The Story Behind (If That Aint Country) (Up To The Depth) is one of the first songs that got my songwriting noticed by a host of publishers and even my peers in Nashville, I was truly honored and humbled by the all the attention and respect these songs were gaining me as a writer as well as the opportunity to sign a writing deal with the very prestigious publishing company Almo/Irving….(Up To The Depth) is also one of the songs that had nearly every record label in Nashville trying to sign me to a record deal... sounds like a fairytale right?...Just Hang On!, Ironically out of all those labels including Sony, RCA, Dreamworks and Lyric Street I chose to sign with Mercury Records. It was because my publisher (David Conrad) who was a really smart guy and a great publisher and who also had a vested interest in the success of my record suggested it, and that was because he and the head of the label at the time (Luke Lewis) were really good friends So it sounded to me like playing good politics. One week into my radio tour while sitting in a brewery restaurant in Grand Rapid Michigan I was asked by 3 of Mercury Records top radio promotion staff (with puzzled looks on their faces) What does the song (Up To The Depth) even mean? They went on to list their concerns about other songs on the record like (Who Invented The Wheel) that I had just taken off hold with Allen Jackson so I could put it on my record…..HUGE MISTAKE! Shocked and in disbelief I calmly excused myself from the table and went to the bathroom where I was freaking out inside and called my manager….I said its over man, he said whats over? I said (If That Aint Country) as well as my artist career!! He said why do you say that? I told him about the conversation I just had with radio promotion. He couldnt believe it either because a few months earlier we pulled (Up To The Depth) off of hold from (Faith Hill) who was the hottest female artist in country music that year with her record (Breathe) because I wanted it on my record….ANOTHER HUGE MISTAKE! Lol! We had just launched my 1st single If That Aint Country the week before and already we knew that we had signed at the wrong label and the one label who never really got my record. I asked off the label soon after that but it would take me another 2 years and a ton of lawyer fees for them to finally release me out of my contract. Though It was very Heartbreaking to all involved in the making of that record I dont really blame Mercury Records I blame myself for not making a better decision on who I signed with…..At any rate, nowadays from time to time some of us who were involved in the making of (If That Aint Country) Like Producer Bobby Terry get together and talk about what coulda been or shoulda been and usually end up laughing our asses off for hours. I am very proud of the art we created on that record and the many artists and writers it inspired to move to Nashville. Hardly ever a day goes by that someone doesnt say to me hey Anthony, your CD (If That Aint Country) is my all time favorite country record! And folks let me just tell ya, That makes it ALL worth it to me. Anthony Smith Produced by Bobby Terry https://twitmusic/anthonysmithhq/songs/up-to-the-depth
Posted on: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 19:00:32 +0000