Today's guest of Gateway to the Smokies Podcast is Charles Humphrey III, a Grammy Award-winning Songwriter, Producer, and Musician. Currently leading his own group – the Songs from the Road Band – Humphrey was a charter member of the acclaimed Steep Canyon Rangers for 15 years and performed around the world.

Aside from being a musician, he is also an expert fly-fishing guide and endurance runner. Joseph and Charles will talk about Music on the Fly (fishing) in the Smokies.

Tune in for this fun conversation at TalkRadio.nyc or watch the Facebook Livestream by Clicking Here.

Segment 1

Tonight’s show starts off with special announcements from tonight’s sponsors. Then host Joseph introduces a special guest Charles Humphrey III. Charles introduces himself and how he got into, to begin with back in middle school and how it followed him through college and after. He explained how music helped him through a transitional time in his life and how blessed he felt because of it.

Segment 2

Coming back from the break, Joseph brings out a quote from a magazine coverage from Charles and his bluegrass band. Charles explains bluegrass and the significance of this quote. With his band, Charles wants to spread joy to his audience through his music. He talks about the record label that he founded and shares the story of how it was named. Before the break, Charles talks about fly fishing and how he finds it very meditating. He loves doing it with others and connects it to his songwriting, in that he loves collaborating with others as well. He talks about some of his favorite songwriting collaborations.

Segment 3

This segment of tonight’s episode talks about a songwriting Bootcamp that Charles is partnering up with in order to create a community of new and old songwriters to get together and create music. A great opportunity for new writers to meet and learn from more experienced writers and for older writers to collaborate with each other and get fresh new ideas. The conversation goes back to fly fishing, where Charles talks more about his favorite locations to fish. He drops ways to contact Charles and his company in order to find out more about trout ventures and other fly fishing-related questions.

Segment 4

Charles starts the last segment with a small story. He then goes through his go-to places to visit that he recommends to visitors. He gives great taco place recommendations and parks to visit. The podcast ends with Host Joseph announcing more special events and announcements from sponsors.

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TRANSCRIPT

00:03:18.480 –> 00:03:30.480 Joseph McElroy: hey welcome to the gateway to the smokies podcast this podcast is about America’s most visited national parks great smoky mountains National Park in the surrounding towns.

00:03:30.960 –> 00:03:39.810 Joseph McElroy: these areas are filled with ancient natural beauty and deep-storied history and rich mountain cultures that we explore with weekly episodes.

00:03:40.320 –> 00:03:52.440 Joseph McElroy: I am Joseph Franklyn McElroy man of the world, but also with deep roots in these mountains my family is living the great smoky for over 200 years my business is in travel, but my heart is in culture.

00:03:53.340 –> 00:04:00.510 Joseph McElroy: Today we’re talking about music and fly fishing and the mountain of the smokies but first will tell you about our sponsors.

00:04:01.710 –> 00:04:05.460 Joseph McElroy: So I want you to imagine a place evocative of motor courts

00:04:08.310 –> 00:04:14.880 Joseph McElroy: of the past modern and vibrant with the Chic Appalachian feel a place for adventure and for relaxation.

00:04:15.300 –> 00:04:24.330 Joseph McElroy: Imagine a place where you can fish in a mountain heritage trout stream grill the catch on the fire, eat accompanied by the fine wine or craft beers of this area.

00:04:24.690 –> 00:04:39.450 Joseph McElroy: Imagine a place of old-time music and world cultural sounds there is no, there is no other place like Meadowlark Motel in Maggie Valley North Carolina your smoky mountain adventure starts with where you stay.

00:04:40.560 –> 00:04:42.930 Joseph McElroy: we’re at the Meadowlark Motels actually having a.

00:04:44.580 –> 00:04:53.490 Joseph McElroy: Traditional mountain heritage event, this weekend called traditional skills and naturalist weekend it’s going from Friday to Sunday.

00:04:53.910 –> 00:05:04.800 Joseph McElroy: And they’re going to talk about ginseng in the mountain and granny medicine herbs and explore the law of the mountains and we know lectures and wanderings entertaining.

00:05:09.900 –> 00:05:12.060 Joseph McElroy: Music seven o’clock on.

00:05:13.530 –> 00:05:25.650 Joseph McElroy: William Ritters some Scottish Highland heritage music for Mike Ogletree and Saturday there’ll be wildflowers and native plants of Appalachian with the tour guide them naturalist Adam Bigelow who’s on this show.

00:05:26.190 –> 00:05:32.850 Joseph McElroy: we’re going to have the healing powers in the history of ginseng with novelists and naturals Jim Hamilton.

00:05:33.930 –> 00:05:37.290 Joseph McElroy: there’s going to be medicinal herbs and granny medicine with.

00:05:38.910 –> 00:05:48.690 Joseph McElroy: Herbal naturalists and there’s gonna be a program by Tyson Sampson the claim charity naturalist and historian and lecture.

00:05:49.620 –> 00:05:58.260 Joseph McElroy: there’s gonna be an afternoon of woods wandering and discussions, we met with them now naturalist tour guide lecturer and author Abby Artemisia

00:05:59.190 –> 00:06:06.480 Joseph McElroy: there’s gonna be an heirloom seed discussion with acclaimed naturalist historian farmer and musician William Ritters who was on this show.

00:06:10.080 –> 00:06:16.680 Joseph McElroy: me needing more like on Sunday morning as you’re leaving their mission Gospel music and bluegrass.

00:06:17.280 –> 00:06:29.880 Joseph McElroy: You know inspired music and so it’s gonna be a great weekend go to Meadowlarkmotel.com look at the smoky mountain heritage Center to find out information about getting tickets are just coming stay at the hotel all the guests go free.

00:06:31.560 –> 00:06:46.260 Joseph McElroy: Today we’re talking like I said we’re talking about music and fly fishing and we have a great guest Charles Humphrey III is a grammy award-winning songwriter-producer and musician and owner of Lucks Dumpy Toad records.

00:06:47.220 –> 00:06:59.940 Joseph McElroy: And aside from his talents as a musician Charles is also an expert fly fishing guide and an endurance runner and resides with this family in Asheville North Carolina Hello, Charles.

00:07:00.270 –> 00:07:01.590 Charles Humphrey: hey Joseph how you doing buddy?

00:07:01.950 –> 00:07:03.270 Joseph McElroy: I’m doing pretty good.

00:07:03.840 –> 00:07:06.480 Charles Humphrey: Some on the show it’s an honor to be here.

00:07:09.360 –> 00:07:28.380 Joseph McElroy: happy to be honoring me actually I appreciate, you know the I’ve looked at your work and you really are tremendous you know you have a tremendous resume frankly, but you grew up in Greenville North Carolina which is out East I think that’s where ECU is right, yes.

00:07:29.430 –> 00:07:32.100 Joseph McElroy: And, and you love ball sports and.

00:07:32.100 –> 00:07:37.290 Joseph McElroy: What surfing, and you attended and UNC-Chapel hill I put on my do cat now.

00:07:38.040 –> 00:07:38.880 Charles humphrey: Oh, please.

00:07:43.860 –> 00:07:44.670 Charles humphrey: nobody’s perfect.

00:07:44.940 –> 00:07:47.880 Joseph McElroy: nobody’s perfect I got the same thing to say about you, but.

00:07:49.980 –> 00:07:58.440 Joseph McElroy: But you did study classical bass there so I’ll give you a pass you put on the sophisticated like a little bit.

00:08:00.780 –> 00:08:07.410 Joseph McElroy: and international studies and you focus on economics and Latin America, and your plan was certain.

00:08:09.660 –> 00:08:19.080 Joseph McElroy: Costa Rica, so he wrote Grammy award-winning musician living in Asheville North Carolina so my big question is, why did you pick the smoky mountains living.

00:08:20.250 –> 00:08:22.830 Charles Humphrey: Well, the music brought me here for sure.

00:08:23.520 –> 00:08:26.700 Charles Humphrey: it’s a rich cultural area and.

00:08:26.790 –> 00:08:34.710 Charles Humphrey: I’ve been playing music full time since college and it brought me to Asheville there’s a lot to learn there’s a lot of shares a lot of places to perform.

00:08:35.040 –> 00:08:42.600 Charles Humphrey: A lot of inspiration and these mountains and it’s also easy to get in other markets, you know, six, eight hours in any direction you can be in a.

00:08:43.080 –> 00:08:48.570 Charles Humphrey: New musical market so it’s a good place to base if you’re traveling musician as well, but.

00:08:48.990 –> 00:09:00.540 Charles Humphrey: Always love the beach I always grew up like say fishing and surfing there, but I absolutely fell in love with the mountains made in my home, you know get to running and fishing and music and I can’t imagine living anywhere else now.

00:09:01.500 –> 00:09:07.800 Joseph McElroy: And for those of you listening, whether you going to visit here, it just made a major a major point you’re probably with it.

00:09:10.050 –> 00:09:22.290 Joseph McElroy: it’s easily of getting to know right it’s one of the natural wonders of the planet, but you can get here within a few hours, a lot of cases so Charles you know you mentioned, you had a.

00:09:23.610 –> 00:09:32.130 Joseph McElroy: You have a really great resume and we’ll talk a little bit more about it, but when you were a kid were you into music, did you have your own band growing up or something like that.

00:09:33.090 –> 00:09:39.720 Charles Humphrey: I started music in middle school in the orchestra, mainly as a way to get out of class.

00:09:40.680 –> 00:09:49.830 Charles Humphrey: And started on violin and transition to the upright bass didn’t play in high school, I was more into sports and then my freshman year college.

00:09:50.370 –> 00:09:54.630 Charles Humphrey: First week, I was there I had this dream that I was in Carnegie Hall and my buddy Pearl.

00:09:55.140 –> 00:10:05.430 Charles Humphrey: Who we used to cut up with on the upright bass section and middle school showed me how to play the upright bass I started to remember and all these things I’d learned years ago it was like a life-changing dream.

00:10:05.790 –> 00:10:18.540 Charles Humphrey: The very next day, I went out and signed up for classical bass lessons just on my own at the university, and then it turns out, you know, several years later, one of my first gigs touring around.

00:10:19.740 –> 00:10:24.270 Charles Humphrey: With Steve Martin, we actually got to play Carnegie Hall, so it was a dream come true, I thought that was kind of cool.

00:10:26.640 –> 00:10:29.220 Joseph McElroy: It is nice when your childhood dreams come true.

00:10:30.420 –> 00:10:32.040 Joseph McElroy: What was that was as.

00:10:32.040 –> 00:10:32.460 Charles Humphrey: far as.

00:10:32.850 –> 00:10:36.690 Charles Humphrey: As far as growing up with music, though, you know, I was around a lot of country music.

00:10:37.230 –> 00:10:48.960 Charles Humphrey: From my grandfather and that extensive music collection and then, in my dad and I have a younger sister, and if we were misbehaving in the car the punishment was he’d put on our stuff wants across Texas because we hated it.

00:10:49.650 –> 00:10:53.700 Charles Humphrey: And that was our punishment, but I kind of learned to love that awesome.

00:10:56.340 –> 00:11:09.030 Joseph McElroy: So you in college, you did form some friends and relationships with friends you end up creating you know your claim band is the steep Canyon Rangers and you’re with a few.

00:11:10.950 –> 00:11:11.730 Joseph McElroy: years.

00:11:12.750 –> 00:11:20.160 Joseph McElroy: And you but you all started that in college, I mean that’s sort of interesting for you to be cut, did you feel like you are a professional musician in college?

00:11:20.880 –> 00:11:32.460 Charles Humphrey: I think a lot of bands that start out in college start out as friends and have a good launchpad because people come from different backgrounds and people are looking for things to do you know I think that’s a classic story.

00:11:33.540 –> 00:11:38.520 Charles Humphrey: But I’ve really had to work at my craft of music and songwriting especially to hone it.

00:11:38.910 –> 00:11:52.200 Charles Humphrey: To a place and put in your time and travel and learn the business side of things, as well as the performance to truly become professional but it’s always been fun and you know if you’re doing something you love, they say you never work a day in your life.

00:11:52.680 –> 00:12:00.870 Joseph McElroy: Where you know, then you decided to go out and explore your own creativity and different venues.

00:12:02.160 –> 00:12:08.850 Joseph McElroy: And that must have been a difficult decision to do that’s like a life transition right, so you went.

00:12:10.920 –> 00:12:19.860 Joseph McElroy: out and bought thing that was in your youth and then you started approaching middle age let’s say you were in middle age approaching it and you.

00:12:20.640 –> 00:12:29.160 Joseph McElroy: And you really you know went out developed other creative venues other things that you’re doing was it difficult to make that transition for you?

00:12:30.420 –> 00:12:40.770 Charles Humphrey: Well songs from the road band started in 2004 as a recording project based around me Mark Schema can say important who are still in the band kind of been the core.

00:12:41.220 –> 00:12:49.230 Charles Humphrey: And we’ve always supplemented it with friends and other local all-stars to put out it started as a recording band, where we would just.

00:12:49.470 –> 00:12:57.270Charles Humphrey: record songs and share them with the world and then about five or six years ago, we had the opportunity to put the band on the road full time, so we did that.

00:12:57.780 –> 00:13:09.360 Charles Humphrey: And it’s been very rewarding in 2019 we played over 200 shows in one year we’re really beating down the road and then, as everyone knows, covert hit not put the brakes on everything.

00:13:09.870 –> 00:13:20.940 Charles Humphrey: And that was a time of transition for me I’d always a song or it and a lot of it was virtual that during that time, I think I wrote like 140 songs all co-written with other people.

00:13:21.300 –> 00:13:31.410 Charles Humphrey: From right here, where I’m sitting now just like this on a zoom meeting and also opened up the opportunity to become a professional fishing guide, which is something that has always been pursued as a hobby before.

00:13:31.980 –> 00:13:38.070 Charles Humphrey: So there were some Those are some of the blessings of the strange times we’ve been coming through recently.

00:13:39.030 –> 00:13:51.060 Joseph McElroy: So you know I wanted to ask you a question about the name of the band I’m always fascinated by names, a new called it, you guys call it songs from the road, a road band.

00:13:51.570 –> 00:13:52.530 Charles Humphrey: Is there you know.

00:13:52.590 –> 00:13:59.160 Charles Humphrey: it’s an interesting story, the first record was just called songs from the road, because they were songs that I’ve written by traveling the road.

00:13:59.610 –> 00:14:06.120 Charles Humphrey: And then we kept making records, so it kind of became songs on the road band, by default, and then we would title the different records.

00:14:06.510 –> 00:14:17.580Charles Humphrey: So I don’t think I ever truly got a chance to just sit down and think of, hey what really cool band name would be make this band extremely popular nobody’s ever heard of it so.

00:14:17.940 –> 00:14:21.540 Charles Humphrey: We might have missed the button identity but that’s where the name came from.

00:14:22.410 –> 00:14:35.760 Joseph McElroy: Well it’s interesting because you just mentioned, you went on the road 200 times right, so you sort of name your band the brand that you are living it’s all kind of authentic you’re like an authentic brand.

00:14:36.210 –> 00:14:36.900 Charles Humphrey: Right yes.

00:14:36.960 –> 00:14:40.890 Charles Humphrey: We are the troubadours we have probably slept on your couch or.

00:14:42.270 –> 00:14:53.520 Charles Humphrey: Your van or bus or train or plane and inspire it’s an inspiring way of life it’s a hard way of life, I don’t think I ever want to go back to doing that many shows a year.

00:14:53.790 –> 00:15:03.120Charles Humphrey: yeah we’re kind of stepping back and trying to you know to stay relevant in certain markets work on the records and play the festivals and in bigger venues.

00:15:04.050 –> 00:15:10.800 Joseph McElroy: Well cool so um we’re going to take a break, right now, when we come back we’ll talk more about your music and then we’ll get into that fly fishing.

00:15:12.090 –> 00:15:14.220 Charles Humphrey: yeah man let’s do it sounds good to talk about.

00:17:33.060 –> 00:17:43.050 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklyn McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast my guest Charles Humphrey III so Charles.

00:17:44.280 –> 00:17:55.860 Joseph McElroy: I was reading on your website and there was a quote, that said that your band songs from the road band are considered the epitome of a new grass band so tell me what is new grass.

00:17:56.970 –> 00:18:04.500 Charles Humphrey: Man, you know that’s an interesting question I guess well bluegrass is a relatively new form of music started in 1946 with

00:18:05.100 –> 00:18:14.610 Charles Humphrey: Bill Monroe and the other first-generation pioneers like the Stanley brothers and Earl Scruggs and there was a band that came along, new grass revival and they seemed a little.

00:18:15.570 –> 00:18:16.320 Joseph McElroy: little different.

00:18:16.350 –> 00:18:26.340Charles Humphrey: Little more aggressive style play covers, and you know they were considered just you know, for the time just groundbreaking and I’ve always been one of my favorite bands still are.

00:18:27.180 –> 00:18:35.010 Charles Humphrey: And you go back and listen to that stuff now and it’s almost like it sounds traditional compared to some of the new stuff that’s coming out, I mean you’ve got pioneers like.

00:18:36.630 –> 00:18:42.870 Charles Humphrey: Green sky bluegrass and billy strings that are using acoustic instruments, but basically playing rock and roll and.

00:18:43.260 –> 00:18:49.110 Charles Humphrey: Turning people on to bluegrass I’ve never even heard of the genre which is good for everyone, you know the.

00:18:49.590 –> 00:18:59.310 Charles Humphrey: a rising tide raises all the boats and we kind of fall somewhere in between there we’ve got a deep respect for traditional music and incorporated it into our sound.

00:18:59.760 –> 00:19:14.610 Charles Humphrey: As well as bringing in outside of music and doing it in a style and our records have typically been more traditional than the live show, sometimes in the live show we will incorporate or big lights and.

00:19:14.970 –> 00:19:26.670 Charles Humphrey: Our favorite crowd to play for are just people that love music not people that are there to see 30 bands that are all considered the same random music, which is fine, too, so.

00:19:27.960 –> 00:19:37.050 Charles Humphrey: I guess it’s based around the songwriting and the harmony singing and the improvement in providing solos within the format of the song.

00:19:37.890 –> 00:19:42.840 Charles Humphrey: So I don’t know what’s new grass what’s old grass, but.

00:19:43.320 –> 00:19:54.300 Charles Humphrey: You know we’re trying to bring something new to it and keep the music alive basically spread joy through music make people happy, let them forget about their everyday worries and when they’re spending their hard-earned money to see some loud music.

00:19:55.140 –> 00:20:11.580 Joseph McElroy: I love that I mean you know, I think that the essences you know are there’s joy bluegrass that this catching I motel we play when people come in there’s bluegrass play, and you know you see people just light up with it.

00:20:12.060 –> 00:20:12.480 Charles Humphrey: That is a.

00:20:13.440 –> 00:20:14.460 That is a great spot.

00:20:16.320 –> 00:20:20.520 Charles Humphrey: Is it right there on the river and Maggie valley it’s really nice but.

00:20:20.970 –> 00:20:25.080 Joseph McElroy: cool so you know I’ve had a number of bluegrass musicians come through here.

00:20:26.160 –> 00:20:35.430 Joseph McElroy: You know, one or two of them, I mentioned that you know the that there’s real deep respect for tradition, but sometimes it becomes also.

00:20:36.240 –> 00:20:48.810 Joseph McElroy: a hard and fast rule that somebody actually uses the phrase there’s a bluegrass mafia out there that won’t you won’t let you introduce new things do you find that sometimes sort of the stuff that you guys want to do to do it’s hard to introduce.

00:20:49.380 –> 00:20:54.360 Charles Humphrey: Well, not anymore, I mean I’ve been doing this for 25 years, and you know played.

00:20:54.810 –> 00:21:07.830 CharlesHumphrey: upright bass for 20 of that now I’m playing electric bass and I don’t feel like I have to prove anything anybody, but I will tell you this, when I was young man fought like hell, to get into that traditional scene and once I got there, I felt like hell, to get out of it.

00:21:12.390 –> 00:21:13.260 Joseph McElroy: To get to do.

00:21:14.880 –> 00:21:15.270 Charles Humphrey: I was.

00:21:15.390 –> 00:21:16.470 Joseph McElroy: I was just fishing with.

00:21:16.500 –> 00:21:17.250 Charles Humphrey: My good buddy.

00:21:18.660 –> 00:21:22.320 CharlesHumphrey: David Long yesterday, and he was like Charles you remember the first time we met.

00:21:23.100 –> 00:21:39.300 Charles Humphrey: I was like not really tell me to remind me and he said, we were at this festival, I was playing with the wildwood valley boys and the Stanley brothers were there, Jim and Jesse were there Ralph Stanley was there I was like the man it’s awesome I forgot to know about that.

00:21:40.320 –> 00:21:43.590 Charles Humphrey: We told him that line he had about the same reaction as you.

00:21:45.750 –> 00:21:53.700 Joseph McElroy: well know it’s true, I think that a lot of times you know when you’re young you really work to get into acceptance in a certain area and then all of a sudden, you realize.

00:21:54.090 –> 00:22:03.690 Joseph McElroy: boy it’s constraining me from what I really want to do well, so I’m glad you mentioned it to make your way out there because you’re doing some great work now.

00:22:03.720 –> 00:22:06.690 Charles Humphrey: Well, you know we like to have a foot in all places.

00:22:07.650 –> 00:22:13.080 Joseph McElroy: So you, yeah I mean you doing all this stuff touring writing setting out went out, you know all that.

00:22:17.460 –> 00:22:23.310 Joseph McElroy: You wrongs right, I know you did a lot of the important songs in the past that you’ve been done for.

00:22:24.750 –> 00:22:32.310 Joseph McElroy: You also started a record label what it looks Luckscdumpy toad records represent and what’s the name stands for.

00:22:32.670 –> 00:22:33.930 Charles Humphrey: yeah that’s a good question.

00:22:35.190 –> 00:22:40.050 Charles Humphrey: Another one of those situations where maybe not enough time was put into selecting the name.

00:22:41.790 –> 00:22:49.800Charles Humphrey: Well, I had that first song from the road band record coming out and it was about to be released and I was having to register all the songs I didn’t have time.

00:22:50.430 –> 00:23:02.370 Charles Humphrey: to vet the names there’s a kind of a timeline with when you’re choosing your publishing company names, where you turn in what your top choices are, and if it’s already taken you didn’t get it.

00:23:03.810 –> 00:23:06.750 Charles Humphrey: And I was pretty sure that name hadn’t been taken.

00:23:09.570 –> 00:23:10.500 Charles Humphrey: It was just someone.

00:23:11.760 –> 00:23:14.880 Charles Humphrey: Saying my best friend from childhood had.

00:23:16.380 –> 00:23:18.420 Charles Humphrey: made up when night when I was visiting him in.

00:23:18.420 –> 00:23:26.520 Charles Humphrey: Wilmington North Carolina and I was like I have no idea what that means, but it’s kind of fun to say I was like nobody else has ever thought of this I’m going to put this out.

00:23:27.060 –> 00:23:33.750 Charles Humphrey: As the publishing company which became the record label for a lot of independent releases and that’s the story behind the name.

00:23:33.990 –> 00:23:40.770 Joseph McElroy: All right, well it’s as good as any right yeah sometimes it over-intellectualizing names make them on fox.

00:23:42.570 –> 00:23:44.820 Joseph McElroy: So we’re located national.

00:23:45.360 –> 00:23:51.690 Charles Humphrey: Live right here in West Asheville North Carolina to two children spends a lot of time in North Carolina.

00:23:52.350 –> 00:24:02.910 Charles Humphrey: And then, with the fishing, I’m traveling a whole lot with high trout is the name of the company I’ll work with and we got in North Georgia Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee.

00:24:03.390 –> 00:24:11.700 Charles Humphrey: So there’s a lot of getting up at 5 am and driving two or three hours to be on the River by sunrise and fishing all day and drive them back, but boy do I love it.

00:24:12.150 –> 00:24:14.370 Joseph McElroy: yeah Well, no, I mean.

00:24:18.180 –> 00:24:22.320 Joseph McElroy: With diverse passions is, I think.

00:24:23.460 –> 00:24:34.650 Joseph McElroy: it really you know, makes the life that you want to leave because you know, you can have some access discussing notable endeavors and some of them are big successes, but some are successes for yourself.

00:24:35.040 –> 00:24:47.130 Joseph McElroy: And those are purchases important absolutely is there any success that you’ve had just for yourself, you know related to say fishing with your you know it’s you know talk about a lot that you really feel proud of.

00:24:49.680 –> 00:24:51.690 Charles Humphrey: Well I’ve taken a lot of leaps of faith.

00:24:53.310 –> 00:25:05.130 Charles Humphrey: a few years ago I bought a saltwater boat and pitched a lot in oriental North Carolina and enjoy doing stuff like that for the old drum and black drum and speckled trout and.

00:25:06.720 –> 00:25:14.640 Charles Humphrey: flounder and all kinds of stuff and really made some good friends over at endurance seafood that Bruno family their commercial fisherman and area and he.

00:25:15.210 –> 00:25:30.600 Charles Humphrey: kind of showed me how to Tom on hanging on the net and do some net fishing and a record with a recreational license just trying to it came from a love of the area and wanting to learn about the fishing industry there and then you know, going from.

00:25:31.650 –> 00:25:41.160 Charles Humphrey: Primarily 99% euro nipping fly fishing style to undertaking the drift boat and guiding from the boat and have people float.

00:25:42.000 –> 00:25:44.880 Charles Humphrey: You know that was a leap of faith to and really enjoyed that so.

00:25:45.360 –> 00:25:58.770 Charles Humphrey: I think, whenever I try something new that I don’t know about I kind of go all-in on it and just try to learn as much as I can spend as much time about it, and then, when you when it comes kind of second nature, you start to feel comfortable with it, I think that’s a personal success.

00:26:00.330 –> 00:26:15.540 Joseph McElroy: Is there um do you find you know fly fishing in a way, is almost meditative and you’re on the River by yourself and then I imagine that songwriting most of the time to sort of a meditative by yourself, is there a relationship, but you find his way thing.

00:26:17.760 –> 00:26:30.030Charles Humphrey: was just by yourself, but I actually prefer to do both with other people, I mean I love fishing with other people have as much fun as watching somebody who’s just learning or someone catches it personal best fish.

00:26:30.780 –> 00:26:39.420 Charles Humphrey: just watching them meet one of their goals is doing it myself because I kind of gets the fish all the time, so I love seeing other people do it, and when it comes to songwriting I really like to co-write.

00:26:39.900 –> 00:26:50.580 Charles Humphrey: Because you get this camaraderie kind of like you and I are doing here we’re doing this show we’re working off each other we’re going off our first impressions and so you’re creating something out of nothing and you’ve got.

00:26:51.360 –> 00:26:57.000 Charles Humphrey: More first impressions to filter and shape into a song that you both can be proud of, so.

00:26:57.690 –> 00:27:08.280Charles Humphrey: You know there’s maybe the guy out there who only fishes by himself and only uses one dry fly and only matches the hatch and you know, whatever but there’s also people that like to fish together so.

00:27:08.550 –> 00:27:12.480 Charles Humphrey: I think you can get out of it, what you put into it or shape it to what you want it to be.

00:27:13.170 –> 00:27:15.840 Joseph McElroy: cool yeah that reminds me there was a big.

00:27:19.230 –> 00:27:25.290 Joseph McElroy: thing where there’s a guy that was and somewhere in the South who asked that he couldn’t find.

00:27:26.700 –> 00:27:33.960 Joseph McElroy: Somebody to go fishing with him and he got an overwhelming response from guys all over the South to be his fishing buddy.

00:27:34.260 –> 00:27:43.230 Joseph McElroy: And they didn’t care that he was gay, so it was a really heartwarming thing to see you know and counter to what you know, sometimes the southern stereotype is.

00:27:44.310 –> 00:27:50.310 Joseph McElroy: You know because it seems that you know fishing crosses all boundaries and all yeah I think.

00:27:50.310 –> 00:28:01.830 Charles Humphrey: Fishing and music bring people together in general, just like you say crossing boundaries or however you want to look at it different lifestyles kind of the same thing that experience I’ve had with the ultra running to.

00:28:02.370 –> 00:28:02.760 Joseph McElroy: yeah.

00:28:03.060 –> 00:28:13.380 Charles Humphrey: You have people going out there running these you know marathons 50 K 50 miler event 200 miler events and they come from all walks of life, you know all.

00:28:14.040 –> 00:28:18.300 Charles Humphrey: Just nobody’s alike, but they had this one thing in common, which is ultra running.

00:28:18.960 –> 00:28:24.810 Charles Humphrey: And they’re usually pretty decent people because they have at least enough discipline to train their body to build accomplish a goal like that.

00:28:25.140 –> 00:28:33.840 Charles Humphrey: And once you get out there and meet him for the first time and you’re suffering together, you have this like instant bond, and you just make all these great friends from different walks of life.

00:28:34.410 –> 00:28:49.290 Charles Humphrey: And that’s another great thing about the smoky mountains in this area is that just like there are thousands of miles of great trout streams of all varieties of fishing and styles of trout they’re equally as many mountains trails and places to run an explorer.

00:28:50.580 –> 00:29:01.380 Joseph McElroy: So I’m sensing the common theme you love co-creation right and now so cool who is who’s your favorite co-writers.

00:29:02.250 –> 00:29:08.280Charles Humphrey: And Jim Lauderdale sure people have heard of him the King of broken hearts and.

00:29:09.420 –> 00:29:13.620 Charles Humphrey: Right, a lot of a guy in Nashville Marty Datsun we’ve had some success we’ve got to.

00:29:14.100 –> 00:29:26.550 CharlesHumphrey: be a Nick dolphin a road and I wrote a song it’s been that number one for five weeks in a row now and the bluegrass today grass account a chart it’s a single that’ll be our upcoming record from songs to the roadman titled Amarillo blue.

00:29:27.690 –> 00:29:31.590 Charles Humphrey: Sean camp Charlie Chamberlain feel Barker.

00:29:33.480 –> 00:29:34.650 Tom use.

00:29:36.390 –> 00:29:39.540 Charles Humphrey: there are so many people who are right with me I’m sure I’m leaving some names out but.

00:29:39.930 –> 00:29:42.720 Joseph McElroy: who happen to read with it, wrote, with it’s you want to write with.

00:29:43.800 –> 00:29:48.930 Charles Humphrey: Oh man that’s a good question you know I kind of want to write with whoever sells a lot of records.

00:29:53.880 –> 00:29:56.160 Joseph McElroy: Right I’ll let them do all the writing and I’ll take credit.

00:29:58.170 –> 00:30:02.670 Charles Humphrey: that’s the ticket man I’ll tell you, listeners, right now if you want to get cuts right with the artist.

00:30:03.750 –> 00:30:04.200 Joseph McElroy: yeah.

00:30:05.430 –> 00:30:13.200 Joseph McElroy: that’s the secret all right when we come back let’s explore more about your efficiency in your long-distance endurance stuff, which are all both incredible.

00:30:13.560 –> 00:30:14.760 Charles Humphrey: sounds good let’s do.

00:30:18.780 –> 00:30:21.060 Joseph McElroy: manacles and how it impacts your life.

00:32:47.670 –> 00:32:59.730 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklin McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast my guest Charles Humphrey the third so Charles I would be remiss, not to mention that.

00:33:00.420 –> 00:33:11.100 Joseph McElroy: you’re planning, along with Bob plot, who is the general manager of the Meadowlark Smoky Mountain Heritage Center an exciting new songwriter camp.

00:33:12.180 –> 00:33:12.900 Charles Humphrey: We are.

00:33:12.960 –> 00:33:20.880 Charles Humphrey: Bob Bob and I’ve been talking a lot about that and we’re very excited about it, he had he shares and enthusiasm for all things.

00:33:21.810 –> 00:33:25.050 Charles Humphrey: Relating to the culture of Western North Carolina and love songwriting.

00:33:25.530 –> 00:33:32.550 Charles Humphrey: And so I jumped at the opportunity to host an event such a beautiful place where you’ve got the built-in lodging and venue and everything.

00:33:32.910 –> 00:33:40.950 Charles Humphrey: And we think that’s going to happen in the spring, potentially April and there’s a good chance that you’ll see me and some other people like.

00:33:41.610 –> 00:33:48.300 Charles Humphrey: Potentially Jim Lauderdale Sean Camp and we’ll bring in a handful of writers and lodge them and feed them and.

00:33:48.630 –> 00:34:03.660 Charles Humphrey: and work with them and share stories and show them how the recording process works talk about song pitching jam together, do you know guitar swaps and it’s going to be a really neat opportunity for people that love the craft of songwriting.

00:34:04.410 –> 00:34:09.750 Joseph McElroy: cool and I think you’re, you said you might be setting up a little studio to do some put together something rather there.

00:34:10.080 –> 00:34:16.230 Charles Humphrey: yeah you know I think it’s important for these people to see the process of our work tape or a DEMO tape might be made.

00:34:16.680 –> 00:34:26.550 Charles Humphrey: So we’ll definitely let everybody get a taste of that as well, and you know I’m sure there’ll be some songs born out of being at the camp and the writers out of there, which is always exciting.

00:34:27.330 –> 00:34:29.940 Joseph McElroy: Now, everything is mostly just for real aspiring.

00:34:31.080 –> 00:34:34.860 Joseph McElroy: songwriters are serious fans of aficionados be.

00:34:34.980 –> 00:34:36.360 Joseph McElroy: Man, well, I think.

00:34:36.420 –> 00:34:45.420 Charles Humphrey: Any level would be welcome, you know just with a range of talent, we have there obviously everyone could get something out of it, but you know it could just be like.

00:34:47.130 –> 00:34:50.970 Charles Humphrey: I don’t know, to me it would be like going to Disney world as a songwriter you know.

00:34:51.900 –> 00:35:04.590 Charles Humphrey: Work with people that caliber and such a neat location, I mean it could be a total beginner or could be an accomplished songwriter that you know, I was looking for a getaway and wants to be around some great people and create some music.

00:35:05.400 –> 00:35:14.610 Joseph McElroy: I think that being involved in the creative process, and even if you don’t actually have professional ambitions, is one of the most beautiful experiences, you can have.

00:35:15.630 –> 00:35:19.560 Joseph McElroy: In terms of you know, finding some life experiences.

00:35:21.450 –> 00:35:23.010 Joseph McElroy: Absolutely, well, I know.

00:35:24.660 –> 00:35:29.880 Charles Humphrey: People that love music or one to one to learn how to write or are just curious about it.

00:35:30.180 –> 00:35:39.660 Charles