From Hank Williams to Townes Van Zandt to Jason Isbell, there is a long lineage of American troubadours who make it their lives’ works to capture some of the complexities of everyday struggles in our vast nation. A new footsoldier in the ranks of these “truthful troubadours” is Josh Merritt, a 30-year-old Kentucky native who put out a moving new single, “How Many Times,” on November 5.
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Coming ahead of Merritt’s debut studio album, Reynold Station — due on November 20 — “How Many Times” gets to the heart of who Merritt is as an artist. “This song is about someone in the depths of addiction and depression,” he told American Songwriter. “It offers an explanation of how someone is feeling at their worst with drug addiction and/or just life in general. The bottom end of this subject often encompasses both, so I thought it was important to write about them together.”
With an upbrining stained by the tragedies of rural America’s amphetamine epidemic, Merritt knows what he’s talking about. Raised by his grandparents while his young mother suffered with addiction, Merritt’s connection with these struggles is as deep and convicted as his passion for songwriting itself.
“I want people who are familiar with this sort of thing to have something to relate to,” he said. “I like to listen to sad songs when I’m down and out, which seems like it would be counterproductive. I think it’s because it lets me know that I’m not alone in my way of thinking with whatever I’m going through. It’s comforting to know someone else has felt the same way before, or been through the same things. I’d love to offer that to someone else with this song.”
Continuing, Merritt notes that the redemptive and healing qualities of music are a powerful force. “Music has helped me in my worst times,” he said. “That’s why I’ve always wanted to be a songwriter. I think, in the right moment, a song is the best thing you can give someone.”
In that regard, Merritt is continuing the same work as the many “troubadours” before him: offering solace. In a world where cynicism and hope seem to be in constant battle, just a simple source of solace from something as heartfelt and moving as “How Many Times” can make all the difference.
Listen to “How Many Times” by Josh Merritt below:
