Ray Wylie Hubbard Jokes That Opening The Royalty Check From Eric Church’s ‘Desperate Man’ Was “The Most Beautiful Moment” Heard In Music

Eric Church has never been one to not show love to the artists who’ve inspired him throughout his career. From his biggest hit to date quite literally being named after Bruce Springsteen to shouting out the likes of George Strait, Waylon Jennings and Bob Seger in a 2015 interview with Rolling Stone, Church has always worn his influences on his sleeve.

There’s one artist, however, who was particularly influential to the Chief throughout his career. That artist is none other than Ray Wylie Hubbard.

As a member of the Texas Songwriters Hall of Fame, Hubbard has a storied career that spans over six decades now. From his early hits such as “Up Against the Wall, Redneck Mother” (which was later popularized by Jerry Jeff Walker) to “Snake Farm,” the 78-year-old singer/songwriter has a severely underrated discography that’s truly never gotten the attention it undoubtedly deserves.

His talent has never gone unnoticed by Church, however. Beyond name-dropping Hubbard in “Mr. Misunderstood,” the North Carolina native penned a lengthy entry to the Texas Songwriter Hall of Famer in Brian T. Atkinson’s 2019 biography, The Messenger: The Songwriting Legacy of Ray Wylie Hubbard.

“I started writing with Nashville songwriters in 2000. Those guys are craftsmen, the best in the world, but there’s a freedom and wildness in what Ray Wylie’s doing. Ray’s so damn creative. He taps into my soul with his songwriting and the way he plays, sings, and crafts a story. You think the characters he develops come from his imagination, but then you look at places he’s been and things he’s done. These are character he met through his time playing. I what the freedom in his music makes me feel like. Ray Wylie’s a damn national treasure, a poet and absolutely one of the best we’ve ever had. He sets a scene better than anyone.

We fell into [‘Desperate Man’] and finished it in a few hours. Ray has always been good about the visual element of lyrics. You close your eyes and listen to him sing these words, and you can absolutely visualize, feel, and see [the story]. His words aren’t just filling a space. Ray’s meticulous and places every word well. He painted colors on the canvas for “Desperate Man” and made the images come to life.

Ray’s a funny, interesting guy. You can’t take your eyes off him. We had  fun spending all day with him when we were shooting the video. We hung out and talked about the music, all the years he’s played, and where he’s played, a pretty special day for me. He’s been a troubadour for forty years, and success hasn’t mattered. He’s just played. I have such a respect for his love of music. We need more of his uniqueness. He can do something in a way that no one else can. He’s the dead thumb king. I think he deserves to be in [Nashville’s] Songwriters Hall of Fame. More younger artists listening to Ray Wylie Hubbard would be better for the health of country music.”

As Church mentioned in the excerpt, he was finally able to collaborate with his hero on the title track of his 2018 album, Desperate Man, co-writing it with Hubbard. The song was nothing short of a success for the pair, earning a Top 10 entry on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and a platinum certification from the RIAA in June 2021. Additionally, it has been streamed over 60 million times on Spotify alone.

For Hubbard, the success of the track became one of the highlights of his career. Well, at least from a monetary perspective.

Quoting a tweet that asked the question, “What is the single most beautiful moment in music you’ve ever heard?” Joking, the “Screw You, We’re From Texas” singer replied that it was his wife’s reaction seeing the royalty check from “Desperate Man”:

“My wife Judy screaming when she opened the envelope with the royalty check from the ‘Desperate Man’ co-write with Eric Church.”

As one of two writers on a song that got heavy radio play upon its release and would eventually go Platinum, I’d imagine that check was a pretty good one. Deservedly so, too.

Listen to “Desperate Man” here:

And while you’re here, listen to Hubbard’s “Dallas After Midnight” as well.

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Nov. 15 || Inglewood, Calif. || Intuit Dome || Charles Wesley GodwinThe post Ray Wylie Hubbard Jokes That Opening The Royalty Check From Eric Church’s ‘Desperate Man’ Was “The Most Beautiful Moment” Heard In Music first appeared on Whiskey Riff.