The progressive, award-winning bluegrass band The SteelDrivers has been on my bucket list of musicians to feature for several years. Not only are they the band where Chris Stapleton got his start, but they are also a group of seasoned veterans, each of whom is an accomplished creative in their own right.
Today, the band consists of Matt Dame, lead vocals and guitar (2021–present), Richard Bailey, banjo (2007–present), Mike Fleming, bass (2007–present), Tammy Rogers, fiddle (2007–present), and Brent Truitt, mandolin (2012–present).
Fans have been highly anticipating The SteelDrivers’ latest album, Outrun. The bluegrass band brings a passionate delivery and forceful grit to its traditional-leaning sound but with modern lyrics.
I spoke to singer/songwriter/publisher/fiddle player Tammy Rodgers regarding their band’s inception and their newest project, Outrun.
The SteelDrivers are the brainchild of Mike Henderson, who passed away in 2023 at the age of 70. Their 2008 debut album, largely written or co-written by Henderson, featured singer Chris Stapleton. The song “Blue Side of the Mountain” earned them a Grammy nomination.
Rodgers explained, “He is the one who knew everybody and made the calls and personally invited each of us to his home for what he described as an informal jam session, and once we got there, it was just the five of us, and we started playing. The original guitar player and singer was a young man named Chris Stapleton.”
For years, Stapleton and Henderson had been co-writing songs together. Besides “Blue Side of the Mountain,” the pair wrote the band’s megahits, “If It Hadn’t Been For Love” and “Where Rainbows Never Die.” It didn’t take long for them to realize they had something pretty special. Instead of playing bluegrass standards, the band played the original music they had created.
When I started listening to the album Outrun, I quickly learned that you can’t just listen to a few lines and move on to the next song. You have to listen to each song from start to finish to find out what happened.
Rodgers shared, “I liken it to writing a short story in about a three-and-a-half-minute timeframe. That’s what's challenging about it. It’s both the combination of the music that hooks you in and the lyrics, it's the melody, it's the words--all of it.”
Several of the songs on the album are juicy murder ballads for which bluegrass is renowned. The title track, “Outrun,” and “The River Knows” are prime examples. The song “Rosanna” is based on a story from the Hatfields and McCoys about star-crossed lovers. “Now I cry on your grave,” the singer laments.
“Our audience seems to really gravitate towards those,” Rodgers reported.
You have to listen until the end to determine how the story ends.
You are cheering on the protagonist in the song “You Should See the Other Guy.” When a guy is abusive to a woman, the chorus proclaims What kinda man would watch/ Some low life hit a girl upside the head/ I ain’t saying he needs killing/ I ain't saying he should be dead/ But he needs to learn some manners/ On how to treat a woman right/ I might look like hell/ But you should see the other guy.
However, the tables are turned on abuse and murder as the culprit is the woman in the ballad “Emma Lee,” where a string of husbands mysteriously disappear.
The SteelDrivers show an edgier side of themselves with the up-tempo drinking song “Booze and Cigarettes.” You find yourself enjoying your miserable state as you nurse your latest heartbreak with booze and cigarettes.
“Traveling Trouble Blues” is sure to become a staple of any new bluegrass band’s repertoire. It is an allegory about life, reminding us that the blues initially inspired the genre. With a touch of a country music vibe, the song is a poster child for what modern bluegrass has become.
As a hat-tip to their founding member, The SteelDrivers included a couple of Mike Henderson’s original, penned songs: the traditional-sounding bluegrass number “Prisoner’s Tears” and “Painted and Poison,” a song about a party girl who realizes her recklessness a little too late.
The record concludes with “On My Way,” a song about being free from addiction. The words remind us, “Whatever kind of hell the devil tempts me with, ain’t going to work today, cause this here’s a good day, and I’m on my way.”
The SteelDrivers’ Outrun album is new music with an old feeling. It is a tribute to their late founding member, Mike Henderson. While the lyrics will undoubtedly draw you in, their unmatched musicianship will keep you returning for more.
The SteelDrivers are the standard in modern bluegrass music. They keep the genre alive and relevant today and for the next generation.
Now newly signed to Memphis’ Sun Records, The SteelDrivers will be touring throughout the United States until the end of the year.
Follow the SteelDrivers on their website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and all streaming platforms.
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Bethany Bowman is a freelance entertainment writer. You can follow her blog, Instagram, Facebook, and X.
Outrun Track Listing
1. Outrun (Tammy Rodgers/ Leslie Satcher)
2. The River Knows (Tammy Rodgers/ Tom Douglas/ Daniel Ethridge)
3. Booze and Cigarettes (Tammy Rodgers/ Verlon Thompson)
4. Cut You Down (Tammy Rodgers/ Thomm Jutz/ Eli Wheeler)
5. Prisoner's Tears (Mike Henderson/ Wally Wilson/ Mark Irwin)
6. Rosanna (Tammy Rodgers/ Liz Hengber/ Matt Dame)
7. When The Last Teardrop Falls (Tammy Rodgers/ Daniel Ethridge)
8. Painted and Poison (Mike Henderson/ Ronnie McCoury)
9. Traveling Trouble Blues (Tammy Rogers/ Thomm Jutz)
10. You Should See The Other Guy (Liz Hengber/ Thomm Jutz)
11. Emma Lee (Matt Dame/ Gary Baker/ William Barnhill)
12. On My Way (Matt Dame/ Gary Baker/ William Barnhill)