Eric Church knows a thing or two about crafting and performing a patriotic song.
And anytime he does put pen to paper on a track honoring our great country, the Chief always has those who serve to protect our country in his heart. The country music star recently offered up a message through his label, UMG Nashville, wishing all of the country’s veterans the best and thanking them for their service ahead of Veteran’s Day next week.
The “Springsteen” singer took a moment to reflect on the sacrifice that select U.S. citizens make so that the rest of us can live freely, and shared his admiration for those that serve. He also pointed out that out of all of the genres of music, country music tends to stand by the military and the country’s veterans more than any other. Or at the very least, that’s how he sees it:
“What I respect and admire is the sacrifice that those guys and girls go through for us to live the way they want to live too. I just think that I’m proud for our format. I’m proud for the music, that that’s something we stand by when not sure other ones do as much.
I mean, not that they’re not patriotic, I just think that’s really something that we make a focal point. And just, I’m proud to be involved in that. And again, I’m very thankful for the sacrifice that those… those guys endure and it’s something that’s always been very important to me and always will be.”
And Eric Church has backed that statement up plenty of times. Probably most notably when he went through the ringer in order to feature Johnny Cash’s “Ragged Old Flag” in a performance along with his fiery, American anthem “Stick That In Your Country Song.”
Church wanted to honor Cash with a performance that included his song at the 2020 ACM Awards, but it almost didn’t happen. For a period of time, Church couldn’t get the proper permission to use the patriotic Cash song. So Eric wrote a letter to John and Rosanne Cash explaining his idea for the performance. Though the exact specifications of the letter haven’t ever been revealed, it’s credited as the reason that Church was ultimately able to use “Ragged Old Flag” for the touching tribute.
Not only did Church and his team have to get permission to use the recitation by Cash, they also had to get some help from an executive at BMG, which controlled the publishing rights to “Ragged Old Flag.” And in addition to that, Johnny Cash’s estate had to be contacted for approval on the images of Cash that were used during the intro video.
All in all, there were a lot of complicated hoops to jump through for Church to bring to life the vision he had for the performance. It might have been a struggle, but I’m sure he was happy with how this “Ragged Old Flag” and “Stick That In Your Country Song” performance turned out: