Shot At Love
Shot At Love is the first motivational dating show of its kind. It teaches you how to be successful in online dating while inspiring the listeners to go for it. You can find love, and are worthy of it. Shot At Love with Kerry Brett - Me, Exposed- Introduction to Shot At Love Podcast with celebrity photographer Kerry Brett.
Shot At Love
Music's Healing Power & Making Authentic Connections with Award Winning Keyboardist Jeff McMahon
World-renowned musician Jeff McMahon shares captivating stories from his 18-year career with Tim McGraw's band, the Dancehall Doctors. Join me, Kerry Brett, as Jeff reveals the pivotal moments that shaped his musical journey and his life offstage. From performing hits like “Live Like You Were Dying” at the Country Music Awards to running marathons for the Tug McGraw Foundation, Jeff exemplifies how music can be a force for good, connecting people and uplifting spirits.
Our conversation reveals the power of genuine connections as we reminisce about maintaining friendships from college days and finding community at unexpected places like the local Waffle House. Surprises abound as Jeff shares a heartfelt video project with artist Nicole Lewis that turns into an unexpected celebration. Through tales of kindness and thoughtful gestures, we discover the profound impact of truly listening and being present in each interaction, whether it's sending a meaningful gift or simply sharing a moment of joy.
As we explore the emotional depths of music, Jeff recounts moving performances that highlight music’s healing power, like honoring a young woman's memory with "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head." We dive into the creation and significance of songs like “Angela’s Wings,” allowing listeners to find solace and meaning. Wrapping up, I share insights on finding love and the importance of commitment to oneself and others. Tune in for a heartfelt episode filled with authenticity, inspiration, and the timeless magic of music.
I'm Carrie Brett and this is Shot at Love. This week's guest is Jeff McMahon. He has the most incredible career in the music industry. He was a keyboardist and vocalist for Tim McGraw's band, the Dancehall Doctors, for 18 years. Jeff wasn't with Tim from the beginning, but early enough before Indian Outlaw came out. So, let's say, once he hired Jeff, tim's career took off. Jeff even played Live Like You're Dying at the Country Music Awards a song so special it took on a life of its own, shooting up the charts in record time, breaking a 30-year record for consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard charts. He also ran marathons to raise awareness and funds as an advocate for the Tug McGraw Foundation, while supporting research for brain tumor patients. Tug was diagnosed back in 2003 with a brain tumor, yet he decided to continue moving forward. When we come back, jeff McMahon, a guy who has the biggest heart in Nashville, will discuss why we should live like we're dying, how to move forward and why we gotta believe. He'll also share lessons he's learned from the road to help emerging artists find the success that he's had. You won't want to miss it, so stay tuned.
Speaker 1:Jeff McMahon went to Nashville all by himself. His dad used to drive two hours to buy records and wouldn't allow him to buy his first keyboard unless they could afford to buy a case. He's a self-taught piano man who became the 2001 nominee for Musician of the Year keyboardist by the Academy of Country Music. He played with Tim McGraw and the Dance Hall Doctors for 18 years and played on countless number one singles. He wrote the last chapter for Tug McGraw's autobiography you Gotta Believe my Rollercoaster Life as a Screwball Pitcher and Part-Time Father and my Hope Filled to Fight Against Brain Cancer.
Speaker 1:He's edited books, ran six marathons, coached other runners to raise money for charities, while working and producing new artists like Ashlyn Grace, jim Brown, nicole Lewis, maddie True and Zach Stone. Jeff's gotten to play on big stages, which led to playing with Tim McGraw and led to going out for a run, playing songs on Clubhouse and having coffee at the Waffle House. What led to you with Tim McGraw and led to going out for a run, playing songs on Clubhouse and having coffee at the Waffle House? What led to you joining me today? Welcome to the podcast, jeff McMahon.
Speaker 2:Thank you, Carrie. I'm glad to know that I've got a tambourine player at the ready in case we need you for a gig this afternoon.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. I'm ready to go. I can do sound checks too, so and oh, and my producer, tom, plays the guitar, so we uh, we could fill in at any given point so excellent.
Speaker 2:Well, I I know a piano player, if we need one. Yeah really right Looking for love.
Speaker 1:I can't sing, but I'm an enthusiast of your music playing and you're so sweet that you played on my first shot at love clubhouse event, so that was so awesome. People love that. That was really fun.
Speaker 2:That is true, I was present for your first foray hosting your own room, so, yeah, I'm good at riding shotgun, so I was happy to be your wingman for that. That was fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was so fun, that was lead us out in song and when you ever played that, oh, this is so amazing Because that was the only thing my boyfriend wrote in his bio on Tinder. He just said I'm looking for love in all the wrong places. And I was like I don't know if this is funny. You know how you just judge things and you're just like, well, he was trying. That was his effort too. Sure, you got to be colorful, I guess.
Speaker 2:Well, and that's one of the things that's so funny. No-transcript no, this song would be perfect. Do I remember this song? I've got 60 seconds. Can I remember it in 60 seconds? So it's funny how much music I wind up is still bouncing around in my brain for the last 40 years, so it's pretty fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is fun the way your mind works, like you, just you're like okay, this is a crowd of people who are hurting. We need a laugh, we need a little upliftment from and it's amazing how the, how music can do that. It can make you, you know, connect and I'm sure a lot of people think they know you because they follow the band and all that. And that's why I was struggling and that's why I just texted you and like you're like, what is she talking about?
Speaker 1:In my pursuits of researching you, I was telling you a story about how I photographed Steve Carell and Steve Carell is a character actor. I didn't want to shoot that character actor, I wanted to shoot Steve the person. So I was looking for stuff on you, the accolades and all that and I sent you a text and I said it's hard researching you and everywhere I look, the Tug McGraw book is out of print and you write back. I think you're kidding and that was really funny to me, but I don't know what to believe. You know about the write ups and and and I wanted to fly down to the Waffle House and so give us a brief, like you know, synopsis of your journey or your life.
Speaker 2:Well, I think, first of all, you know, I was thinking about the fact that you said you couldn't find things about me, and I think in some ways that probably makes sense and it kind of encapsulates so much about my career, because the bulk of my career has been writing shotgun for other people. So if and I hadn't really thought about it until you said you were looking for some of that information but, um, whether it was playing in the first bands I played in, or playing with tim mcgraw, or working with other artists or coaching other athletes, um, I've always been a facilitator for other people. So, you know, if you're looking for my fingerprints, you know Tim McGraw is where you would look. If you were looking for a project that I might have recorded on recently, you might be looking for Maddie True or Ashlyn Grace or Jim Brown. You know these other things. So I guess it makes sense that, since I'm kind of the man behind the curtain on a lot of other projects, it probably makes sense that you can't find some things on me. But yeah, I guess just a quick rundown.
Speaker 2:I began playing piano as a kid, grew up playing in every musical environment I had available to me in small town, texas, if it was choir programs or playing piano for stage bands or doing high school musicals. Started writing some things on my own for fun in high school. Never dreamed of playing music for a living. Went to college, sang with my college roommates in barbershop quartets and doo-wop groups and rock bands and country bars and doing everything that was available to us there again for fun, everything that was available to us there again for fun. Never thinking about doing it for a career. Graduated with a degree in telecommunications and film, played in bands on the weekends and what I was doing musically just kind of caught some momentum and that was the most successful thing I was doing at the time, more so than my job pursuits. So I just enjoyed it and thought I would continue to pursue that and see where it would lead, because it was fun and because I enjoyed creating things and making music and never was it about playing sold out arenas or imagining myself singing behind a microphone in front of people with spotlights pointed at me. I just enjoyed creating music and, fortunately, my efforts to do that and always do it well.
Speaker 2:It wasn't fun to phone it in. It was fun that, and always do it well. It wasn't fun to phone it in. It was fun to try to do it well and doing it well created some other opportunities. So ultimately I played for 18 years with Tim McGraw and learned a lot about the business and learned enough that I was able to take a lot of those skills and my degree and some other knowledge. And now I get to still play on other people's projects and do a few things on my own but kind of take all those tools and see if I can't help some other people realize some of their aspirations with some of the tips and tricks I've picked up along the way. So yeah, still making it and helping other people make it and enjoying it still.
Speaker 1:That's so nice and you know, when you play you can see the joy. People always say when I shoot, I'm always smiling behind the camera, and it was hard when I was wearing a mask because people couldn't see me smiling. But I love to create images. I love to make people look better or lift them up by how they feel, and I do that daily and it's a joy. If you're not loving it and having a good time with it, then what's the point? You're not going to make any good art. Put it that way.
Speaker 2:Right? Well, no, I think that's true and I will say that I was very intentional through my career to try to hang on to that. Certainly, there are a lot of people in this business that can find some success at a certain level, but you can't assume that you're going to be able to stay at that level. Maybe you do, maybe you're fortunate, maybe you get lucky, but I never wanted to have to have a certain level of success in order to continue to enjoy what I was doing. In college I played three hours a day for my college friends. Over lunch we would have sing-alongs and things of that nature and I wanted to hang on to that and fortunately, I've been pretty successful at that.
Speaker 2:We had a lot of success when I was with McGraw and, yeah, it's great that I was able to play on some songs that you know were nominated for awards and won a Grammy, and the song did, but I played on it. So I'm I'm going to take a little bit of ownership of that. Yep, you should, but at the same time, you know, I get to work on on a new song with a you know, a girl like Maddie True, who's a brand new artist here in Nashville that's trying to get started and to see how excited she is just to know that her first song is about to go on. Spotify is lovely, and it doesn't have to be about the Grammy, it doesn't have to be about a full arena. It can just be about, you know, watching her sparkle and see how excited she is sitting in my truck knowing that what we're listening to is about to be publicly available as a first song. So, yeah, so it's. It's fun. I enjoy I still enjoy that creation and sharing it with people, so I'm fortunate in that regard.
Speaker 1:That's so great. So I was in a room I don't know if you said it in my room but you said you know I have all these awards and I've toured worldwide and I've performed on stages like Madison Square Garden, but I'm also the guy who will take you to the hospital if you broke your foot. And I literally thought I was going to cry and I thought to myself that's such an amazing, evolved person or kind person who says that, and people are hurting right now. So what would you tell them about tough times and moving forward?
Speaker 2:Um, tough times in moving forward. Well, you know one of the things that that I have done, um, first of all, I worked really hard to stay grounded through all the successes. But also successes don't come without failures. I mean, the reason I was available to work with Tim McGraw and have those opportunities is because I pursued other opportunities and wasn't hired and was turned down and was disregarded in other ways. So I don't rely on all of that success.
Speaker 2:I definitely worked very hard ever since I was in college to retain the friends that I had in college. You have to remember that when I first started on tour, we did not yet have cell phones, we did not have laptops. It was not easy to keep in touch with people. We were still using phone booths and carrying rolls of quarters in order to make phone calls. And I worked very hard to hang on to those friends because I did not want to get sucked down the rabbit hole of people grabbing a hold of me because they perceived us as successful or because they wanted not to get to know me, but because they wanted to be closer to a piece of something else and I was just a conduit for that.
Speaker 2:Um, and now it's a lot easier to keep in touch with people, but they still can want a piece of you because they want a piece of what you're doing and it's not because they value you. So I've worked very hard to maintain my friendships that existed before a career happened and honestly, I think I said this to you. But one of the things that I put in my bio for Clubhouse is that there's a statement on my bio that says I know all the locals at my Waffle House and sometimes I pour coffee.
Speaker 1:All right, I haven't looked at your bio, I just listened to what you have to say. Like you can't research every there's so much information, that is true. I paint the scene and I pick up details that most may not, because I'm looking and researching, because I'm like, oh, if I could just photograph you in that Waffle House. I heard somewhere someone said, like country music is like the best place to tell a story and I thought that was so interesting, because I tell a story with my lens and my camera and I tell a story on the microphone and I want you to tell the story, since it was your birthday. Happy birthday and happy birthday.
Speaker 1:Well, thank you Thank you what happened at the Waffle House recently.
Speaker 2:Well, okay, well, nothing happened at the Waffle.
Speaker 4:House.
Speaker 2:But I think what you're talking about is because there was some stuff on Instagram about it. I have a Waffle House that's about a half a mile from my house and so I will bop in there at the Waffle House because I think it's going to be more kind of reassuring for them to know kind of who I am, to maybe have a greater sense of trust if they have not met me before. If you know the, the older folks that hang out at the bar that come in for breakfast, know me by name, if the waitress you know is catching me up on what's going on with her kid, and if people are familiar, then I think that breeds a little bit of trust and it lets them know kind of how you treat people and how they they can expect to be treated by you. Um, with that being said, I was working with an artist this last um, this last year, uh, nicole lewis, and we were putting together a video for her called keep it kind, uh, just about the simple things and and how you express kindness to people and the actors that we planned on being in our video. Because of COVID, they elected not to be a part of it, so we wound up including some of the people that I knew from our Waffle House into that video and so they were a part of that project and a lot of that was kind of commingled. A lot of people that I work with. I will catch up, talk business over breakfast.
Speaker 2:And a couple of nights ago I was called by that young lady, nicole, because she was offered an opportunity to make a video and submit it for a contest that had a big cash prize. She wanted to include another artist friend of ours. Was I available to go shoot the video? So yes, of course I'm going to shoot the video. I'm going to help everybody move their careers forward. So we made the plans, we had numerous conversations to plan the video.
Speaker 2:I loaded up my gear with all the my truck, with all the gear that we needed cameras and keyboards and cords, and everything Drove out to the place out in the country where she lives, where we've shot a bunch of video, and I go in to set it all up and she's there but she's not quite ready yet and the other artists had ridden with me and we're getting, we're walking through the house to go to where the video is to be shot and the people that own the house had left some balloons and stuff in their kitchen for some reason. I don't even know what they were there. And the next thing I know, everybody jumps out of every corner of the kitchen and it's it's a surprise hamburger grill cake surprise party for me for my birthday, with all of those artists, and it even included some of the people from the Waffle House that I see regularly that were in the video, and it just totally, totally caught me off guard the level of duplicity and deceit that these people went through to create this birthday thing. I told them it's almost like watching oceans 11. They had to be so interactive and connected in order to pull this off.
Speaker 2:But in truth, I don't know that I would ever have expected somebody to do something like that. So it was, uh, it was really terrific and it was really fun. And to uh, to uh, to kind of share that with all of them was was really terrific and it was really fun. And to to, to kind of share that with all of them was was really great. So I'm grateful that they all went to that trouble and yeah, definitely, definitely caught me by surprise.
Speaker 2:So, nice job, well done on their part.
Speaker 1:That's so nice, but I think you're like almost oblivious to the impact that you make on others and you have like extra compassion. You know God gave you too much of this caring and and you just do it because you do it. You know you coach people and you help people and you don't think anything of it and you go back to the. You know, go for a run, go back to the coffee house the next day. You don't really think about it. But I think people should try to be more caring in today's world and if you pay attention and you are caring, you're going to do better on these dating apps, because people are struggling so hard to figure it out and to make connections. What do you think your secret sauce is around connecting with others.
Speaker 2:Um gosh, I don't know. I mean, I definitely, I definitely try to be authentic. Now, you know that's a funny word, particularly now with the way people deal with social media. I've never done the dating apps per se. Honestly, I can't even imagine how I would do something like that. Having been in the entertainment industry, I know that if you Google me, the first things that pop up are not true me, the first things that pop up are not true.
Speaker 2:Um, so you know, between between knowing that the first things that people find, or many of the things that people find will not be true, even whether they're true, whether they're ugly or not doesn't matter. Um, you know, it may just say, oh, and Jeff came by and he had a pepperoni pizza and gave it to the guy sitting next to them while they were loading the bus. Well, that's not bad, but it's not true. Somebody just made stuff up and stuck it in an article. That's hard. I've been present for a lot of things that occurred and then I saw how they were written about later and I just know that that's not what happened because I was there. So it makes you very suspect of everything you read.
Speaker 2:But I know that that I hesitate to say it's as I get older, but as I get more experienced, I try to be more authentic, recognizing. You know that professionally, I have gotten opportunities for the same reason that I have not been hired for other opportunities, because I honestly, you know, show. This is how I, this is how I will behave, this is how I will perform. This is, if I'm given my choices to who to be on stage, this is who I will be. Some people love that, some people hate it, and that's the the same way things are in life. You know you're going to connect with people for different reasons, and I would much rather connect with people Because they, because I know who they are and because they know who I am. I don't want to make you think that I love your favorite restaurant and then, after we're friends, try to convince you to go to the Waffle House.
Speaker 2:I want you to know that that's a part of the yield, not to overplay the Waffle House thing. But I don't want to surprise you with the idea that I'm a runner. That's a perfect example. When I started on tour, you know you have a very grueling schedule. You know during the day it's very regimented, you have a lot that goes into the day and I realized, okay, I want everybody on tour to see me as a runner. I want them to know that every day.
Speaker 2:I'm going to try to find time to do that in the day because if they get used to me being loose and flexible and constantly available all day, every day, two years down the road, when I try to add this to the schedule, it's going to be an inconvenience. But if I show that to them from day one, it's just a part of who I am. And uh, and I think, whether it's a dating app, you know showing real pictures of yourself, showing real interests, you know performing the way you perform, speak the way you speak. That's a good tip actually. I mean, you have to throw yourself out there if you want to be judged for who you really are.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I know Like my producer was yelling at me this morning. He was like I don't want you writing these tinder chips at the last minute or whatever. And I was like do you know how this goes every time? Like this is my deal. And I think I said that to you.
Speaker 1:I was like you know, there's a lot of balls up in the air all the time. I'm busy, but I make it work. I definitely do the research, but it's not always perfect. When you can just be honest about that, it makes you stand out on Clubhouse and it makes you stand out on these dating apps. And I did that because I had no choice. I was a single mother, a single working mother. So you know I was doing a lot of things. So I couldn't just become this like perfect person to date, because who's perfect anyways? So I almost fell into that category because I didn't have a choice. But I learned that if I just said what it was on my mind, um, I got a response like just because, just how, I sent you a text like I'm having a hard time researching you like what?
Speaker 2:but well, you know, I think, um, I can't, I can't really say that I know how the dating app environment works. Now I can say one of the things that I like about Clubhouse is that, because it's an audio environment, you have the opportunity to listen to what somebody says and respond in real time or hear a response in real time. So whether it's the truth or not, you can't always know, but you can know that it was not created in the way that maybe a Facebook post or an Instagram post is. If they don't respond for two days, they may have taken two days to form their response, taken two days to form their response. So you don't know necessarily if, if they you know, if you were having a conversation, would that be their initial thought? Would that be their first thought? Is that how they would respond in real time or or not? And I do think that that can lend some credibility to someone's authenticity, and I definitely think that that's one of the things that I try to do in the context of Clubhouse and connecting, which is don't form my response before someone has asked their question or spoken. Before someone has asked their question or spoken, I mean, it's no different than when I was in your room and you were discussing relationships and how people were connecting through those dating environments.
Speaker 2:I chose the song Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places as a response to something you were saying in real time. I have been in a room where someone was maybe nervous to speak and they had come up for the first time and they were afraid of not being welcome. And while they were talking I looked up on their bio and maybe saw that they were from Kansas City and someone said hey, jeff, we're going to reset the room, can you? You know you want to play a song. So I played Kansas City as a way to kind of smooth out you know their anxiety and say hey, well, you know, first time here. Well, we're glad you're here. So this is for you. Here's Kansas City that's so nice.
Speaker 1:It's so nice.
Speaker 1:I mean and, and it just has a way to connect, you know yeah, well, that's the thing about you is you pay attention, and I think that's another tip. It's like people are so rushed and so distracted and so in their head, but if you can find these little details about people, oh, jeff, I want to fly down and meet you at the Waffle House. Or you sent me a coffee cup from the Waffle House. That was like really funny to me. Or you'll send like a video. You were like hi, gary, was that your first room? If it was, you did a good job. You know, I think we all need encouragement and we're all trying to figure it out. If you're joining a dating app, that's the first time you've done anything, so you're not going to be very good at it. It's just like you're not going to be very good at Clubhouse but because you put yourself out there and played that song Kansas City that was so kind, but that impact, like impact like, look, it's living on my podcast.
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Speaker 2:On ChaiRum that being a musician is about the music you play and what you send out to people that a big part of being a musician and I think that applies to connecting in the context of what you're talking about is also being able to listen. You know, if I want to play the right thing, the best way for me to make, I think, a good choice as to what to play is to listen to what I'm adding to what conversation, what song, what combination of other instruments am I adding, to listen to what's going on. So I know what contribution to make. I mean, if we're, if we're on stage and and we're wanting to keep the energy right in the room, if we're wanting to connect with an audience, we may, we may know that you know, playing that ballad next. I know that was our plan, but that's not really what's going on in the room right now. You can feel the energy of what's going on in the room. Maybe we need to do, you know, indian Outlaw, because everybody's kind of feeling a little rowdy. Andlaw, because everybody's kind of feeling a little rowdy, and or maybe everybody's getting a little passive and you're trying to increase the energy of the room. So you don't want to take it down with something slow, you want to bring it back up with something, with something exciting and I think the same goes for a conversation on Clubhouse to know what contribution might really resonate in the moment.
Speaker 2:If you're listening, I was. I was coaching charity runners. I have for a number of years. I coached charity runners for the Tug McGraw Foundation that were raising money to raise money for research for quality of life, research for brain tumor and brain cancer patients. And I remember a specific young lady that was running the New York City Marathon in order to honor her fiance who had passed away of a brain tumor. And now I'm not a the coach that puts you on the podium for winning anything, but I can get you across the finish line. I can teach you how to grind through it and keep it going and you know, and get to the end and we were. You know she was coming back from an injury. She had gotten injured in September. The marathon was going to be in November, was in November and, you know, cut to the end. She did finish and honored her fiance who had passed away in that regard and honored her fiance who had passed away in that regard.
Speaker 2:But there was a story where you know talking about listening, you know, and how she was listening, and she told us this story and we used it as a way to support her. But she was talking to her trainer and she said well, I'm going to run this marathon. I have to run it because Jimmy wanted me to run it, you know for him, because he couldn't run it. And her trainer said that's not why he wanted you to run this race. Do you not know why he wanted you to run this race? And she said well, I thought that was why. And he said no, he said he wanted you to run this race because the New York City Marathon is one of the few marathons where there are people along the sidelines for the entire length of the race and they cheer the runners on. People in New York City cheer the runners on for the entire race. And he wanted you to run this race as opposed to another race because he wanted you to have a 26.2 mile standing ovation for how you treated him and how you loved him.
Speaker 1:Oh wow, that's so beautiful.
Speaker 2:And the reason that story comes to mind in this conversation is because there is so much value to be had for knowing how to contribute to people, whether it's with a song or with encouragement or with support or helping to understand what's important. If you just listen to what's going on around you and I make better musical choices by listening I would hope to give better advice if I'm listening. Hope to give better advice if I'm listening. I maybe won't be completely caught off guard with a surprise party if I'm paying attention, if I'm listening to those people. I just think that helps us connect better to an audience, to a spouse, to a partner, to a spouse to a partner, to a coach, to a roommate, to the guy that we don't know. You know, having coffee at the end of the Waffle House, at the end of the bar, you know, if we stop talking and listen, we've got a better chance of connecting.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, this this is. You're such an amazing connector and I I told you this morning that I was so taken by your friend, hannah, who was six years old and you met on the road and she would write you. She figured out. She was so smart and so, above, so, beyond her years, she figured out how to message you after she met you and she would be like hi, jeff. And you would write back like Hannah, vanna, bobanna, whatever you would do, oh, yeah, yeah yeah, so sweet.
Speaker 1:But what I thought and I didn't get this is the information I didn't get from you. But I heard you well, actually I heard you speak about she asked you to sing at her going away party, so she knew she was going to pass away and my first thought to you was A how did you do this? Like how kind of you. But what I heard was the priest came over to you and said when you played that song, it wasn't a performance, it was just a way to convey the song for her. I'm probably I'm probably not telling this story exactly how it happened, but that's, that is the difference between like a performer and like a person who loved a little girl who was dying. You know, like that's what I took away from that, do you?
Speaker 2:want to. Well, I think, I think that's, I think that's part of it. I know the story you're talking about. Um, well, there's a couple of things there. First of all, in the context of the performance of the song, I think a lot of people think performing means loud, big means. You know, you've got to, you've got to do it in a way to get everybody's attention and and that you know. But I didn't really want to perform that song, I wanted to communicate that song. Um, and sometimes you can, sometimes to really get your point across mm-hmm, you have to pause like you're doing you can be quiet and can be intentional and, and that also encourages people to listen, because I was singing.
Speaker 2:I wasn't just singing because she had asked me to, I was also singing the song of her choosing. She asked me specifically to sing. Raindrops keep falling on my head, um, and and, yeah, she, um, what happened was I had met Hannah on the road. She had a brain tumor, she was six, she read at an eight grade level or an eight year old level, but, um, but, I had met her at a show, uh, in conjunction with the Tug McGraw foundation, and she and I had hit it off. In fact.
Speaker 2:Um, we were, we were backstage and the little this little girl could accessorize, I mean, she knew how to dress, she had the earrings, she had, you know, all of her accessories and she had a pink fuzzy purse. I remember this. She had a pink fuzzy purse with her and I was trying to get her to let me take the pink fuzzy purse on stage. Um, because I just knew it would look great with my outfit for the show and she thought that was ridiculous, so she did not let me take her fuzzy purse on stage but we did we did stay in touch.
Speaker 2:She, um, as her um tumor, you know, waxed and waned, um, she had it like an online chat board where you could send messages back and forth and that's what you're talking about, where I was sending jokes and silly messages to her um via that chat board, um, but as as as her plans to leave, you know, kind of became assured, uh, yeah she, she planned her own going away party, which was, uh, to be her funeral. Uh, as she was going to take her um pink transporter to her new school that was in heaven. She made her own arrangements for the party and the pink balloons and the song and she asked me to come sing at the party. And of course I did and all of that. So I'd forgotten about this part of the story. I sent her a note that said dear Hannah, I was watching TV the other night and I saw a ballet on television and I realized why you did not want me to have your pink fuzzy purse on stage.
Speaker 2:You knew I would look ridiculous because I did not have a pink tutu to go with it. Two days later I received a pink tutu in the mail and we're not going to say where any pictures might have wound up, but she may have received some photographs at the hospital of me wearing this pink tutu that that she sent. That's so nice. But after she passed I did go to the party and I did sing the song, but I had to explain to everybody who I was because nobody there would have known me in her community.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:And I'm sorry, I I'm sorry.
Speaker 1:No, I get it, but that that you didn't care. You were like I'm doing this for her.
Speaker 2:Oh, no, no, I didn't, it didn't bother me. I mean, I knew her family, her immediate family, but but yeah, I just so I explained. I said, well, this is, this is who I am. Yes, I'm the one that sing the song. At her request, she had left instructions and the pink fuzzy purse was on the piano. As I arrived at the piano to sing, raindrops keep falling on my head at her going away party to her new school. So, yeah, quite a quite a young lady that was, uh, that was a a pretty rewarding way to um to use, um the the benefits of my piano lessons.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, that's good well, that's what happened with tim mcgraw. Well, he was like I want to play.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Well, that's what happened with Tim McGraw. Well, he was like I want to play this is the song. And I read in the chapter that you wrote how a wrench in the works. And he had decided once he had enough influence in the industry, he decided that he wanted to record with us the band guys, the road guys. So we had recorded one album with him at that time the Tim McGraw and the Dancehall Doctors record and we were working on the second record that we would record. So we were in a warehouse and we were working every day, working out songs, deciding songs, deciding what we were going to record.
Speaker 2:And he came in one day with just a rough songwriter version of the song Live Like you Were Dying. And at the time his father, Tug McGraw, who a lot of people know as the pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. He actually threw the winning pitch for the World Series when the Philadelphia Phillies won in 1980. He was at that time recently diagnosed with a brain tumor and a lot of people think that Tim wrote Live Like you Were Dying because it spoke to what was going on in his life at the time. He did not write it, but he did. That is why he, um, why he chose to record it at the time.
Speaker 2:Um, but he came in and, um, uh, just said I just found this song. We have to record the song. I want to learn it. I want to know that. It's going to be the first single off this record. It just says everything I want to say and it was written by Tim Nichols and Craig Weissman in town. I don't know how Tim had found it, but it just said everything he wanted to say that was going on at that point. So, yeah, we started working on it immediately and recorded it for that project and it became the title of that album and a huge, huge song for his career. Probably, probably, will always be one of the biggest songs of his career. And, yeah, to have had the opportunity to play on a song like that that has impacted so many, that represents so much, um, and to know I was able to have a little bit of a contribution to that is, yeah, that's why we do this for a living to be able to communicate things that are meaningful to folks. So, yeah, that was a great opportunity.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean I was like your biggest fan when she said he would take me to the hospital if I broke my foot. But I said to you, this is interesting because my brother is a huge country fan and he would do like a fake Tim McGraw voice. I was suffering so bad after a heartbreak that he would just keep singing that. You know, live like you're dying to me just to make me laugh, because he doesn't. He's from Boston and we're Irish and he doesn't do a real good country voice. But he was caring so much for me and you know it's a pain.
Speaker 1:And so I want to end with how you created a song out of darkness and you wrote this song, angela's Wings, and you took your pain and you created something so beautiful and I feel like I had so much pain myself that I I turned. I was like, okay, I can either sink down again things in the world. I'm such an empath and lots of things were happening at the time and I am so sensitive to people's struggles that I was like, well, I think I can creatively build this swiping soiree and then it later turned into my podcast and then us meeting on Clubhouse. But tell me about the experience of creating Angela's Wings.
Speaker 2:Well, as a musician, I don't create a lot of things of my own. I am essentially collaborative. I work with other people making their projects, but at the time I wrote Angela's Wings I had I get a little sketchy about about telling that story. For this reason.
Speaker 2:OK, that's a lot, a lot. No, no, no, and I'll tell. I'll tell you part of the story. But I have been, fortunate enough. A lot of people have found that song and they have taken meaning from that song. It was not the meaning I wrote from and not the meaning I intended. Really, wary of trying to paint the picture for people, because then they won't be able to paint the picture for themselves that they have drawn some sort of solace or inspiration from.
Speaker 2:I recorded the song. It was really kind of a creative empty place. Um, participating in making some music was just a a very healthy way to vent some energy and some emotion and and channel a lot of stuff into three or four songs, that being one of them. And so we recorded those songs Angela's Wings, as well as a couple of others, with some of my bandmates and, honestly, I never really had the intention to share them. I just wanted to make them, I just wanted to create it, it and so I created the songs and then I played all of them for a friend of mine named Glenn Schweitzer, who's a very talented and successful videographer, documentary filmmaker, and he really connected with Angela's Wings for different reasons than I wrote it, but he wanted to work with me and make a video performance of it.
Speaker 2:So that creative exercise continued from the musical side of it now into the video filmmaking side of it. So we did that and we created that and we shared that and he posted that on his film site. And I remember when he reached out to me and it was, it was some years after we'd even made that, because I think we made it nine or 10 years ago maybe and a woman had reached out to him because she had found him and then found the song and was just insistent that she had to find the song because she had lost her sister the day before she had found that song, whose name was Angela, and she was trying to get a hold of the song and I had never made it available for distribution. It wasn't on Spotify, it wasn't anything like that. I mean, it's kind of interesting how it's kind of getting a little attention now. So I may end up having to do that, but that's cool but she, she was looking for it.
Speaker 2:So I just reached out to her directly and sent it to her. That's nice, just because you know, whatever she drew from it was not what I intended, but if it's, if it's what cures in some way, you know, some pain or anxiety or, you know, helps her find some sort of peace or resolution. You know, here it is, you know. So that was kind of the journey of of that song, and I'm just glad that, wherever it came from for me, that you know that I was still willing to kind of follow that muse and ride that horse and let it be created so that it can serve whoever it serves. So, and it found her, so that's a win.
Speaker 1:That's a win. That's a win. That's a win. We're going to take it.
Speaker 4:She found me in the darkness, so scared and alone, surrounded by strangers, with no one to call home. Her eyes burned right through me and I was never the same and right from the start she held my heart and told me her name, told me there's a heavenly angel wearing Angela's wings and she took me to heaven, showed me beautiful things. She taught me what love was. She taught me to sing that heavenly angel Wearing Angela's wings. So many small moments and I treasured them all Cause I'd waited a lifetime For this one woman's call. She made me a believer when I could not believe For the rest of my life. I could stand in the light and she'd stand by me. There's a heavenly angel Wearing angelic wings. She took me to heaven, showed me beautiful things. She taught me what love was. She taught me to sing Heavenly angel Wearing Angela's wings, guitar solo.
Speaker 4:It hurts to remember she loves someone else. I'm back in the darkness and I'm all by myself. I dreamed of an angel who just flew away. If I close my eyes, push the hurting aside, I still feel that day that a heavenly angel wearing Angela's wings. She took me to sing that heavenly angel wearing Angela's wings. I sure miss my angel that wore Angela's wings wings.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, so you are a heavenly angel wearing God's wings to me. Honestly, Jeff, you're just the sweetest and such a caring, kind person. So where can people find out more about you? Um, you know, do they have to go to the Waffle House? Where would it come?
Speaker 2:Well, you can. You can go to the Waffle House. Um would say. If you're looking for me online, I'm certainly present on socials. You can find me most easily going by McMan Says M-C-M-A-H-o-n-s-a-y-s. Um, you can find me there on instagram and twitter and facebook and um and clubhouse webpage would be mcmahonsayscom and yeah, and as you well know, you can find me on clubhouse. Uh, going by the same McMahon says yeah, awesome.
Speaker 1:Well, thanks so much for being here today. You know you are just joy and I just value your support and how kind you are and, you know, making connections and supporting others everywhere you go. So thanks again for everything.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you, carrie, and and uh, I appreciate you, uh, reaching out and and sharing this and and all the work you're doing to try to help people you know find the good in what they might think is maybe not been so good for a while. So, uh, yeah, you're doing good work.
Speaker 1:Oh, thank you.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Maybe not been so good for a while, so yeah, you're doing good work, man.
Speaker 1:Oh, thank you. Thank you. And for now, this week's Tinder tips, and in honor of our guest, jeff McMahon, these tips are inspired by him. Number one date a lot. Practice makes perfect. The more you do it, the better you'll become. Number two lead with your heart and be authentic and honest. Say what you really want to say, not what you think you should say, and that's how you'll stand out when online dating. Number three keep on moving on. Be like Tug McGraw and don't waste time on the way things might have been. Just keep moving forward and live each day like you were dying. And number four remember. You gotta believe. I hope you found some of my tips helpful this week.
Speaker 1:This is what Shot at Love is here for to help you find love. Keep up the commitment to yourself and commit to helping someone else by sharing this week. This is what Shot at Love is here for to help you find love. Keep up the commitment to yourself and commit to helping someone else by sharing this podcast. And remember to stay safe and stay tuned for more episodes. If you like this show, please subscribe and leave a five-star review. I'm Keri Brett and we'll see you next time. Thank you.
