Skip Ewing: “Dogs Raise our Spirits and Dispel Loneliness”

GRAMMY-nominated singer/songwriter Skip Ewing is an American country music legend. Skip has been active since 1988 and has recorded nine studio albums with 15 singles on the Billboard country charts.

He just released a brand new song "Road Dog". The track was inspired by Ewing’s beloved dog, Shotgun, who is named after the seat he loves to occupy.

Skip's 2020 album, Wyoming, was met with large critical acclaim that resulted in over 1 million streams as well as a PBS Concert Special. In addition to his own artistry, Ewing has had songs recorded by Keith Urban, Zac Brown Band, George Strait, Keb Mo, Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson, and numerous others.

His No. 1 hits include Collin Raye’s “Love, Me,” Diamond Rio’s “I Believe,” Kenny Chesney’s “You Had Me from Hello" and many more.

Skip caught up with K9 Magazine to talk about his dogs, work, and life.

Tell us all about all the dogs you've loved in your life. (this is your chance to tell us everything about your dogs, past or present. Names, ages, breeds - we want to know everything!)

Animals have always played an important role in my life. Had I not followed this musical path I very well may have gone into veterinary science. All of our dogs have basically found us. Or at least, they came to us when we could responsibly take in another family member.

The first dog I remember having as a child was a black schnauzer poodle mix named Trixie. I fostered several strays in between. One in particular was a pit bull mix stray that was lost when we were building a Habitat for Humanity house in Tennessee. We named him “Hammer”, and we found him a great home in the country.

Next was Tikka, (named after the Indian dish Tikka Masala). She was a brindle Red Heeler mix who was fiercely loyal and great with kids. Along with Tikka came Luvi, an Aussie Spaniel mix who really became my best friend and traveled with me everywhere. Tikka was with us for 8 years and lived to be about 11. Amazingly, Luvi lived to be 17!

She was the kind of dog who would follow me on horseback trails, run ahead to lay in the water in the direction she thought we would head, and would follow me no matter what horse I was on, even switching mid-ride. Awesome dog, super smart, incredibly devoted, and as loving as her name suggests! I still miss her.

My wife Linda already had her rascal of a Jack Russel named “Jack” when we met. Jack was with us from then until a couple of years after we moved to Wyoming. We didn’t rush into another dog after Jack, as losing a pup always leaves an emptiness. However, I think it’s good to allow space for a new dog rather than try to fill that emptiness.

So, once again, we waited until we knew it was time. For years, Linda has followed Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, a conscientious adoption and rescue organization out of Nashville, TN. On one of their social posts, she saw a litter of 10 Pyrenees Aussie Shepherd mixes abandoned in Texas.

The pup, which we ultimately named Shotgun, came from there. We looked at a picture and a short video and knew it was right. We left Wyoming and drove to Nashville a couple of days later to pick him up and officially adopt. We couldn’t feel more blessed than we did. He weighs in at just over a hundred pounds now.

He’s a knucklehead with a serious case of Pyre-paw, and a propensity to look at you as if he has no idea what you’re talking about—even when he knows full well what “come here” means. (Insert shaking our heads and smiling.) He’s one of the best dogs ever when we’re hiking, never straying out of earshot and rarely out of view, but definitely loves getting that massive coat drenched in the river.

Because of the photos Linda has taken, as well as the album and single artwork around “Road Dog,” Shotgun has become quite the celebrity. He didn’t win an Oscar for it, but so far as we know, he’s the only dog to ever lift his leg on cue in a music video.

We laughed aloud the first time we watched it back, and it still makes us laugh every time. “Road Dog” was just released as a single on Texas Regional Radio, so if you live in the greater Texas area, Oklahoma, or surrounding states, let the radio stations there know you’d like to hear it!

In the “Road Dog” music video, Linda was able to include around 130 different dogs—all of them photos from our fans and followers. It’s fun! Spoiler alert, there is another song coming that features dogs as well!

Our most recent pup came to us just before Christmas this year. The night before Christmas Eve, the Lander Pet Connection here in Lander, Wyoming posted that every dog in their adoption center had found a foster for the holidays except for one, a shepherd husky mix—so far as they could tell. Here we met “Holly” for the first time, and she was as sweet as you can imagine.

A bit shy, but expressive and affectionate. She absolutely stole our hearts. We thought someone had already filed to adopt her and simply couldn’t get to her because of the holiday weather.

However, that wasn’t the case. And regardless of the fact that our little cabin already had 2 humans, a 100lb dog, a cat named November that barks (we thought that was an appropriate mention for K9), 4 horses in the corral (Aramis, Crow, Tammy, and Toby), and an aging mule deer doe that thinks our kitchen window is a drive-thru, we agreed that if our hearts had room for Holly, then our house had room for her, too.

Once again, we were blessed. Holly kept her Christmas-y name, and the rest is serious puppy-ness, house training chewed everything, and some of the best big dog cuddles anywhere. (She’s already 50 lbs and still growing.) She will literally just come lay on top of us to be petted.

She’s a smart sensitive soul who wants to please, she took to house training quickly, and though Shotgun wasn’t quite sure how he felt about a new baby sister taking some of his attention, they quickly grew fond of each other and the family dynamic found its balance.

 

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You're obviously a huge dog lover, as evidenced in your song “Road Dog.” How long have dogs been a major part of your life and how would you explain the importance of dogs to someone who hadn't ever experienced the joy of a canine/human relationship in their life?

Dogs were my first introduction to animal-human relationships, but many animals have had a powerful influence on my journey as a human. Elephants, horses, cats, and many wild animal species. In 2012, I sold everything in Nashville, left the music business, and went on the road to study horsemanship.

It was a spiritual journey for me and I learned more about myself in those years than I had in the previous 20. Though horses are a much different animal, the relationships I learned to develop with them strengthened my understanding and skillfulness in all of my relationships, even the relationships I have with my artistry and the listeners and supporters I’m blessed to have.

Obviously, that includes my wife and all of our four-legged family members. Chief Seattle said, “If the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit.” I believe he was right. Seems to me dogs are living proof of that.

We all know how amazingly dogs raise our spirits and dispel loneliness. More so, if we pay attention (similar to horses) dogs can show us where we are most beautifully human and inspire us to continue the journey to greater self-awareness, compassion, and loving-kindness.

Aside from my wife Linda, my adopted mom and dad, meditation, and the opportunity to share my heart and spirit through music, animals have been the most powerfully positive influence in my life. They continue to be.

And I hope I continue to grow as a human in ways that help me understand and love all beings more skillfully—including myself. If any animal can teach us how to love more unselfishly, it must surely be dogs.

What are your favorite things to do with your dog(s)?

Holly and Shotgun are so much an integral part of our family that we basically do everything we can with them. And we love it all! We can leave our cabin here in Wyoming and walk into a vast wilderness. Shotgun and I explore and hike as much as we can together when the weather supports us.

He absolutely loves it, and so do I. Spring arrives late here in Wyoming, but when it finally arrives this year, it will be Holly’s chance to join us, and I bet she’ll love it just as much as we do! Our house is filled with undeniable love (and craziness!) but it’s made so much more beautiful by our pups. It is also strewn with toys, dog beds, hidden chew sticks, and—especially as our house is quite small—dog hair.

Don't let it keep you from coming over for supper, (I’m a pretty good cook.) but in our house, dog hair is definitely a condiment and a fashion statement. (I don’t know who said it first, but I love that saying.) I think most people with a dog can relate to it.

In fact, I wrote “Road Dog” because I believe every dog owner can relate to the paradox: “…mud on the backseats, hair on your good clothes, dog breath, and paw prints, wet nose smudges on the windows,” can actually bring us joy.

Describe the last time you laughed out loud because of something you saw a dog do.

Our dogs make us laugh often, so that’s a question that’s full of answers. However, one of the most recent behaviors is Holly diving under the bed while Linda and I are on it. She stole Shotgun’s chew and literally dove under the bed with it. She’s about ¾ of Shotgun’s frame size, much faster, lithe, and lean.

Shotgun just stopped in his tracks, looked under the bed, cocked his head, then looked up and gave me the same sad eyes and little whimper he gives when he’s lost his toy under the couch.

Meanwhile, Holly was chewing happily beneath us. Shotgun got a treat, and Holly figured out that under our bed was a pretty good place to be. It’s now her favorite nap place. In fact, that’s exactly where she is as I’m writing this.

Forever in awe of the natural beauty our planet has to offer. Happy #EarthDay! 🌎 #Wyoming #Environment #CedarFlute #Nature #SkipEwing pic.twitter.com/DT4ZJ2LFO8

— Skip Ewing (@skipewing) April 22, 2024

You have a really interesting career... What advice would you give to the many people who wanted to follow your path in career terms?

I often question whether I’m the one who should offer advice or critique. I find it more powerful to ask questions than to offer advice. If you want to be a recording artist, a writer, or a musician, ask yourself what you’re willing to sacrifice to do it. Am I being truthful to myself? Am I compromising my integrity?

Is my heart and not just my head part of the equation? If you’re a writer, it can be powerful to ask yourself, “Have I said what I wanted to say just as I wanted to say it?” If the answer is no, don’t settle, stay after it.

I’ve distilled the way I aspire to live my life down to one sentence. To the best of your understanding, do the most loving thing. Sometimes doing the most loving thing is saying no. Sometimes it means leaning into what hurts. Sometimes it means admitting that you have a long way to go.

Sometimes it means sticking to your belief when it is counter to the opinions of the majority or the current norm. All I know is, whether it’s personal, business, or the way I speak to myself and pursue my aspirations, if to the best of my understanding I do the most loving thing, I can respect my own efforts and hopefully be an influence in making the world a more beautiful place—no matter how big or small.

Tell us about some of the most memorable moments from your work.

• Dropping the phone in a hotel lobby when I found out George Jones had cut a song of mine. First major artist cut I’d ever had.
• Sitting across from Willie Nelson in the studio, both of us playing and singing a song I’d written for his album.
• Hearing Tim McGraw sing my song “It Wasn’t His Child” at the Nobel Peace Prize Awards.
• Writing with Maya Angelou.
• Hearing one of my songs on the radio for the first time. “Your Memory Wins Again” while driving near Knoxville, TN.
• Singing the national anthem on July 4 at Aviano Air Base in Aviano Italy and having F-16s do a flyover.
• Working in the studio with Kyle Lehning on the albums from this new chapter (“Wyoming” and “Road To California”). It has been the most artistically joyous and creative time in my career.

Tell us about your new album “Road To California” which will be released this Spring. What can fans expect from this new batch of songs?

The “Road To California” album feels like a natural artistic progression following up the ‘Wyoming’ album. It’s fulfilling to create for the listener, to be able to speak in a musical and lyrical way that’s meaningful and true to who I am.

Thanks to Kyle Lehning, and all of the brilliant musicians, singers, and engineers who shared their talents on this project, we have an album with diversity, integrity, artistry, musicality, humor, and meaning. We get to be all over the road here (pun intended!) from shattered to stoked, broken up and broken down to fired up and freewheeling!

That’s the continuing dream – to be able to sing, write, and play music I believe in, and to offer it to people who believe in me. There are listeners and supporters who really do listen. (God loves them.)

They expect depth, poeticism, musicianship, and artistic diversity. I love those listeners for being there, and I want to give them all I’ve got. I hope you’ll be one of them!

Finish the following sentence, "Dogs are..."...

Good for the soul.

This is always a tough question and often requires some serious thought… If dogs had the ability to speak and you could ask your dog just one question and one question only, what would you ask them and what do you think that they'd say?

I thought of many things I might ask. I’m certain their senses experience what ours cannot. They can hear higher frequencies. They have an acute sense of smell that is capable of far more discernment than ours.

So, a scientific question might yield information that could advance the understanding of dogs and humans. However, I landed on the thought that I would save that question until it might help me understand what he or she needed when it was pivotal.

When I could ask something like, Where does it hurt? Or “What can we do to help you?” That might not be what you were looking for, but it’s what came to me after considering the question.

And finally, Quick-Fire Questions - Which Do You Prefer?

Big dogs or little dogs?

Big dogs.

Calm, relaxed dogs or dogs who live at 100mph?

Calm, relaxed dogs.

Dogs who do as they're asked most of the time or dogs who do pretty much whatever they like whenever they like?

As they're asked most of the time.

Dogs who love to walk by your side or dogs who like to race off and cover ten thousand yards in 3 seconds?

By our side.

The fastest route or the scenic route with your dogs?

Scenic.

There are several organizations that we appreciate and support in Wyoming and our town of Dubois in particular. One is the Wyoming Hunger initiative. The hardships and hunger challenges many face daily, especially after the effect of COVID continue to be difficult and significant.

This organization benefits every county in the state. Dubois is also the home of the National Bighorn Sheep Center. Their mission is to provide education and outreach for the national conservation of wild sheep, wildlife, and wildlands.

The Whiskey Basin conservation area for Bighorn Sheep is basically our backyard. So that hits close to home in many ways!

Thanks, Skip!

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Photo credits: Linda Gordon-Ewing