Remember how good the Zac Brown Band used to be?
Obviously, everybody always thinks about their biggest hit, “Chicken Fried,” but my favorite ZBB song has always been “Colder Weather.” The power in Zac’s voice, yet the vulnerability in the lyrics, has just always done something for me that only a truly great country song can do.
And his live performances of the song? Absolutely unreal.
The song, released in 2010, was co-written by Zac’s guitarist Coy Bowles, Wyatt Durrette (who also co-wrote “Beautiful Crazy” and “Even Though I’m Leaving” with Luke Combs) and Levi
Lowrey.
And now Durrette and Lowrey have their own musical project, performing together as Yesterday’s Wine.
On their YouTube channel, Yesterday’s Wine posted a video of the songwriters discussing their hit song. In it, Durrette and Lowrey explain that the bridge of “Colder Weather” was originally supposed to be the chorus of a different Zac Brown Band song. But the writers felt that the words fit so perfectly with “Colder Weather” that they inserted it as a bridge, and removed one of the original verses they had written.
That last verse never made it on to the album, but thanks to Yesterday’s Wine, it’s not lost forever.
The duo also posted a video of themselves performing an acoustic version of “Colder Weather,” complete with that “lost” verse that was taken out of the song.
“And in the rearview he can see a fire glowing
His hesitation comes and goes without her knowing
And in the distance through the windshield
He can see that snow is falling
And he wonders if his calling
Is worth one more goodbye.”
That’s some damn fine country music right there.
