They didn't, so when we decided we weren't going to tour as much and we were taking a break and taking time off, I felt the time was right. I ended up getting a record deal with Capitol. And I got to be honest with you, I didn't think anybody would give me a record deal.
Why is that?
I just didn't think anybody would want to sign Darius Rucker. I was cool with that. I was prepared to do it on my own [laughing]. The next thing I know, Doc McGhee told me I had a deal with Capitol Records.
Were you shopping it already?
We weren't shopping at all. Doc and I talked about it and we weren't really going to shop. I was just going to make it on my own. But Doc ended up talking with a gentleman who was the president of Capitol. Doc told him that I wanted to do the country thing, and the next thing you know, I had a deal.
So perfect timing, right?
Yeah... [laughing]
There are few artists that can successfully criss-cross musical genres. When you were preparing for this album, were there any major obstacles you had to overcome?
When you come from pop to country, there's always that obstacle to overcome. It was sort of a lot of stuff. I don't look at it as obstacles. I look at it as, "I got to go to work. I got to convince people that this is real; it isn't bullshit." I don't look at it as an obstacle; I look at it as work.
Who do you think was probably the hardest audience to convince?
I think the radio programmers. I don't blame them. I signed a deal a couple of years ago and I got pushed back with the knee and the Hootie tours and my record just happened to be released when a whole bunch of pop guys came out with records. I can't blame them for going, "We're going to wait and see." Everything worked out, because "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" is a great song. Country music is all about the song and people couldn't deny it was a good song.
Did the positive response from country fans surprise you at all?
No. I think country fans are like any other fans. They love good music and good songs, especially songs that they can relate to. I think everybody can relate to "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" – everybody.
Article comments
1 - Kit O'Toole
Great interview as usual, Clayton! I'm also glad he talked about "Back to Then," as I thought that was an underrated album. Hopefully he'll continue to record R&B as well as country and rock.
FYI: I wrote a "Cutout Bin" on "Back to Then" a while back.
2 - Sandra Swartz
Hi, we were part of the group at the 14th hole of the dye golf course at MAM-wanted you to know we all bought tickets to the tournament to support your charity-also we introduced this event to many of our friends who otherwise would not have come. We also raised 500lbs of food for Helping Hands in North Myrtle Beach-hope you now have the right info.