Jon Pardi Dishes on Drive-In Shows, Live Covers Album
"I thought it was something we could all do in this year," he said.
Jon Pardi offered some interesting thoughts and news on the most-recent episode of The Justin Moore Podcast, joining his buddy to dish on his Live From The Drive-In experience and announce a brand-new record.
Pardi headlined Nashville’s first-ever drive-in concert on July 10, helping Music City get it’s live-performance groove back in front of thousands of socially distanced fans. But with COVID-19 infections skyrocketing across the country, Pardi didn’t say much about the show in its aftermath — the timing just wasn’t right. Now though, he’s revealed his impression of “the new normal.”
“I thought it was great, and I thought it was something we could all do in this year,” Pardi told his host. “Be safe, have fans come out and be safe, play music and get that concert feeling. Everybody knows it’s not gonna be the same. We’re just not there to go slam back, sit next to each other with people you don’t know. And it’s a complicated thing, but I will say [organizers] did a good job. It was impressive, a lot of people came, and it was a big ol’ stage, a big ol’ [public address system], and we jammed. It felt good.”
Pardi was the first artist of the three-night drive-in series, which also featured Brad Paisley and Darius Rucker in the parking lot of Nashville’s Nissan Stadium. Other shows happened simultaneously in St. Louis and Indianapolis, and unlike some other drive-in events, this one found a live band onstage … not a recorded projection. For most, it was for the first live-music experience since the pandemic began. And to Pardi, it was an unforgettable opportunity.
“You remember your first time opening up for a big artist? And it was kinda quiet when you came out because the people are so far away?” he asked Moore. “It was about like that. Everybody is there for you, but yet it’s your first time ever doing anything like this, and we were so excited to play. We didn’t care how it felt. We could hear the crowd, they were yelling and of course the people way in the back, it’s hard for them to even get their voice that loud, but they were trying.
“The cool thing was, we got offstage and got a shot for the encore, and they’d honk their horns!” he went on. “You’d just hear all these horns like ‘whaaaaaaaaaa! whaaaaaaaa!’ … Everybody got it, and everybody knew we were all battling the same thing.”
Later on, the traditionally-flavored star revealed some big news, announcing a “jam record” of eight covers recorded in his workshop. Coming out in August and likely titled Live From My Shop, Pardi describes it as an old-school, in-the-moment style live recording, featuring covers of some of his favorite songs by Tom Petty, George Strait, Keith Whitley, Prince, Dwight Yoakam, Joe Diffie and more.
“What I would say, if you’re in your backyard grilling or whatever, turn this shit up and just rock out,” he said with a laugh.
Check out the rest of the episode for an update on Pardi’s wedding plans and the story of Moore passing on Pardi’s mega-hit, “Dirt On My Boots.” And tune in to all of The Justin Moore Podcast on Moore’s YouTube page.
