Dierks Bentley – Concert Tour Dates 2008

A milestone in Dierks Bentley’s career, “Long Trip Alone” raced to the top of the CMT and Billboard charts. In an interview with Dial-Globe he said the song started off about his wife but then became about all the people in your life. By the end, he said, it became more of a prayer. Either way, the song seems to show a more mature and serious side of Dierks that had not come out until that point in his career although he didn’t seem intent on coming across that way. “I think it just kind of happened that way. I think in my mind there is always a push ahead with the live show and push ahead to take it somewhere new. I’m not content just to put out an album that sounds like the record before. I was trying to move forward in that direction and I think with this record some stuff came out, you know, in songwriting. I’ve been on the road for the last four years straight. So when you sit on the front seat of a bus that long, you really think about a lot of heavy things at times. And a song like “Long Trip Alone” is more of a prayer than a song to me. Some stuff came out that is kind of bigger sounding and with bigger messages. We’ve kept it in line with some songs that are definitely honky-tonk, beer joint stompers. But there’s definitely some big songs on this record.”

Dierks Bentley Details: Arizona native and Nashville bound Dierks Bentley takes a completely grass-roots approach to touring and playing. Performing live has always been his passion, and his real reason for making music. Bentley calls himself a country music missionary, and the live show is his testament.

“I want to wake up every morning thinking I’ve got to make the most of this day,” he says of his open-armed embrace of the road. “If we’re playing a corn-dog fair, I get out there and check out the horses and the cows and the prizes and hang out and meet people. You get to be a country music missionary. You’re touching people’s lives every day. You’re influencing these people. So I try to make the most out of every day.”

When asked about his influences, many of them gained from his time as an intern at The Nashville Network, Dierks Bentley has this to say:

“I’ve stolen from the best, man, for sure. Waylon Jennings’ grit and that attitude, we try to toss it into our show a little bit. Johnny Cash, sometimes you can’t tell if it’s a love song or a spiritual song. I think that’s really cool.”

“It’s not your dad’s country music,” he said. “It’s youthful, it’s runnin’ around, it’s people jumping off stage, it’s a wild show. I think it’s still country music, but I definitely incorporate some other genres in there as far as the feel of the live show goes.”

Dierks Bentley kicked off the latest edition of his live show last week. The Throttle Wide Open Tour features opening acts Bucky Covington and Luke Bryan.