BR: So here’s the question you’ve probably been asked a million times already and will be asked another million times before it’s all said and done: I’m guessing you guys have orbited in and out of each others’ musical circles for a while now. Was there a slap-your-forehead moment of saying, “Damn – let’s make a band out of this thing; let’s do a record!”?

JM: Ummm …. actually, me and Matt had never met before the first day we were scheduled to be in the studio. (laughs)

BR: Really?

JM: Yeah. It was gonna be just me and Taylor – we just hung out together for a couple of weeks to write. Then Corndawg kind of made his way into there and Matt wanted to come up – he and Taylor knew each other. I said, “Yeah, sure …” (laughs)

So Matt flew up; I picked him up at the airport; we had a beer on the way to the studio – and then we did three songs in one night. (laughs)

BR: Oh, wow – which three?

JM: “Thanks For Nothing”, “Daydreaming”, and “Blue Eyes”.

BR: Pretty good for the first sit-down together.

JM: (laughs) Yeah … and then Griffin came in to play drums on the second and third day of recording.

BR: Ah – so you must’ve overdubbed him onto “Blue Eyes”, then?

JM: Actually, the drums on “Blue Eyes” are, like, double-layered. We recorded that the first night with me playing just the bass drum, the toms, and the maracas – that was the original idea we had. But we ended up overdubbing Griffin on the high-hat and snare.

BR: “Blue Eyes” is a great stick-in-your-head tune. I’ve referred to it as a cousin to that old Neil Young tune “Dance, Dance, Dance”. Taylor’s laying down those roundy-round licks that sound like some crazy-ass fiddler – only he’s doing it on a Tele.

JM: (laughs) He’s got some chops, man.

[At this point, dear reader, we’re going to pretend this is a radio interview you’re listening to – maybe some hip NPR program, okay? And we’re going to cut away to some music right now – the tune “Daydreaming”, a John McCauley-penned song that opens up the Middle Brother album:

Early in the morning too hungover to go back to sleep
Every sound is amplified, every light so dizzying
Listen for a while to the neighbors having sex
Wishing I could lay my aching head upon your breast

Can’t I dream another dream?
Can’t I close my eyes and wander back to sleep?

But I’m daydreaming about you
I know that it’s wrong
That I’m daydreaming about you
‘Cause I’ve been daydreaming for so long

A Bloody Mary afternoon, waste my time out in the sun
Hum myself some melodies, maybe I can sing you one
Maybe I could find you sitting down at the café
Maybe I could join you at your table today

Can’t I just get what I want?
Can’t I be the man that steals away your heart?

But I’m daydreaming about you
I know that it’s wrong
That I’m daydreaming about you
I’ve been daydreaming for so long
Yeah, I’ve been daydreaming for so long

Later in the evening take the bus down and see the show
You’ll be behind the bar, I’ll get a beer,
Leave a tip and lay low
I’m just a kid that gets his drinks from you
Who stands around and doesn’t have a clue

Can’t I hold you close to me?
Can’t I ever say to you just what I mean?

But I’m daydreaming about you
I know that it’s wrong
That I’m daydreaming about you
Yes, I’ve been daydreaming for so long
Oh yeah, I’ve been daydreaming for so long

There you go, folks: four-minutes-and-fifty-seconds of finger-picking sweetness and throat-scraping heartache.

And now back to our interview with John McCauley.]

BR: I think “Daydreaming” may be the best hangover song I’ve ever heard.

JM: (laughs) Thank you.

BR: Is there a story behind that we can talk about – or is it, uh, too painful to relate?

JM: No, it’s okay. That was written about when I was a teenager sneaking into this bar to drink and there was this one girl – a bartender – who used to serve me even though I was, you know, underage. I kinda had a thing for her, which never, uh, went anywhere. (laughs) That’s what that song is about.

BR: And was that one of the tunes you wrote during the sessions for the album?

JM: No. I actually wrote it a couple months before we started the Middle Brother project. I was in Madrid and couldn’t sleep because the neighbors in the next hotel room over were having, uh, really loud sex. (laughter)

BR: I remember being stuck in a dingy motel up in Canada years ago. It was my birthday, I was all by myself, it was colder than hell in the room, and everything stunk of fishmeal. There were a lot of trucks that lugged fishmeal that used to frequent this place, I guess. And that was the deal: next door to me were a couple of truckers and their, umm, dates for the evening. It was awful. It sounded like a porno version of the bar scene from Star Wars…Anyway, let’s move on. So you had some songs already in your pocket before the sessions started?

JM: Yeah, it was a mix. Me and Taylor wrote some stuff for the album, but he also had some songs that didn’t work with Dawes. And then Matt wasn’t there for the writing part; he came in with some songs that he had written that didn’t fit with Delta Spirit.

BR: The album works as a collective, though. Other than the change in who’s singing lead on any given tune, it doesn’t sound like three separate EPs spliced together or whatever … there’s a true group vibe to the whole album.

JM: Thank you. I’m glad it turned out the way it did.

BR: So where do you take things from here?

JM: Well … we don’t really know what we’re doing. (laughs) Dawes has a new record that’s about to come out; Delta Spirit’s working on a new one; and Deer Tick’s about to go in the studio to start recording.

So we’re not sure what to do with Middle Brother after this spurt – we are playing the Newport Folk Festival, though.

BR: There are worse things than having so many cool projects going on, right?

JM: Right. (laughs)

BR: Okay, well good luck with everything that’s going on and thanks for taking the time to do this. And, you know, take care of yourself.

JM: Oh, yeah … I’m having some vitamins right now. (laughs)

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