Story Behind the Song: Cole Swindell, ‘Single Saturday Night’
Ashley Gorley, Michael Hardy and Mark Holman co-wrote Cole Swindell's "Single Saturday Night," and they wasted no time in getting the track to the singer. As Swindell recalls, both Gorley and Hardy reached out to him about the song immediately, late at night, to have Swindell listen to the newly written tune.
It didn't take long for Swindell to decide he needed to record it, either. A smartly written line about red lips drinking a White Claw and another about church that flips its meaning by the song's end hooked the singer quickly.
Below, Swindell shares more of the story behind "Single Saturday Night."
I can tell you, I've had a lot of experience on single Saturday nights. They're not all bad. Do I really want 'em to end? I'm kinda on the fence on that one ... I mean, that's the thing about this song: Even though I haven't had my last single Saturday night, hopefully it's someday soon ...
For me, [the song] just kind of -- the sound of it was different; I dug that ... And I think, like I said, the White Claw [line] -- that's a huge line in it, and I'd never heard that in a song ... I mean, that line, the whole twist at the end about from going to church to picking out one, I thought that was brilliant in a fun song like this.
Like I said, I just feel like it's for everybody, whether you had your last single Saturday night or you're still looking for it. I think, whatever side you're on, everybody can enjoy it ...
[Hardy], he's been around a little bit; he's written some huge songs ... I just think the way he thinks about things, the way he words them, he's just a fresh look at things. That's the main thing: He's written some phenomenal songs, but to me, just his whole vibe, it's just Hardy. He's the dude right now: Everything he writes is great ... He's always got a cooler way of you do than saying things, and that's what songwriting's all about ...
[Ashley's] the GOAT ... He's unbelievable, but he works for it. You watch his work ethic, and he's just such a good person. In the writing room, he's amazing, but [he's also] a family guy. He's just -- he's somebody you want to look up to, and he, to me, is somebody I definitely, definitely look up to, not just in the writing room, but in real life.
To me, just the way he thinks and the way he works ... I learn every time I'm in the room with him. I can't say enough. I love the guy; he's phenomenal ...
I remember the day [I heard "Single Saturday Night" for the first time]: We wrote with Brent Cobb that day ... It was just such a fun day, and I'll never forget, that night at Losers [Bar & Grill in Nashville], it was, like, Rhett Akins' birthday party or something, and Tracy Lawrence was playing and all this stuff, so we went out, had a few drinks and got up and sang a song, and this is, like, 10:30, and I'm like, "I'm tired; I've gotta get out of here."
So I went home, and I'm sitting there on my couch, watching TV, at, like, 11-something, and this song comes through from Gorley, and he's like, "Yours if you want it." That's what he told me: "It's yours if you want it."
I'm like, "What is this?" And then, 10 seconds later -- I didn't even listen to it yet -- Hardy sends me a text, and he's like, "Hey, check this out; it's brand-new."
So I'm like, two of my favorite guys, favorite songwriters, just sent me the same song at the same time. I should probably listen to it.
So ... I'm listening to it, and I hear it one time, and I didn't even listen on headphones, I heard it on my phone ... I knew it from one listen ... I was like, "I've gotta hear that again."
I went and got my headphones, and I probably listened to it 10 times in a row. I knew right then -- I was like, "This is it." Thank God, they let me record it.
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