Pat Green is a three-time GRAMMY nominee who has sold over 2 million albums to date and has released a string of Top 10 hits. Green’ hails from San Antonio and is a native Texan through and through. He has released seven studio albums over his 20-year career; the last one ‘Home’ in 2015. This past May, Green released a new song, ‘Drinkin’ Days.’ It is a return to the form of the life-of-the-party, the theme of most of Green’s previous albums. ‘Drinkin’ Days’ was written by Jaron Boyer, Ben Burges, and Phil Barton and was produced by Green’s longtime drummer Justin Pollard.
“It suits me (‘Drinkin’ Days’) and where I’m at now. At the least, the last two years and certainly the last 10 years’ things have slowed down for me. I’m no stranger to the danger of the partying, but at the end of the day, it’s better to laugh at yourself than to be too serious about things. It’s sure fun to look back and laugh at all the stupid things that we did.”
The video for ‘Drinkin’ Days’ features pictures of Pat, his family, the band as well as photos of his longtime fans. Green’s management reached out to social media to Pat’s fans asking for any pictures they had of Green or the band. The response was massive. “That made me happy. All the fans reacting and sending in all their embarrassing moments with me. There are a lot of smiles and a lot of sweat.”
Although ‘Drinkin’ Days’ is a song about, well… drinking, Pat is singing it from a different perspective. He is not singing about the present, but about the past. He is singing about remembering (or thinking he can remember) those days fondly, but realizing, today he is in a different place in life. This verse explains that.
I can still raise em’ up – hang with the best of my friends
Don’t get me wrong, they still taste good – but not as good as they did back then
Back in those drinking days – and all those parties.
Green’s songwriting has gotten a lot “older” as he sees things differently now than 15 years ago. Today he see’s the truths of life as it is now. “It’s human nature as a young person to think how life can be and as you get older you see how it (life) was.” As someone that has been in the music business for over two decades, Green’s advice to the new artists coming up is to have just one thing, patience, because he knows how difficult it is to wait. “Sometimes the greatness of life has to catch up to you. When it is your turn you will know when to jump.”
Green is ready to kick off a cross-country tour this week where he will be making stops at over 12 venues from LA to Boston. Boston is one of Green’s favorite places to visit. He loves Boston and often after a show will rent a car and ride out to the Cape. Pat thinks “New England is cool with all its different terrains.”
Pat Green will be in Boston on September 8th at the Paradise Rock Club. You can get your tickets here at Ticketmaster.
So, what is in store for Pat Green going forward? “More life, painting, and sculpting.” Not only is Green a writer and musician, but he channels his creativity in other ways as well. Because he is not an everyday songwriter, as it forces him to explore his emotional self all the time, Green has taken up sculpting and painting and has sold several of his creations over the past 5 years.
“Where I’m at now, Green says, is really cool. I get to be creative for a living.”
We all have benefited from the Green’s creativity through his music and if you are lucky to go to a Pat Green show, expect a party. He sings a lot about drinking cold beer. “I wouldn’t wear your Swede outfit because you will probably end up with beer on it.” Duly noted. Leave the fancy clothes at home unless you don’t mind smelling like a brewery.
NECM would like to thank Pat Green for taking the time out of his busy day to talk with us about his new single and tour.
We will catch you in September Pat!
You can purchase ‘Drinking Days’ on ITunes.
You can follow Pat Green on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Artist interview conducted by Lorraine Frigoletto, contributing writer for New England Country Music. You can follow me on Twitter.
Photo credit: Jimmy Bruch