I got the chance to interview the beautifully talented Tommy Ash last week and I am happy to now bring you all that interview. Please remember to like this page in orders to ensure you don’t miss any of the musician interviews coming up in 2018 and also please share this post cause the simple act of clicking share helps spread and strengthen the music that we all love.
Round 1 – How long have you been a touring musician and on average about how many shows do you play each year?
Tommy – “Well I have been singing all my life, but I’ve been playing music live since I was 13, playing with a band every Friday and Saturday night at local bars. I took a break in high school, got a little buck wild for a bit and then 2010 put a band together again. When I lived in AZ we played about 100-200+ shows a year. I moved to Nashville in April 2016 and have been playing mostly around Tennessee and a few shows in Texas, but I am planning some tour dates for 2018.”
Round 2 – Do you have plans to release a new album anytime soon and if so is there any details you can tell us about it?
Tommy – “By golly YES I am way overdue! I actually started recording an album two years ago in Arizona and then I moved to Nashville. The songs have changed so much just from playing them out live that I decided to scratch the album that I started. Getting comfortable with the songs before hitting the studio and having a better idea on what I want as far as sound, tones and instruments. I am finishing writing for the next album and trying to get a feel for who I want to work with. I don’t want to jump into anything without knowing I can be proud of the finished product. I want to work with good people and people that get what I do. I don’t have time to waist, this is true but shit I also don’t have the money to blow.”
Round 3 – I know it’s hard, but if you could pick one song to listen to before you die, what song would you choose?
Tommy – “Well this all depends on how I am dying. If I am just old or sick and I know my time on earth is coming to an end, I think I would say Otis Redding “Sitting on the dock of the bay” This song is so well written and so beautiful it just feels like the biggest breath of fresh air and sunshine. Seems like a good peaceful way to kick the bucket.
But If I am dying from like an overdose, driving my car off a cliff or someone has a gun to my head, or aliens are taking over the world etc., etc. Well I would say I would crank up some Jerry Reed, Waylon Jennings, John Anderson, Sturgill Simpson, something with some balls so I can go out with a bang and get a good rush.”
Still Round 3 – Why does that song and those lyrics mean so much to you?
Tommy – “Well If we are talking about if I die sick or old.. “Sitting at the dock of the bay” … I lost my dog a few months back. He had liver failure and we used to lay outside on a blanket and soak in the sun because it would make him feel better. That song would play a lot on my ipod shuffle and it was some of the last good moments I had with him. It is a beautiful song and some of my most cherished memories. ”
Round 4 – I love animals so I ask everyone this question but do you have any pets, if so can you tell us about them?
Tommy – “I love animals WAY too much it is a fucking problem…well not for me but maybe my marriage.
I lost my best friend Billy in August. He meant the world to me. I rescued him from the shelter in 2010. A few days after adopting him I noticed he seemed sick and took him to the vet and found out he had liver failure. He fought hard for 7 years. August of 2017 we lost him, his little body finally had enough and gave up. He was a 70’s brown miniature pinscher/ wiener dog mix. “Wiener pincher” haha! But I have 3 other dogs.
Patsy a little chi mix that I rescued from the kill list at a shelter in Arizona. She was labeled as “aggressive” and they couldn’t get near her, so we scooped her into a laundry basket and took her home.
Then there is Shooter, a brindle colored min pinscher/ Papillon mix. His nick name is “Beef”.
Next is “Roadie” The cutest little black dog with tiny little short legs. The most annoying little fucker on the planet! We can’t put him up for adoption. The next owners would kill him! And if anyone is going to get the pleasure of killing him it is going to be me or my husband for putting up with his crazy ass for this long. Hahaha! (Joke)
Then there is “Girlfriend” a cat we found in my neighbor’s boat when she was only a few weeks old.
Next is “Roberto” an Amazon Parrot. I started a band in 2010 and one of our first shows was at a Mexican club in Arizona called “La Casa del Mariachi” They had two birds at the entrance of the club. They were not very well cared for and one of the birds died. So we took the other one, “Roberto”, home. I am actually driving to Arizona to pick him up from my mom and bring him back to Tennessee. Wait until you hear him sing! Maybe he will make it on the next album.”
Round 5 – What is your favorite thing to do outside of the music World?
Tommy – “Ahh man… Well a good looking man by my side, my fur babies and some good snacks! My husband (Ben lead guitar player) We like to get on the couch with all of our fur creatures, throw on our comfy clothes, turn the lights down low and get every kind of snack you can image, candy, chips, cookies, spicy pickles, and a giant coke from the gas station and watch movies all night long.
Or I like to hang out on my dads boat in Florida and do a little fishing as well. I need my own boat.. I will call it “Tommy’s Ark” and take all of my animals on it with me.”
Final Call – This is an open question so tell your fans and the people reading this whatever you would like them to know.
Tommy – “Man my fans are the BEST! They have supported me for so many years and have been so kind and have become like family to me. Anyone that supports you in your career and shares that joy with you I call a dang good friend. I try my best to always write back to Instagram messages and facebook messages because they truly mean the world to me.
Gotta throw a big ol shout out to my buddy Channing Wilson for being such a badass and making badass music. Also my girl Brea Burns in Arizona for keeping the good country alive out there. Check out her music and if you are reading this and you are a fan of country music check out all the badass Nashville cats like Alex Williams, Sarah Gayle Meech, Brent Cobb, Emily Nenni, Kristina Murray, Laura Mae Socks, The Cowpokes, Joshua Hedley, Tony Martinez, Chance McCoy, Wade Sapp, Flying Buffaloes. So much great music cooking up in Nashville right now, make sure to check them all out.
