When Paul Cauthen describes his new album, Black on Black, as “rock ‘n’ roll meets hell-if-I-know,” it’s the kind of flip quip fans have come to expect from the self-proclaimed “wild man” singer of “Cocaine Country Dancing.”
While his humor hasn’t waned a bit, the singer from Tyler admits he’s starting to mature as he heads into middle age.
“I’m a 38-year-old grown-ass man,” he says. “So some of this album is a little grown up.”
A little, but not much. The title track is about a macho hell-raiser who’s hopelessly full of himself. “Hot Damn” — which he says he modeled after Beck’s “Where It’s At” — is a bluesy hip-hop strut about “a two-steppin’ daddy in a two-tone Caddy.”
But, as always, Cauthen’s lyrics are almost an afterthought to his remarkable voice — a rumbly baritone that sounds like Johnny Cash duetting with Barry White. They don’t call him “Big Velvet” for nothing.
Released on Oct. 25, Black on Black is Cauthen’s fourth solo album and his debut for Atlantic Records’ Anemoia imprint. I spoke with him by phone from a West Coast stop on his current tour, which brings him to the Factory in Deep Ellum on Nov. 9. Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
How did you first get into music as a kid?
I still remember when I was 7 years old, singing three-part harmony with my granddad and grandmother, in the bathroom with great acoustics, singing “Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight.” As soon as I heard it, it just resonated. My granddad was a song leader in the Church of Christ there in Tyler, where I still live. I just learned how to sing loud and proud, I guess. Learning how to sing gospel harmony was the best thing the church instilled in me. You just knew you had a gift, and you tried to be as good as you could be.
You like to mix gospel with country, soul, rock and hip-hop. What inspired your style?
Oh, man. Growing up, I really loved the Johnny Cash/Rick Rubin tapes my granddad played, along with Roger Miller and Buddy Holly and a lot of Patsy Cline. But then I ventured out. I was listening to everything from No Doubt to freaking Green Day and Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac. Then I got into Radiohead, who broke all those boundaries. I try to have a wide sonic range, a big canvas where you can do whatever you want.
Is there a song on the new album where you tried to do something different, musically or lyrically?
Yeah. “Speaking in Cursive” is my perception of a female’s upbringing and the struggles she went through. It’s kind of a hybrid song, about my cousin, who has suffered from being an alcoholic and repeatedly had some crazy s--- go down, and it’s also about another gal I met. It’s about trying to persevere even when people are calling you crazy, like when I sing she’s “speaking in cursive, nobody heard you cry.” I think it has some of the best lines on the record.
That song reminded me of your 2019 album Room 41, which you wrote while living at the Belmont Hotel in West Dallas, while dealing with your own addiction issues. Are you comfortable talking about that period in your life?
Those Belmont years, that was just me finding out who the hell “Big Velvet” was. I’ve overcome all of that. You know, when you’re down in the dumps, it’s easy to just overindulge and not care and numb yourself. I’m lucky I climbed out alive. As far as hard drugs and staying up for days, those days are behind me. Those long [binges] are what gets you. You’re not thinking right ‘cause you’re sleep-deprived and you get anxious and paranoid, and then all the other emotions just start crumbling on you.
I mean, I can indulge in moderation and enjoy myself now: Smoking some herb, having some wine. But there’s never gonna be another Room 41.
You’ve been arrested several times for smoking weed, haven’t you?
Three times. I spent 88 days in jail for a joint of marijuana in Smith County, where I live. It’s all insane, man. I’ll just continue to go to f---ing jail for smoking marijuana for the rest of my life if I need to.
You duet with Shaboozey on his new hit album, and in April, you duetted with Lana Del Ray on the classic “Unchained Melody” during your show at Stagecoach. How did you wind up singing with Del Ray?
We were at a party hosted by Nikki Lane the night before, and we started talking. And I started singing that song, and she started singing harmony with me, and she’s like, “Well, go get a guitar!” So I did, and I was like, “Hey, I’m playing tomorrow, if you want to come up at the end of my set, I would be happy to have you onstage.”
She said she’d love to do that, but we need to practice a couple more times. So I didn’t think anything of it. The next morning, [Cauthen’s wife] Elizabeth was doing styling for some people, and she tells me, “I thought you were kidding about Lana, but she’s practicing right now while getting her makeup done.” I was like, “Cool!” It ended up being a smash.
Your wife is a fashion designer and stylist who helped create your unforgettable look in the “Hot Damn” video. Does she go out on the road with you?
She comes out for the big shows, or if we’re not gonna see each other for a while. Two weeks is our max, you know? If I don’t see her within two weeks, I’m gonna start crying into my Budweiser sitting at an Applebee’s in a corner booth all by myself. And we can’t let that happen.
Details
Paul Cauthen performs with Trampled by Turtles at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Factory in Deep Ellum, 2713 Canton St. $39 and up. axs.com.
