all I hope I can do is keep carrying on that tradition of storytelling because it’s family business.
“I’m singing now and still loving it, but I was probably singing when I was in the womb because my mom was singing. I'll be singing in the next life too, and for that I'm just so grateful to be in this family.”
It’s these experiences his parents opened him up to that have bled into his artistry in a way that appears evident on Wayward.
“If I’ve learnt anything from my songwriting heroes, it’s that they are truthful, and I was raised on real writers, Mickey Newberry, Bobbie Gentry, Willie Nelson and more. I have a relationship with some of those records because they were my lifeblood, and they told such magical stories, or they made you cry, or they made you laugh, or they made you dance.
“I love putting on a record and feeling. That's our responsibility as creators and writers; it’s to try to share the truth. I share mostly my stories; some of them aren't, but most of them are.”
And it’s equal parts inevitable as it is uncanny that Payne has been playing live with Willie Nelson for four years now. When he spoke to Countrytown, he was in California on a two-show run with the legend.
“I'm in California at the present moment. I'm on tour with Willie Nelson. I play guitar for him in his band. It's really neat to be with Willie and have this record come out. It kind of acts as a representation of everything that has nourished me and made me become the musician I am now as Wayward is being released.”
There’s no wonder that Payne has found himself in this position of touring with Nelson; the very notion of it acts as a sort of homecoming.
“Simultaneously, It's like being at home and being with my family. I was raised on his bus. I met my father when I was 16, and we travelled the roads a lot. And so I've learned pretty much everything I know about the music business from Willie.
“He showed me how to write songs and how to carry yourself; he's been an incredible mentor, and now I get to sit next to him every night and play music. I keep feeling like it's a master class in college; it feels like this is my master’s work right now.
“I’m always in awe that I get to learn and sit next to the man that I've watched do it my entire life. It’s pretty special for me to be where I'm at right now.”
Firstly, it’s endearing to witness the full-circle nature of Payne and Nelson’s relationship, and then secondly, it's an expanse of much more. But the themes being embodied and shared act as a metaphor for how it is that Payne’s creativity pours out.
“I call Wayward volume three in a life well lived series. And the album is a continuation of the first two in a way. I like to tell stories, and the ongoing release of each volume reflects that.”
You can listen to Wayward now wherever you hear music.
