Ashley McBryde is in the midst of one of the busiest times in her career—but when the opportunity came to sing Patty Loveless’s part on Vince Gill’s breakthrough hit “When I Call Your Name,” McBryde didn’t hesitate.
“I said, ‘All I need to know is what time glam is,” McBryde said before the show.
The performance happened during the 17th ACM Honors at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium on Aug. 21. Fans can watch it when the 17th ACM Honors will air Tuesday, Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. ET on Merit Street.
“We’re looking at the icon status here,” McBryde said of Gill and that they were singing for his longtime producer Tony Brown. “Me doing Patty Loveless’ is overwhelming and nerve-wracking, but it is also a really good feeling that Vince said, I want Ashley to sing that. I’m glad he trusts me to do it. Now, all there’s love to do is do it without being … emotional.”
McBryde and Gill ran through the song before the show several times to ensure they could hear themselves in the monitors.
“All that’s left to do is just be a professional and try not to be a fan girl while you’re doing it,” McBryde said. “He’s so calm all the time. He makes it impossible to be nervous.”
Then it was showtime. The pair received one of the first standing ovations of the night.
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Ashley McBryde: “(Vince Gill) Makes It Impossible To Be Nervous”
With that performance in the rearview, McBryde is gearing up to tour with one of country music’s most popular contemporary cowboys—Cody Johnson. The tour starts in September.
She didn’t know why at the time, but McBryde recently wrote one of the very few cowboy songs of her career. The offer came to join Johnson on tour, and her unexpected burst of creativity made sense.
“I was like, ‘I wonder where that came from?’” McBryde said. “Now, we’re jumping on the Cody Johnson tour, and it’s making me realize now that’s where the universe was pushing us really.”
She recorded the song on August 20 but won’t share the title.
“Cowboys are a dying breed, so it became a dying subject,” McBryde said. “I would say we’ve probably only written three, ever.”
Growing up, McBryde explained she heard cowboys, including Garth Brooks and Chris LeDoux, on the radio.
“You remember how much we loved (Garth Brooks’) ‘Rodeo’?” she asked. “There’s not enough of that anymore, so we decided to write a song about it.”
(Photo by Terry Wyatt/Getty Images for ACM)
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