I wrote a song with Molly when she first moved to town. “Friend and a Friend” came together around Molly’s riff and my title idea. At the time I was touring more than not, and was deep enough in my career that I recognized the essential pattern — that my fans came one at a time, through an endless string of small live shows which — apart from the occasional festival spot or hometown headlining — took place in the living rooms, barns, and basements of middle America. I was making a career a Friend at a time. A friend and a friend and another friend.
Molly’s rapid ascent was already underway. That astonishing video of her burning up the Townes Van Zandt classic White Freightliner Blues was circulating among industry pros and bluegrass aficionados alike and her debut album (and all the best-of nominations it sparked) was less than a year away. Friend and a Friend made it on that album. Made me proud then. Makes me proud now.
