So Joe Diffy passed away literally saw it just now, so I thought I would get on and say a few things and also put back the episode we did with him just a few months ago. I was lucky enough to have become buds with Joe over the last few years, especially the last couple of years. He first came on the radio show, which to me was a big deal because it's always awesome getting to hang out with the people that you liked when you were a kid,
and that was definitely the case with Joe Diffy. I just got a text from a country singer just now said, dude, Joe Diffy, so sad. I'm really glad he was on your podcast. It was the only long form interview that I heard from him. So we're gonna play it back if you didn't get to hear it. And we also did this around Christmas time, I think last year, right, Yeah, so it we weren't really able to promote as much as we would like. I would have liked to as well, So I hope you like it. Just a couple of
things before we get into it. Joe Diffy died at sixty one, and this is a few days after his positive coronavirus. His tests came out, just made a bunch of hits throughout the nineties. By the way, I don't know what day you're listening to this, but he did die Sunday due to complications related to COVID nineteen. Um. You know, there's a lot of quotes here. I'll go because with these funerals or with people dying during coronavirus time, what really sucks is you can't get a bunch of
people together to appreciate and pay respects. So that that stinks, because you know, you want to show that you love people, you want to be there for them. Joe Diffy was a grand old oprety member. It was a Grammy winner. We're gonna go through some of his catalogs in a second, But to me, he was just a a good old normal dude who whenever he put out his new record he saved me is very first final and he wrote on a one of five hundred, so our condolences out
to the whole family there. You know, when Joe came over and did the Bobby cast, I think he brought his whole family with him. Were like they were in here, yeah, like an audience and his daughter was a huge fan of the show. You know, I was able to play the opery with Joe a couple of times. It just it sucks. It does it really sucks. There's really nothing more to the point except it sucks. Um. My favorite song from Joe Diffy was problem Me Upside of the the
jew Box. I know. I got to sing it with them on the radio show because I was like, Joe, I love it, but let me sing it with you, and he was like, all right, so this is my favorite on the video we talked about it coming up. John der Green, Hey, everybody knows this one. On that hot summer night. It cut man all my lives and trapped me jams and just set off and win and
lack about a pick up man. Third Rock from the Sun, which is one of those weird songs that I learned every word too as a kid because there are so many words and I was so proud of myself that I could sing all of it. When do I come on the radio, I play a cool but like, oh I like this song, but I know every word and I want to look at them too. I'll just be singing it and hopefully they'd appreciate. I knew every word of the song. And then ships that don't come in.
Here's to all the souls who have ever died in bed, insane loughter looms, all this down, all man, those to stand around him, these shoes and it's bead against the wind, and those who wait forever. Ships don't recipes. Joe. I love you as a kid, love jagain as an adult, probably loved you all that time in the middle two. That sucks. It sucks, It sucks. Um. Here is the Bobby cast I did with Joe Diffy that I was
so excited for that. I did it on vacation during Christmas, and I was like, holy crap, I hope you enjoy it, share it with your friends, and here you go. I welcome to episode to seventeen with a guy I really like and we've been a big fan of for yours Joe Diffy. Good to hear you, good to see you, Thank you, thank you. You know. I was looking up. I know most of the stuff about you, like I've been a fan before we've been able to be friends.
I was just a massive fan of you growing up, and so as I kind of went on the deep dive because I always like to find out. You know, what do I not know about the people that are coming over to the house listen to this. I don't know if you eve knew? Oh Lord, here we go. On this day, December six, you had the number one song on the Billboard Country chart with Pickup Man. It was your longest lasting number one. I haven't spent four weeks in number one from December four to January. Did
you know that was today? No? I didn't know today. I knew the rest of that, but I didn't realize the date of it. That's pretty cool on this day and four number one? Yeah. Yeah. So for example, Luke Combs just spent three weeks at number one. Um, and that's a for a song, the last three weeks number one, especially today, it's a really big deal when you have a song that numbone for four weeks in what's really
the the vibe of that? Well, I mean it was unusual because back then, you know, they put out a lot more songs. The frequency you have, you know, you put out four, four or five songs a year, and now you might have one song that stays on the charts lingering there at some point for almost a year. You know, so so that was kind of the weird part we had. We had to wait to see what how long it was gonna stay number one before we
could put out another record. So did you feel like that song was going to be a number one song? I knew it from the instant I heard it. I really did. Yeah. I don't know why, I just something about it. I just you know, have you been able to name and nail boasted most of your big songs when the first time you heard them? Yeah? Pretty much. Uh, there was a couple that it didn't like John dear
Green I hated when I first heard it. Yeah, why well because the demo and now this is it's a long sago, but but when I first heard it, Uh, it was done by the writer named Dennis Lyndy, and he had a very eclectic sound in voice, and he did all his own demos at his house. So it had like a Jews harp playing like aren't Arnie? And I was like, what the heck is that? You know? And then my producer so we just he said, ignored
the demo part. I have to add right now that that I subsequently, uh loved all of Dennis Lindy's demos they were so cool. After you got after you kind of figured out what was what was happening, you know, any of My producer said listen to the words and uh and uh. I was like, man, I just don't like it at all. He goes, well, he said, he said, I think this is a hit, And I said, well, we can try it, you know, we'll go on the studio and cut and if it doesn't work out, then
we scrap it, you know. So luckily it worked out. So you go in and at what point is it during the session? Is it during the track? When do you go, oh, there might be something here with John der Gran when we tracked it, you know, because obviously it was a lot different than the demo, you know, so yeah, we once once we started tracking, I was like, that's that is a pretty good song right there. What song of yours when you play it gets the biggest response?
And you know what's funny about that? It was not a number one song? Isn't that weird? And it's you know, I talked with a lot of young artists now and they're like, I just want that number one. Like I get it, you do. But and and in Keith were gonna have talked about this where his a lot of his biggest songs weren't number one, and then we werena
you know was back in those days. I mean there were severally over like four or five different charts, so I think it did go number one and one of them I don't know which one, but but yeah, that's always that is a strange phenomena some of your some songs that do go number one don't sell as as well, etcetery. You know. So for me, when I think about your music, like my favorite song has propped me out, and that was not a number one song on the on the
radio chart. I mean when I think, Joe Diffy, this is the song from me. I know every word. Remember when it came out, I bought the CD and I memorized every word so I could sing all of I did that and third rock because the third rock is a little harder because the words are a lot faster. But this, this is the song for me that if someone's like, what your favorite? A matter of fact, when you came in, I was like, Joe, you gotta play problem me up? And you did and and again is
it peaked a number three on the radio chart. It's weird. There's a big record from you. The video though for this song is what I really remember from this song as well, because back in the day we used to really watch mt from music video right a lot. Yeah, all you know what I remember about the video mostly filming the video. It was so hot, man, it was, And they had this these buckets of like sea bree
remember sea breeze. It was kind of like a facial cleanser or some kind of deal, and it was like but it had like an aromatic kind of effect and they were dabbing all of us with it stuff. You know. That's just remember was so hot and and plus the dead guy. Yeah, it was so funny, man. I mean that that that to me is those two songs. And again as I started deep diving, and I was like, man, my favorite two songs number five and a number three. And you say that John der Green gets the biggest.
When you do your set list, what do you start with? What's the first song? A third rock from the sun? You come out of high energy, huh, Which this wasn't number one song for you. Yeah. I just would have a problem going out and doing the fast up quick because if you had a breath for the next three songs that has happened. Yes, like especially I said right where it happened to me a lot as if I'm you know, on the oprey for some reason makes you nervous.
And if you ever get backwards during your breathing in that song, you were screwed. I mean, it's it's over, you know. Tell me about this song Third Rock. So you heard it, were you like? What's this about? Like? What? Um? I always thought it was like a little mini movie, you know, which I heard a lot of songwriters say, you try to dude, right, I try to write it a little three minute movie, you know. But honestly, this was one that I mean, even though I liked it.
They there was the same publisher had played two different songs for us, and uh, and I like the other one better actually and so uh you know. So anyway I ended up getting both of them. Had to do to the wheel and dealing some some guy apparently that I don't know. I can't verify this, but I was told this. Garth Brooks wanted Third Rock as well. So and how did you get Third Rocket? What was the wheel? We cut both? We would do both of their songs. Do you know what the other song was. It was
called uh something. But if you're having to think, I guess that really was never seen. There was never a single. Yeah, did you put it on the record. Yeah, it's that. I'm gonna run through your number one's real quick. Let's do home. Yeah, your first the debut singers is that right? First song out and you go number one for six, number one, six in a row. So do you think after let's say two or three, do you have a figured out? Um? You know what I felt like? Such
I was. I felt a little bit like a rube. I was so naive about the whole process. I mean even though I kind of knew. I kind of knew about stuff, but man, when you know when you get it, when you when you start off like from what I did. I mean, I was on the road three hundred days a year, and so I didn't really have time to think about stuff. I was busy, you know, traveling and doing shows and me doing meet and greets and all that stuff. You know, So what brought you to Nashville?
Meaning I know the music, I know that the thought of country music. But there's always something where something you get that push or you can kind of the itch. Well, I got laid off from my job I had. I was working on a foundry back in Duncan, Oklahoma, and they shut the plant down, laid us all off, and you know, and I've been singing a little VFWS and twenty moved. I moved to Nasville when I was also a little bit older. Yeah, compared to like the nineteen
two years are moving here now exactly? So you get laid off, ye, And I said. And I had been to Nashville once before with my aunt and a friend of mine. We had we we did this little thing as a trio, and we came in and my aunt had known somebody here in Nashville, and so anyway, we met with him and I spent in love with the city then. But I didn't have the opportunity because I still had a job at the time, you know. But when I got laid off, I was like, well, you
know what, I think, I'm just gonna try it. So I just loaded up everything I could get in this whole beat up car I had, and off I went. So at home, you know, you're you're playing around bar? Are you playing on bars at home at all? Not a lot honestly, my background was more of a I sang in a gospel group then I then I went from that to a bluegrass group. I played bluegrass for six years with this group called the Special Edition. Were you known as the guy that was doing music while
working at the plant by your workers? Yeah? Are your co workers? Yeah? They always asked me to sing, you know, would you ever sing at work? I don't remember gather them around and be like all right, boys, yeah, I mean I just they sing that song, you know whatever. Isn't it funny how the things at the time that seemed this happened over my career in my life too. We're really I put finger quotes up. Unfortunate things that happened to us turn out to really be blessing, dude, blessing,
the biggest blessing ever. Yeah, because if I hadn't got laid off, I probably would have never left there. You know. So when you get laid off, do you remember how that happened? Did you did your your boss your form and come in and go all right, you're done. No, it was just more of a I got a phone call, I think, and they said, yeah, play shut down, don't go out there and then immediately do you go all right time to go to Nashville? Like, was it kind
of in the chamber already? No, it took a took a couple of once, you know, drawing unemployment, and I thought, well, you know, I might as well think of something. I had a good friend of mine. We used to discuss thing he wanted. He moved to Dallas and became an accountant and you know, and I said, I want to He said, yet, you know, you gotta try music. You're really good at it and all that stuff. So and when you got to town, did you feel like you were good enough to get in the mix immediately? Um?
I just felt really lost, honestly when I first got to town, because I just gotten divorced and I missed my kids and you know, and I was just in this new place and I didn't have a place to live, and you know, and all this kind of stuff. Would you do what you I finally moved in with a with a musician, a guy named David Greer, and we we rented at a house with no heater and for about a year. And what are you doing when you
first moved to Nashville? Meaning are you out trying to meet people play right around, like what what what happened with the new artists? Me? I was trying. I needed some incouncil. I got a job. I knew a guy that worked at Gifts and Guitars, and so they hired me I there to work in the warehouse shipping guitars everywhere. So and then after that I would just do whatever I could. I'd go to two showcases and you know, just go hang out, just just to get my get
out there and meet people. You know, it's so interesting to hear about because, like I know, you was the county music legend. But I love hearing like the origin story of the hustle because I think so many people don't know that there's a hustle for everyone. Man, I tell you what there was. There was days seriously, Uh you know we didn't have anything in the house to eat. I mean nothing. One time I had I think I had, like I don't know, seventy five cents on me and
I went by this funniest thing ever. I didn't know they didn't have white castles in the duncan. So I saw instead of Hamburger cents, I thought, oh yeah, I've got I can you know, so I stop. Yeah, so I know, I said, the guys canna help you? I said, I like a Hamburger police. He goes, uh, just one. I said, yeah, I didn't know they were, you know tiny. Let's talk about this new prob jack. So it's the first ever vinyl, right, and so it's called Joe Joe
Joe Diffy, Right, so tell me about this. It's just a compilation of of of some number one songs we had and uh, and we included a new song on it. I just always kind of wanted a vinyl and it seems to be kind of coming back in fashion right now. So where can people get it? Joe Diffy dot com slash vinyl And each album is individually autographed and number you sign them all? Did you have the family sign them all? No? I signed every stinking one. They're all different. Thing. Yeah,
I was. I was trying to be meticulous about it, because you know, you signed five or anything. After a while, you're like, man, I just don't care, you know. I know at first, because I was like when I do my books, the first book I wrote, I was a little more like I'm gonna make everything so pride after and you're like, you know what, I think they're gonna even like to you start convincing yourself to Sloppy's cooler.
My arts decide. Even at one point earlier, earlier in my career, because I was signing so many things, I was trying to come up with a faster way to sign my name, just like make a line and two dots or something, you know, but I just never do. Look right, you're living here, you you're in the same roommate. Are you still together while you're working out the guitar place? Uh? For a little while. Then I moved out. And that's kind of how I got my first break actually in
the music business. Was I moved out with from with him, and I moved in with his brother and sister who I worked with, the brother at Gibson and uh as it happened, uh super you know, talented songwriter, a guy who lived next door, and as as Johnny Neil and uh and so Johnny you know he can't see he's blind. So my friends John that I moved in with, this is not getting too complicated. Any time John would would you take him to various things too? Whatever you need
to do sessions or whatever. And then one day John was working in so Johnny asked, He said, A, man, I think somebody he called the house, you know, and I answered the phone. He said, man, I need John to come get me. A said, well, he's not here, and he's like, well, wow, man, I don't know what to do, and I said, I'll come get you. Really, so I didn't really know him, you know. So anyway, if we hit it off and we started writing songs together, that's how I got my first publishing deals through him.
Was that a big deal to you to get paid to write song? Oh? Lord, yes, absolutely. They paid me a hundred dollars a week to write songs, and then they paid for you know, the demos. The cost of the demos. So, and that's how I got kind of discovered. You know, I guess, quote unquote are you singing the demo? I was singing the demos. So then you know, the musicians and other guys were like, hey, I gotta come seeing my demo for me. You know. So what do
you think about your your vocal style? What do you think it was that attracted people to you? Oh that's a good question. I don't know. I really I don't know if I can answer that. How would you classify yourself as a singer but pretty country? You know? I mean, but I'm able to kind of ran child. On this new project, I did a duet with with an incredible
singer named Mark Brossard. He's like Louisiana. Yeah. Yeah, he's fantastic, and I just happened to get you know, I was listening to him as we were riding along with the bus, we listening to various music, and he happened to be in town recording the same time Iowa. So we contacted him and I just want to go meet him and say hi, you know. So I did, and he played me some of this new album he was working on, and so we became friends. You know, we're not like
super close friends or anything. But then I said, man, I'm looking to do some do ats. I s would you be interested in singing something? Because yeah, So he came over and we're looking at each other, like, well what do we do? He goes, I don't know. I said, you know, pride and joy I said kinda r yeah, I said kind of, I kind of do yeah, and so you know, we said let's do that one. So we end up doing that that's pretty cool. Here it is right here, my lad, she's lean. You're that sweetheart.
You see him baby, that's on the new Final Project. Hey Mike, we you see me from Louisiana. Okay, I just I never want to mess it up. But like I felt like you as Karen Karen Crowe Louisiana and you grew up in Oklahoma mostly when you were growing up, and is it true you were so good at all the sports that they named you like athlete at the year of school. Is that true? What that's the old days? But yeah, well what was your sport? Well? Mostly I
was probably the best at football. I played like we It was a small school, you know, so they both ways played both ways. We did never really never left the field really, you know. That was a deep gun, punched and kickoffs. And then I also was like you know, I never left the field. So you sell a big football fan. Oh yeah, here's your team. I mean, of course, I like the Pros are like the Titans and the course of Cowboys. That's who I grew up around, was
near the cow the Cowboys. So college jam Oklahoma, Oh yeah, big center fans. Yeah, So did you watch the Hisman ceremony. I did not. I was working. Jalen got third, got third? Um, great season, and but oh use in it. They're playing ls. It's four verses. One. That's gonna be a tough game. Brother, that's gonna be everyone. It's gonna be a real tough Gamel's loaded. Well, so you're a good football player, your pompershner,
huh yesh. Yeah, I returned a few points. And I'll tell you what I did not like with standing there vulnerable as that ball is coming down and you can just feel without even seeing you can you know, if you're in a room Joe and you know somebody's looking at you, and you don't have to look up to feel someone's eyes on you exactly, but you're imagining that with nine or ten guys coming at you hard, same kind of feeling, and you're like trying to judge do
and do I by waves. Once it looks like earte you that, Yeah, because you have to have tremendous focus, right. And once I didn't fair catch and I thought I wanna I'm gonna just take off with this ball. I thought I had some space and the ball is coming down and I get a little little alligator arm and it hits my hand and I bobbled it. It's on the ground. And it was the only time that I really lunged for a fumble in my because I mostly played wide receiver um and I didn't return a lot
of punt, especially after this the story here. But I botched the ball and I was like, I gotta go dive for it, and and diving for the fumble was I think the most physical part of because it was just everybody's piling on diving and I was on the bottom and I was like, I'm done. Do you ever hear those guys scream on the bottom, you know, because they're down there and then something's happening to him. Then oh, hear that terrified people grabbing in twists, And it's the
whole thing. So you play football, play basketball, basketball, baseball, baseball, track, golf, five sport guy, Huh if you think I'm playing college at all? Uh? I thought about. But I never did get any scharlar scholarship offers for football. I actually had some small college offered me a side on the same
basketball scholarship, oddly enough, and I wasn't that great. I mean, I was okay, but you know, but uh, but no. I have a cousin that played at Oklahoma State and he was younger than I, and so he I asked him and said, do you think I could could have played that? He goes, I absolutely really not so. But I never get any scholarship offers. I had a coach. Couple of coaches and small colleges asked me to walk on and if it worked out, they'd give me a scholarship.
I never So you're in Nashville, and so you're driving Jimmy, right, Johnny Neil, Johnny excuse me, there's John and Johnny. You're driving Johnny Neil and so you go pick him up the first time. And then how does that relationship turn into something? Because you guys started well, I had to him a couple of times that I'd love to write with it. You know. Of course, I'm just a newbie, you know, I didn't really know much about it, and
he kind of gave me the old brush off. You know maybe one day, well maybe maybe, you know, but we just hit it off. We had a moment a few minutes that I actually talking and you know, and goofing around, and so he said, well, come on over so we wrote a couple of songs and and he had a little studio at his at his house that and so we turned those demos in and his publisher
at the time signed signed me as well. So that's kind of how I got started and our want to you know, I don't think Johnny and I ever got We got a couple of cross I got one on the member of the Forster Sisters. Yeah, it's called Come Hold Me. And then uh so then I started writing with another guy named Lonnie Wilson's great drummer, session drummer and writer and singer. And we had first first top five record with Holly Dunn had There Goes My Heart Again was the name of it. So so a top
five song back in eight eighties. Did you make any money off that? Dude? I went to the mail by and we're seeing that much money in my life? Really like the first installment, you know, yeah, I was like, I gotta write war songs. That's pretty cool. And how long do those checks keep coming? Oh? They the first years pretty good. And after that it tapers off significantly and almost down to nothing, you know, and you're cutting these demos that people lynched in your in your singing style,
which we were on a minute ago. So when did it become a thing where you go, Okay, I think it's time for me to try to be an artist. Well, I mean, that's kind of what I had in mind all all along. But I just knew that songwriting would be a good avenue to meet people and and you know, just because it was part of the music. But that's such a significant part. So I just but I always had that in my mind being an artist, but h and I didn't really have any way to that that
I knew. It takes somebody to promote you, basically, And so I started doing demos for these the couple of guys, and they knew they were good friends with Bob mcgomery, who was Epic Records at the time, and uh and so after they played him some demos, so he called me over and met with me, and I said, how would you like to have a record deal? And I'm like, uh so, yeah, it's pretty cool. So that was the conversation. They kind of changed it off, how would you like
to have a record deal? Conversation? Yeah, exactly, that's pretty cool. Yeah, he said, I said, a man, I wanted to do this my whole life and he said, no, you haven't. I was like, I looked at him and I was like, what do you mean? He goes, you don't lived your whole life? You guys thought, okay, one of those guys. How long from when you were laid off until you got your record deal? Three years? So you spent a couple of months figuring it out. You moved here, you wrote,
so three years from there to there? Right? Do you feel like you mad sued a lot as an artist at that time in those three years? Probably just just from the sheer volume of demos and stuff I did, you know? They're all various styles and um, so you kind of had to learn to to do that kind of you know, just so yeah, I think so. You know a lot of the artists and a lot of my friends too, that that that are here, that you
kind of come in in classes. You don't do it on purpose, but when you moved to town, you start meeting other people that moved town around the same time, and that kind of becomes your pack that you grow up with because you're all on a similar level exactly when you move here, like, who is some of the folks in your class, well, to see. There was Tricia your Wood, Um, there was a t. Graham Brown. There
was you know, Garthur singing some demos. I don't know if any of the other ones were as you know, but I mean the same guys that there's you know in my generation or you know of course the Mark Chests and Tracy Lawrence and those guys. You know. So what was Tricia doing? Was she working at Mary tell Moore Music or was she singing demos? I'm not sure. I just I had only met her a few times when we sing a couple of demos together, yeah, which
is cool. And then I got I got her just saying one a chick song quote unquote that I had and so she's saying for me. So we've been friends ever since. So whenever you hear or you see someone like Gartha Tricia back then, were you like, man, there's something special about them, like you think or is it or is it just the land of the Giants where everybody's good? Most everybody was good? You know, it's it was just you felt like it was just kind of
a crap. Shoot. You know, somebody's gonna get lucky and get that deal. And something I happened I tell you a weird story and people might think this is really odd. I've done this twice in my life. I went to see I went to the showcase where it was Garth and it was at the Douglas Corner and I was sitting around having a beer, you know, walking talking to some friends of mine, and I look up and he's playing it up there and I saw an aura around him.
I'm not kidding, you know. So I started looking around the room. I thought, was the lights, guys, be weird, that's something weird going on here. And I didn't find I couldn't find any reason that he had a blue aura around him. I swear to good it was the weirdest thing. And the other time was my my wife Tara. I saw her. She had an oar. Now do you think that that's in your eyes? Do you think that you saw something special? I didn't know what it was, just I saw. I saw it, and I asked, I said,
y'all see that. Everybody else like no, and I'm like, man, I's okay, I'm I'm gonna get quiet here. So did you ever talk to Garth in the early days where you guys time, we didn't we weren't super close or anything. You know, who were your buds musically and who did you like tour with? Who'd you liked to werow with? Well, I've had a lot of him, you know, I like all of the people I've toured with. But let's do this mount rushmore of your favorite tour buddies four and
four you only get four. Oh gosh, that's that's hard, man, I'm putting it. I'm putting the screws to you. I mean, of course, I mean I toured with Garth, so that didn't do a whole lot. We Uh he used to open shows for me oddly enough, Yeah, and so but we did that and I opened some shows for him after that. Of course. You know my one of my closest buddies Mark Chestnut, and uh, you know he's he's always really consistent. And uh, who else would it be?
Uh that I toured with, uh, you know, Travis Tritz and an incredible singer. A year long tour with him. How was that? Because I know Travis a little bit and he's at times it's very in your face and at times it's super's super warm yew, how about you in Travis relationship? It was good. Yeah, it was very good. Yeah. Uh, you know, we just we just had a good time as me, Travis, myself and Leroy Partnell. We're out there and it was a good package. You know, we had
a lot of fun. You got one more on the aunt, Rushman, Garth Chestnuts, Tracy Lawrence. You know, Tracy is always good. You know when you good when you go see him. I'm trying to say who else I toured with. I've done so many, you know, various packages here and there that I can't even remember. You ever put a kid opening and that kid turned out to be a big
starway later on? Uh, let me think I want I almost said Brad Paisy, but I'm not sure that ever happened, you know, because I've see some I met a kid the other night that uh came open. He opened for me and Chestnut. We're doing an acoustic thing and he came up and saying, this kid was really good. You know what was remember? I don't remember, right is me? Yeah? Man, it's it's under the little place in Texas we were in. Man. We got him up to saying and he was like,
you nailed. He's saying, is it cold in here in my song. So here's another number one. This is it's the Devil Danced, The Devil Dance pocket. Do you have a ball? He said? A swing in that song? Yeah, that's Is that your second number one song? I know? I think that was like the third one? Yeah, I believe so home hits. You have a number one. What was the second big one for you? If you want me to? Okay, if you want me to? And then I think devil Oh actually may have been new what
laughing old flying? I can't remember. I lost track? Pick up man? Which jam? Where do you put this into that list? Oh? It's fourth or fifth. It's gotta be interesting to put together set less for you because you have so many biggs. It's really hard. I remember, I remember touring. I got the final with George Straight but put him on that Mount Rushmore when I first started. What year was that? It had to have been ninety one or two somewhere in that arrange. What does a
tour like with you and George Straight? Well? I didn't really get to see George very much, you know, he was he was kind of a private person and uh, you know, and he didn't really come to sound checks or anything. So I mean, I saw him occasionally and he's super super nice man. He just and I just remember I was. I was pretty tickle when he finally, you know, say hey, Joe, how are you doing, I'm like, all right, George, what was my name? Now? So bigger
than the Beatles, here's right here. Number one for you Beetles Wild. You know, for me, whenever I would hear you as a kid, I always felt like you were smiling when you were singing like that. That is part of him, you know when you're trying to I mean you do think of that. I try to emote, you know, put your feelings into the songs you're saying. Say yeah, I always felt like when and when I think about your songs, I always thinking, man, Joey sounds like he's
he's having a good time. Yeah, absolutely that that would be if I were to I talk about if someone's like, what should it sounds like it's it's not like he's smiling, like he's having fun singing about country saying what do you How do you feel about these artists like the the Luke Combs. Um, I'm setting you up here, but but the guys that are really super traditional style again
does that excite you. I love it. Yeah, I mean country has always been a little bit scyical, you know, and it's a it goes from one thing to another kind of vacillates back and forth. So I love Luke. I got to, along with Vince Gil and a couple of other folks, got to induct him to the Grand Old Opry recently, so that was pretty cool. Whenever the al Dean song came out and the famous lyric is Joe Joe Joe Diffe, did you know this was coming? Yeah? Yeah,
I actually had heard it started up. Somebody contacted me said, man, there's a song somewhere out there that has your name in them. So really so somehow we got a copy of it. It It was a demo, you know. Thomas Rhett was one of the writers on that, and so the first time I heard it was Thomas Rhet's version, you know, and it was a lot more kind of rap feeling than than that Jason's version. Jason has a lot more
guitars and stuff. So yeah, I just like my and my band members were sitting around, I said that here's that song got my name in it apparently, so I put it in there and had all that. We're looking atach other like, what the hell is that? You know? So Jo, did you did bring you out all out? Or wait? Where was it that they did this in an award show? It was a C M S They had had the giant head? Is that what it was? I remember seeing it was, That's what it was, the
giant head dropped out of the sea. Did you find when that song comes out that people were going like younger kids were like, who the heck is Joe diffy? Like twelve year old dude. I'm that's a good setup for for saying this that that because of Jason and Thomas Ricks. Thomas does that song on his show as well, you know, and so they're getting it's being heard by a lot of people, you know, and so we are.
Our crowds have just been tremendous and a lot more you know, younger people, and they know every day I got word to every song was pretty amazing. Back in the day, there was that the TV commercial there was I think they did pick up man. Pick up Man was using and maybe a card truck commercial, board truck commercial and did they read the words a little bit in it? Well, yeah, they get another singer what was it? No, that was that was actually me on camera that that's
the same one you're talking about. That That commercial actually day aired on the super during the super Bowl, So that's when that commercial you were in the super Bowl commercial. Yeah, that's pretty cool. That cool. I got more people though that had no do I was that saw that and we're like, hey, you're that pickup guy. You know, people would recognize you for being the pickup guy from the commercial more because I was on camera too. Yeah. Yeah, yeah,
but they would see you from the It's interesting. I was talking to Brad Paisley a couple of weeks ago and I said, Hey, what are people like coming up to you as the insurance guy? And He's like, yeah, a lot of people don't even know that I do music, if they don't know country music, and they only know me from the I think the nationwide commercials. Yeah that's right, Mike. Yeah. And so people were coming up to you and you're the super Bowl commercial guy. Is that a nice paydy
to the super Bowl commercial? Yes, it's very nice. I love pay days. I grew up a song though has made me probably more money than any of the other songs I've had, and I didn't write the song. A couple of friends of mine wrote it, and uh so they get paid as well, you know, but for for
the royalty publishing and all that stuff. So but I was also an Apple beachs commercial and was it there like cars to ghost services, like yeah you pick up Yeah, they changed the lyrics on it, and uh I'll tell you the miracle of modern stuff, you know, I had
to do in my house. And and so somehow we got my book and agents got they said that they were interested in using Pickup Man as a part of an Apple Beach commercial, and so they sent me a CD of it, just the music and the lyrics changed that they had rewritten it basically, and uh so I just stuck it into the thing and read the lyrics, singing it down. Tell me about an hour, and I sent it back. I thought it was gonna be like a presentation or a demo for them, and they used
it and they ken't renew it. Man, it is like this is great, I said, kind I guess some more of those commercials. Is that where it is like in the sink stuff? Yeah, yeah, if you can get it, if you can get a get in one of those deals this pretty good deal. What's that touring like for you? Now? It's great? You done a much shows a lot. Yeah, this is I've been working, working a lot and uh probably uh you know, just staying really busy, which is really good. I like working. You know, we were talking
earlier that travel part gets a little old. You know, you get tired from that. But I mean, you know, get the thing due play around and messing around all the times. Like it's like I told my guys that it's like we're on a big camping trip all the time, you know, so we have fun. You worked in oilfield for a while. I did. You drove a truck the pump cement? Is that true? What does that work? Like?
It sucked? Yeah. It was for a company called Halliburton and uh oddly enough, who were headquartered They used to be headquartered in Duncan, Oklahoma. But I had to move to Alas, Texas to get to work for him because I had an uncle that worked for them, and uh so I did. I didn't do that for very long.
I was there for about I don't know, three or four months or so, and I just it was like you're gone all the time, and you know that the pay was not that great, and uh so I just decided I didn't like that, so I moved back to Duncan and got a job in that foundry. So so what about you going to medical school? Always if you had asked me when I was a kid, that's what
was one to be, was a doctor. And I used to read medical books and I followed my parents around reading them facts and figures on that kind of stuff. You know, what'd your mom and dad do? Uh? They were both the teachers. My dad did a little bit of everything. He had his own welding company for a while. He had a repossession company for a while. Was he didn't repo cars. He didn't like that in the middle of the night and go and that's a dangerous it's
very dangerous. You got shot at a couple of times. He said he didn't like that. So, yeah, he had he actually built since he was a welder. He built this rig on the like a hook that that was hydraulic and it would come out of the out of the back of the pickup and the tailgate would lower down and he would just back up to the cars and pick him up and drive off with him. That's
a crazy line of word and thinking. As we get as kids, we see adults do things more like that's just kind of normal, right, But as you get to be an adult and you see other adults repoint and people shooting out over that's that's. Yeah. He didn't last long with that. He didn't like that at all. And plus, you know, you're having to and he just just the human element of it. A lot of people who couldn't you know, they were behind on their payments through whatever.
Some of them were just bumms, and some of them just lost their jobs or something, you know, or we're ill. And he'd after the bank, would you know, telling to go get this car. You know. So I had to work with the bank a lot. And so he didn't like that either because then people had to come. He had to te it to a yard, and then people came to the yard and he had to be out there while they gathered their belonging to the other repossessed car. You know. Yeah, so he didn't like that. You were
inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. Yeah, it's a real special thing. That was one of one of my highlights of my career. I could consider it. You know, how did you get told you were going to be in the operation kind of the same way I got told by a record deal. I went out to the opera and and uh, I met with the guy who I
can't remember his name right now. He was the head of it back then, and I just I thought, I didn't know why we were even out there, and was out there with my managers, and he goes, how would you like to be remember the grand Ole Obrary. I was like, yeah, so that really really that's how I got my record deal and the Grand Ol Operathing. So it's pretty cool, pretty low key, and it was very low Yeah. Is it true that your parents and your parents that you could sing harmonies when you were three
years old? Now you probably can't remember remember three, You do remember three? I remember singing and are we had to pick up and uh I had two sisters, have two sisters, and so we would all be five or five of us being the truck and to keep us occupied and and you know, from screaming at each other, they would sing solid, simple songs, you know, kids songs, and we sing along with them. And at three you can harmonize. I just hear, I just heard it. It just it was in my head, I could hear it.
Were you always a really good singer as a seven year old? Isn't a church or wherever you were singing? You always think? I guess, you know, it's hard to value, hard to judge it, you know, I guess were you rewarded for your singing at a very young age? Were people telling you why? Joe? Yeah, I mean I remember my aunt got me up in front of with her band and I got up and saying you're my son and giant or something like that, you know, and so
it's pretty cool. What was that like in the nineties, touring with no internet and no cell phone and no Google Maps. Do you ever just end up with the
bus in a wrong talent? Absolutely? Oh you would, Yeah, you know, of course you have to get the map at and then you had to know, you, hey, even our satellite we had did have a satellite dish, but your bus had to be stopped and you had to like physically enter in, get the atlas out and figure out your latitude and your longitude and enter those coordinates
in and then it would raise up. Yeah. Would you ever get somewhere because there weren't cell phones realized there was no show happening anymore, or like you get there and like no, we tried to get ahold of you, but they carryer pigeon, you know. No, unfortunately, never had that happen. But what kind of countryms of artists you drawn to? Now? I guess I have a tendency to
lean more towards the country. You're the country side of the things, you know, which you know, so you know, I enjoy Luke and you know, Brad Paisley and a couple of other guys that that I think are good, good singers. You know, growing up, who was your favorite? Oh man, well, it'd probably have to be George Jones, and that's who I emulated, so you know, learned a lot by emulating him. But I mean I I had
a whole rangement. Of course, I had the regulars that everybody mentions, Haggard, Jones, Johnny Cash, you know, Conway, there was you know, a whole plethora of those people. But but I you know, I actually like I loved Loretta Lyon and Dolly Parton as well, you know, and Connie Smith, and so I heard a lot of those being from Oklahoma. And I'll perhaps it with my story. I'm from Arkansas.
So it was Johnny Cash and Conway Twitty and you can, I mean listen, which tall Liman was so big to anybody from Arkansas was a big deal to us because there weren't a lot of us who made it on any sort of national stage being from Oklahoma. Who was it that you looked at and was like, wow, like this is one of our guys doing or one of our girls doing it? Well, I mean obviously, you know, but they aren't that much older than I am, but I mean, Reba advanced, they were already involved in doing
stuff before I ever removed to Nashville. So that was pretty cool to see that, and you know, you kinda kind of take that and you know, feel good about it. Man, that's crazy. Like I did the Michael was I think in DC. I did with Reba Kennedy Honors. I did the Kennedy Honors for Reba. I got to go. I did, went up and did ten minutes to stand up, and there was like six of us the presented Reeve. It was me and Brooks and Dunn and Kristin Chenowyth and
Kelly Clarkson. But anyway, so I go up and I'm doing comedy but I'm also talking through as I'm doing comedy. Reba's Oklahoma Alive where she was it was, you know, doing uh that the roadwork in the rodeos, like singing the rodeos and you know, just thinvered singing the national anthem at the rodeo, tex Ritter. I think the one who for you saw you sing, I know you got
a record of it. Who saw you randomly if in one and they were like, man, I think there could be like you're actually pretty good there, Joe, did you ever have one of those? A little drunk guy at the bar before you go? He threw literally through five dollars after he said, telling you out a mood to Nashville, you're really good. So have you ever see anybody cover your songs nowadays? And you go, man, that's a really good version of that song. I've heard it a couple
of me. That sounds really good. You know, it's fun. It's fun to me to hear them. You know, if you could pick one of your songs to be covered again now and be made a hit again, which which song would you like to see a reborn? That's a good question. Uh, well, I know my favorite song is the ships that don't come in. Oh come on, I love the only place. Let me, let me listen. That's all never died in bed, insane lot loomsoon allless down a man. So everybody listening right now, there's a lot
of artists listen to this podcast. Ships that don't come in. That's the cover to do it is that's that's such a great song. I've I've told the writers that David gives the Paul Nelson I said that song didn't need me, but it needed somebody to see it because it's just such a great song. I think it could have been a hit with anybody, you know. So I was glad I got it. Anybody cool ever come up to you that You're like, man, they're a fan of you. But
You're like, that's really cool. They're a fan of me. A lot of yeah, a lot uh some people I revere, you know. I mean, I walked I was gonna introduce myself to Merle Haggard one time at the A c M. And I walked up to because, Joe, how you doing, Man, I'm a big fan of here, And I'm like, Merl
Hackard knows my name. It's just blows my mind. You know, Ronnie Millsnap told me it was you know, so yeah, those that's a really special thing when somebody who you who you idolize, tells you that, you know, can you go to dinner in Nashville with are in Tennessee without being bothered? Yeah, And it's people are pretty cool. They're really they are. And and I just always I feel
like it's really not a bother. I mean, the only time I never even kind of gets under my skin a little bit is if I'm in the middle of eating. You know, I often say if people are eating or with their kids, those are really the only two times, because otherwise everyone neces what they signed up for, right figure, your public figure. But eating like literal food on the table, fork in my hand, eating something and something. Yeah, but I mean, and of course people don't mean any harm
by it, you know, a fact fact. George Jones and I were at dinner one night, one evening, and and this lady came up, and we were in the middle of eating, and she comes up with a little boy, and and she goes, I don't mean to bother you guys, And George goes, but what are you doing it for? He was teasing, of course, you know. So what is it like to be a fan of George Jones and then here you are having dinner? Now I couldn't I don't even know how. I couldn't even talk to him.
I didn't know what to even ask him. I'm assuming he has to invite you. Yeah, and did you got where did that relationship? How did it start? Just from doing a couple of shows to other and uh? And I sang on on his hit song, I don't need your rocking chair, I don't need yeall you met a game. Yeah, so that was one of the most special things. Not only because of that, but I got to take my dad. I didn't tell him where we were going. He was George Jones, his idol, you know, so I just took him.
I took him. He said, where are we going? I said, just come on, you know. So I took him in there and and uh, there was all he saw Alan Jackson, Clint bike and all these people. He was like, what is this? What's going on here? Then the limo pulls up. George gets that. He was just I've never seen he
was speechless. He just was stunned by you know. So that's really cool, right, Like, of all the moments, I getting to do things for the people that you care about, at least for me, has been that kind of the coolest thing to do. Absolutely, that's pretty cool that you're a big fan of George Jones and the next then you're at dinner with Really it took me a couple of times, uh before I was able to converse with him because I was just really so Nerve was some and he was just such an icon in my eyes.
But he I found it later on. He was He was just so he's just so country, you know, He's like and he's like talking to your grandpa. He couldn't hear it real good, you know, So you say something and he goes, you know. So then I got even to sing on a on a song with me and it was really cool too. Did you ever meet Tammy? Oh? Yeah, Tammy was once. She loved my singing. Yes, you asked about that earlier. She I forgot about Tamm but she was a huge fan of mine. In fact, I sang on.
She did an album of duets with a lot of rock artists, and I think me and wend known Over the only two country people she has to be on there. So that was really neat to get to sit there. I mean, you're talking about bizarre. All of a sudden, I'm sitting there right next to Tammy Win that and we sang it live, we sang it down live. It was you know, there was no overdubbing or punching in.
It was that. That's what it was. So were you around when they were doing the tours of stars homes when they would actually dry by people's houses, which nowadays seems really weird. It's a it's a pain in the rear. You'll be up more on your lawns all the time. Yeah, So I'm only what happens. You're all sweating, and you know they you know, here there comes that bus, little people and they are all taking pictures of you and you're sweat and dripping off of you got grass all
over you. You know, it's like hill. You know, how would they find your house? I don't know how that. I don't know. I don't know how they did it, because if they did that nowadays, that would be the weirdest. Well, I asked him, I asked made request. I said, Look, not only it's it's bothering me, but it's bothering my neighbors as well, to have these busses coming and stopping in that and everybody getting out and all this. We get out of the bus a couple of times I did, yeah,
so and I guess it's not illegal. No. I actually called and asked, is there any way we can make this stop? And they're like no, so okay. So it was kind of weird. So after that, literally I'll be up more on the lawn or doing something outside and and i'd be watching because I knew about what time of day they came by it. So I just watched for when I go hide, you know, run behind the shed.
Everybody check it out. Joe Joe, Joe Diffy. Each album is individually autographed and numbered, and it's at Joe Diffy dot com slash vinyl. But I'm sure if you just go to Joe Diffy dot com there's also a link up there that says for the vinyl right if you can't spell vinyl, cause I'll be honest, not a great word to spell. B I N Y L not No, I'm not. I would have been anyone on that um
as long as there's a bar. Yeah, tell me about that A couple of great friends of mine wrote that guy Gaylan Griffin and uh and Brian Keith Burns who was in Trick Pony and he played bass for me for like seven years early in my career, and so they wrote this song. It just reminded me of brought me up a little bit. So that's that's that's most of the reason I did it. With a lot of the music from when I was a kid in the nineties where you have a bunch of your number one
songs kind of re emerging as a big deal. Did that help your touring nineties country? Like? Was it? Like? Absolutely? It was like a whole new rebirth of touring for you. Absolutely, yeah, helped it and tremendously. And like I say, uh, with the advent of that song in the nine I've got so many new art, new fans and you know, younger fans. It's just really it's really been pretty amazing to me. Well, I'm super happy that that you came by. Good luck,
Hope yourself. So many of these these vinyl records that you're so annoyed having to sign, that's problem to have is the best I would get so irritated signed these books and be like, I'm so happy to be irritated.
It was the greatest irritation you gotta Sometimes, you know, you get a little a little by ester who or just worn out with things over time when you you kind of it's good to get a little, uh, you know, check once in a while, just to kind of a little gut check and say, okay, wait a minute, I'm doing the best. I got the best job in the world. You know. I could be at roof and house and I used to do that. You know, I could be back on doing clean I used to do clean up
from moving house, which is even the ruinouse. All right, so I have I'm I'm just so lucky and so blessed, like a great family, you know, and so great friends. So you know, it's it's a it's a pleasure for me. Well, you're always welcome. I got a Christmas card from you, all right, Yes? Did you know that I did? Yes. I felt like I was giving I felt like I was giving him news. Mike. He was like, he was like, oh, you gotta Christmas. I got a Christmas car from a
couple of days. It's just a gazillion, but we're glad that you're on the list, so it was news to you. Well, she told me about it, yes, okay, good before yesterday. Regardless, I thought it was pretty cool. I'm not gonna lie to you. Thought it was pretty cool. Joe Diffie dot com slash Vinyl Joe, good luck and good to see you again. Thank you. Episode to seventeen here on the Bobby Cat