Craig Campbell Knew He Had ‘Something Special’ with ‘Outskirts of Heaven’
"When I started playing it live, people reacted to it in a way that I’ve never seen before," Campbell tells us.
Red Bow recording artist Craig Campbell has a new single out, and to say that he’s excited about it would be an understatement. “I’m fired up about it,” he tells us of the new release, “Outskirts of Heaven,” which hits radio this week. “When Dave Turnbull and I wrote it, it was one of those things where I had the idea, and I told him about it prior, and he said ‘Well, save it for me,’ then we got together and wrote it in about two hours. It was just one of those things where it just happened. When we got done with it, we both agreed that it was a special song. It was just one of those things where you don’t get the opportunity to be a part of a song like this very often. We’re definitely blessed.”
The spiritual lean of the song is one that comes natural for Campbell. “I grew up in a strong Southern Baptist home. I played piano at my church for years, and was in church on Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday nights all the time. It was just part of my life. I don’t claim to know everything about the Bible, but I do know what it tells us about Heaven. It’s going to be paved with golden streets, and pearly gates. Jesus will have a mansion built for us when we get there.”
The singer says that is the ultimate goal, but if there’s a creek bank and a little bit of greenery around his spot up there, he’d be okay with that. “I got to thinking about where I grew up – and where I live now, just south of Nashville – it’s the total opposite of that. It’s a super small town where everybody knows everybody. I can step out on my back porch and take a leak if I want to, or let my dog out in the front yard without a leash and let her run. So, with all of that said, Heaven – as excited as I’ll be to get there, it’s not quite my style. I heard my preacher say once ‘You can’t force a country boy to live in the city.’ The idea that I had is maybe there’s a chance that the Good Lord knows me well enough that he’ll have some acreage set aside for me on the other side of town. I wrote the song as my request.”
Though songs of a spiritual nature haven’t been the norm in the format as of late, Campbell insists he’s not trying to lead a movement, as much as he wanted to communicate a message than means a lot to him. “This is just a song that I wrote. I wasn’t taking into consideration any other factors as far as what’s on the radio or anything like that, it’s just something that I wanted to get out of my heart. When I started playing it live, people reacted to it in a way that I’ve never seen before. I talked to the people at Broken Bow, and told them there was something special about it. That’s how it all worked out.”
Last fall, Campbell, known for such hits as “Fish” and “Keep Them Kisses Comin,” just recently wrapped up a tour stint with label mate Randy Houser. He says it was a blast. “We had a good time. I’ve known him for years. He’s one of the people in this business that I would call a buddy in Nashville. When he invited me out, I was fired up. That was my first tour, which was a big deal for me, and we had a really good time. I hope he enjoyed having me out there. He’s got great fans and great music. I enjoyed watching him sing every night. He definitely has a great sense of humor, and his laugh is so infectious. He’s a good guy to be around. We went to the opening day of Star Wars with him, which was a lot of fun, and then we played that night.”
Campbell also has a bit of experience being on the road with another major star – Luke Bryan. “It was a long time ago – before he got his deal with Capitol. We crossed paths, and I went out and did some shows with him, and we’ve been buddies ever since,” said the singer, who noted that even then, Bryan had that certain something special. “He knew what he wanted. Looking back, you could see that he had his eye on the prize, and was definitely committed to being Entertainer of the Year even back then. I had a lot of great memories of those days.”
Campbell is crossing his fingers for success with the new record, as he knows if it does well, his chances of releasing his first album in four years is that much greater. “We’re always working on new music, always writing, always recording. Of course, an album is always based on the success of a hit song, so we need a hit to set the stage to release an album. If all goes well, and the song is a hit, maybe we can put out an album this year. Who knows what is going to happen? We’re just doing it one song at a time.”
