Pick any small town in America and there’s a cast of characters you can generally recognize. The former high school football star; the good kid always in the wrong place at the wrong time; the family matriarch who’s the real power behind half the successful people in the county; the favorite cousin that just can’t seem to grasp the concept of maturity. Missouri-native Forrest McCurren turned his songwriter’s microscope on a few of those personalities, added a comfortingly familiar country score, and turned it into his debut record, Oh Me, Oh My, due to release on August 19th.
McCurren’s voice fits these songs like the well-worn gloves of a midwestern farmer. In Big Blue Space he delves into the former sports star that realizes he has to trade in being a big fish in a small pond for being a small fish in the great big world. With A Little Luck is an ode to a favorite uncle who knew how to enjoy the small things and advised, “take the long way home and order that piece of pie”. Dime A Dozen captures in just 4 minutes a lifetime’s realization that your purpose is just to be an average guy, albeit one with a big heart.
Heavy Old Hearts speeds up the tempo in a honky tonk number featuring Turnpike Troubadour’s Ryan Engleman on pedal steel. It’s about a guy making the best of things, or as McCurren sings, “he’s not a soldier, but this year’s been a war.” We can all relate a little to that. Pray For Sun has just the right amount of twang and observes that, “life gets messy, it’s gonna leave a stain.” Denver is feel-good song about childhood sweethearts who found each other again many miles down the road of life and with a hard-earned appreciation for what’s really important.
Oh Me, Oh My is named after what Forrest McCurren’s dad would always say after something surprised him. It’s an appropriate title for the album because you aren’t prepared for how good the songs are. They’re not flashy, or loud, or have particularly catchy hooks. But there’s an honesty and warmth that shows an understanding and appreciation for life in small town America.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.