That Eric Alper

Rick Marshall may have grown up in Kelligrews, Newfoundland, and based in Kitchener, ON, but he has salsa coursing through his blood. That’s evident after a single listen to “Viva México,” one of four musical calling cards the singer-songwriter is dropping to introduce himself to the world as an original country artist—and, not incidentally, as a happy convert to the way life gets lived south of the border.

“I came for the sun, I came for the sand/ But what you gave me, México, you can’t understand,” he sings, in homage to his wife and the exotic yet calming locale that’s captured his heart. “The ocean’s right there, and the waves say ‘Come and play.’”

The swoony chorus returns that invitation with a heartfelt vow:

“Oh, oh, México
She’s got my heart and you got my soul
No place I’d rather go
Than my México”

Mariachi-approved horn blasts and marimba tinkles mesh perfectly with the loping country backing track, making us believe this is one transcontinental love affair that’s going to last forever. And for Marshall, that isn’t just a good idea for a song: It’s a story he’s actually lived.

“I came down here many times in my life, to drink a few beers and try to unwind and part of me always said I’d like to stay”

A citizen of the Americas who resided everywhere from Kelligrews, Newfoundland to Kitchener, Ontario to Libertyville, Illinois, he at one point found himself hanging his hat in California—wherever he was kicking the dust off his boots, he could not resist the allure of Mexico.

And after decades of traveling down South and always longing to stay, the “fate” he speaks of, is the meeting of his future wife in an Irish Pub in Toronto, Canada.

As if Mexico itself, to whom he was inexplicably intertwined, was aligning the planets for him to meet this Mexican beauty, resulting in his inevitable return down South to the land of his dreams.

“I never was somebody to believe in fate, but something surely sent her my way, we’re married now and we live in México”

Life, as they say, is what happens when you’re busy getting acquainted with over a few bottles of tequila or was it Jameson’s (That is what they say, right?)

Pondering the effect of Mariachi horns on a North American country boy might make you think of “Ring of Fire”—which would be entirely appropriate, given that it was an audience with the great Johnny Cash that sealed Marshall’s professional fate as surely as those trips to Mexico determined his personal one. Being in the audience for Cash’s 1994 gig at The Bismarck Hotel in Chicago was a positively life-changing experience, he says:

“The songs, the stories, the persona, the whole vibe hit me. ‘This is what I want to do.’ Johnny Cash was a hero of mine. I was lucky enough to meet him and shake his hand at that show.”

For years thereafter, Marshall fronted the band Covered in Cash, performing the repertoire of the Man in Black in front of cheering audiences at sold-out venues. All the while, though, he was amassing a storehouse of his own original songs. So when he finally received a phone call from producer Dean Miller (son of the legendary Roger Miller) beckoning him to come to Nashville to record … well, let’s just say he wasn’t strapped for material.

“Viva México” is merely the first hint of the country magic they whipped up at Sound Emporium Studios, supported ably by an all-star cast of session players who are known for backing up some of the giants of the genre. Marshall’s own “Classic Country (Rocks My World)” namechecks 33 such titans, from Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson to Kris Kristofferson, George Jones and Tammy Wynette. Chuckling a bit at his own contribution to mythology, Marshall says the song was written behind the wheel of his truck. Seriously, how much more country can a guy get?

“Legend of the West” represents a real meeting of cultures, built on stories passed down by Marshall’s Californian grandfather and honed as a song while sitting under a starlit Mexican night with his brother-in-law. “I had my guitar, and we were sipping on some tequila,” he recalls. (See?) The lyric is a first-person farewell from an aging outlaw who’s reaching the end of a life that’s been spent “living by the gun” and “trading bullets for gold.”

Meanwhile, the melancholy and reflective “Grass Is Always Greener” is the proverbial One That Got Away song, in which our narrator laments a true love he sacrificed in pursuit of a fake one. “When you don’t know what you got,” he sums up gravely, “you let it go.”
In clumsier hands, it could all come off as studied and academic, but a sign Marshall saw on the wall of the studio when he arrived for the first session kept the proceedings properly upbeat and light. The sign contained a quotation from The Sound Emporium’s founder, Cowboy Jack Clement, which read as follows:

Remember, we are in the fun business.
If we are not having fun, we are not doing our job.

Suffice it to say this crew understood the assignment. The four songs are a blast to listen to, and sound like they were just as much of a ball to record for everybody involved. In the core band are keyboardist Billy Nobel and drummer Shawn Fichter (both of whom do double duty with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill), plus bassist Sam Hunter (Willie Nelson, George Strait, Ronnie Milsap, Glen Campbell, Elton John, Amy Grant, Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, et al) and electric guitarist Troy Lancaster, a past nominee for The Academy of Country Music’s Guitarist of the Year award).

Also appearing on two tracks each are Tim Galloway (the ACM’s 2023 Acoustic Guitar Player of the Year), steel guitarist Steve Hinson (who’s performed and/or recorded with the likes of Trace Adkins, Dolly Parton and Randy Travis) and acoustic guitarist Pat McGrath (a 25-year veteran of the Nashville scene with over 100 releases to his credit across the categories of bluegrass, folk, country and rock). Backing vocals come from Tania Hancheroff, who’s been heard on records by everyone from McGraw and Hill to Sheryl Crow, Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood and Alan Jackson.

“It was almost surreal,” Marshall says. “The opportunity to meet all of these famed studio musicians, who were all so very kind and talented— as well as having a chance to chat and trade stories with them—made the dream come alive.”

As for Miller’s contributions from behind the desk, Marshall can’t sing the man’s praises highly enough.

“Watching him in action was like taking a master class in production,” he says. “My songs are my life story, and Dean got it so it shows in these tracks. I am thrilled and honored to be able to release them to share with my friends and future fans.”

Sounds like they’ve all earned themselves a nice siesta. Tequila, anyone?