Roger Creager will bring his own style of country to the State Theatre Thursday in support of his new album Here It Is, released in August.
Creager said his combination of genres boils down to good old country music.
“I play a mixture of things, but I’ve always said I’ve played a particular style of county music,” Creager said. “But really I just want to make music that my buddies would listen to at the deer camp. It’s just country music that’s still tough enough for guys to listen to.”
Creager shies away from the mainstream, pop-country music these days.
“That’s not me,” he said, describing the state of the current country scene.
Creager’s last album was released in 2005, so touring has been his mainstay.
“Hopefully you get better,” he said. “We’ve certainly been touring our butts off. Something like 180 shows a year. I don’t want to say maturing . but maybe maturing.”
Creager said drinking, the subject of many country songs, is sometimes the subject of his music.
“It has a little to do with it,” Creager said. “Drinking and country music go hand in hand sometimes. That’s not all there is to it; it’s not even half of it. I’m not gonna lie and say they don’t have anything to do with each other. Of course it kind of gets to be what I’m known for, but really it’s a small part of it.”
Creager’s songs also have a lot to do with loneliness.
“With ‘Late Night Case of the Blues,’ it’s really kind of a reflective song, kind of a lonely song, being lonely at night,” he said. “You kind of iron out the wrinkles in your own life by writing these songs, so I’m not a sad person. I have the coolest job in the world.”
Creager said his songs, whether sad or joyful, allow him to express himself.
“Sometimes you find yourself down and you can work it out by writing about it,” he said. “Also ‘I Love Being Lonesome’ is not a sad song, it’s a jamming song.”
Some of Creager’s songs deal with just having a good time and life on the road.
“With ‘Things Look Good Around Here,’ it’s just a bunch of snapshots from different bars and different cities,” Creager said. “It’s just me and the guys out on the road and having fun, loving what we do.”
Of all these songs, listening to them on a CD or MP3 player is a lot different from hearing them live.
“On the CD, we spend hours perfecting to make sure everything is just right,” Creager said. “At the live show, I’m content with saying ‘Hello people, this is us and that’s how we sound.’ We’re not as concerned with not being perfect; we’re more concerned with laying down a groove and getting the people into the show.”
But Creager is not all about the sound. He enjoys the fact that people go to his shows to have a good time.
“People enjoy going to a show for good music,” Creager said. “But really when you go out to have fun, you go out to have fun. So that’s why, in the back of my mind, I always know the music needs to be good, but the people are here to have fun . and so am I.”
Creager has enjoyed the success of his new album, giving him clout with the biggest of country music stars. Here It Is reached the top 10 downloads on MySpace soon after its initial release.
“That has never happened, and they put us on the country music genre, which means we’re competing with George Strait, Toby Keith and Kenny Chesney,” Creager said. “You know, the superstars. That means much, much more because of who we’re competing against.”
With all of this success, Creager’s fan base is ever-expanding.
“Last summer we had our first European tour. We’ve played in Mexico for 10 years, but that was brand new for us,” Creager said. “It was a rare treat for us. Having music take us around the world is a dream come true, and I’ve never really considered anything a dream come true. It’s just who I am and it’s what we do. We work really hard and we play hard.”
Even though he is happy about his success, Creager’s influences move toward the older country legends.
“My influences range from Jimmy Buffet, Jerry Jeff Walker, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Englebert Humperdink,” Creager said. “No, I’m just kidding [about that last one].”
Although a native Texas country musician, he enjoys traveling for his fans.
“We’ve played … three times at the State Theatre,” Creager said. “I love it. About a year and a half ago, we stumbled into the Theatre, and it was great. We’ve been back four times in 18 months, so obviously we love it. The people [in Starkville] are super cool. It’s a great college town.”