1.) We’re excited to be speaking today with acclaimed singer and songwriter Doyle Turner; greetings and salutations, Doyle! Before we dive into the proverbial Q&A mosh-pit, how goes your 2023 thus far?

Thank you for having me!  

2023 has thus far been SO GOOD!  So many amazements to this point, so many songs, and such promise as I look forward to so many exciting things!   I’ve started a Patreon where I write a Song just for my patrons every month, so I’m writing even more with the support of a great community.  More writing = more good for me, as songwriting is the best!

2.) Major plaudits and kudos for your brand-new single Run a Little Faster which also features a brilliant turn from fellow artist Sarah Morris! What was the genesis of this gem of a tune? How did it all come into being?

I write with the online “Singer Songwriter Songwriting Challenge,” and have met so many outstanding singer songwriters through that group.  Dave Novak and I have co-written several songs as a part of that group, and in January of 2022, we had agreed to co-write again.  He messaged me that he had a melodic hook that was keeping him up at night.  When I read that I thought, YES, here we GO!  Our prompt word for that week was “sleeve,” and through a lot of voice memo recordings going back and forth, Dave and I wrote “Run A Little Faster.”

Dave is a computer genius, so I recorded a video of my acoustic guitar and my vocal, and he recorded the electric guitar to my track.  He took both of our videos and spliced them together for the group.  The crazy thing about all that is the electric guitar track that Dave did for our song group video, is the guitar track that appears on the single.  Dave is an amazement.

Speaking of amazements, when Sarah Morris heard the song on the “Singer Songwriter Songwriting Challenge” page, she reached out to Dave and me, saying that she heard a harmony part.  Dave and I knew that meant something special was happening here, and we took her up on her offer right away.  Sarah recorded three-part harmonies right from her famed “Big Green Bathroom,” so the credits on the track include “BGB Studios!”

3.) What was your collaboration process like with fellow wordsmith and musical artist Sarah Morris on Run a Little Faster?

Sarah’s contribution was strictly harmonies on this track, though I have written with her before.  Sarah is my songwriting hero, and working on a song with her is a bit like an apprenticeship.  I watch closely, learn from everything she tries, and do my best to contribute.  Sarah is a lot like my friends Ted Hajnasiewicz and Matthew French, where they all have learned to turn on the tap of creativity, and generate many ideas in a short amount of time.  They do this with such a huge amount of commitment to the process, not worrying whether an idea is good or bad, just whether or not it enriches the song.  I’ve co written with all three, and it is a wondrous thing to watch and take part in.  I learn a lot from those songwriters.  

4.) Speaking of collaborations, who was your producer on Run a Little Faster and what did that collaboration look like in the studio?

I think the producing credit goes to Dave Novak, Sarah Morris, Troy Foss, and myself.  We all had pieces and parts of the production that we did individually.  Dave recorded the bass and electric guitar, and programmed the drums from his home studio, and deserves so much credit for all of that including the initial mixes and producing credit.  Sarah did all of her harmonies in “The Big Green Bathroom Studios,” recording and producing her vocals.  A note on those vocals, Sarah’s deep knowledge of the recording and mixing process made the vocals she recorded so easy to mix.  There was a ton of forethought into how she recorded those parts.  Sarah recorded with a vision for the final product.  I recorded the acoustic guitar and my vocals at Supple Studios with head engineer Troy Foss.  Troy has been a part of every one of my projects, so we have this work flow that has become second nature.  It is a shorthand where production ideas and creativity result.  Troy and I were producing as we recorded my parts and mixed and mastered the track.    

5.) How is Run a Little Faster similar to some of your past music? How is it different?

“Run A Little Faster” is vastly different because it is a true collaboration between myself and Dave Novak.  Dave has such storytelling skill in his lyrics, and I tend to lean more toward lyrics that are perhaps more poetic.  

Writing with Dave always affects the type of groove a song will have.  My songs have groove, but are more lyrics-focused, where Dave has deep roots and country influences and all of that 70’s rock sound to his melody and phrasing.  His Telecaster growl and bite on this track is something that sets this song apart from anything else I’ve ever done.

Dave has written songs for far longer than I have, and the perspective he brings to the writing process brings any song we cowrite to a new level.  He’s got those years of experience that benefit anything I work on with him.  

I think there is similarity to the rest of my work in the chorus of “Run A Little Faster.”  The chorus is more dreamy, leaning toward the romantic idea of running away from everything familiar for love, and wishing upon a star.  

6.) What differentiates Run a Little Faster from the Distinguished Competition on the 2023 music scene?

I think this song has a strong narrative, a catchy groove, and an edge that pushes against the country sound that’s out there.  This song finds a home in the country genre, but leans out over the edge of that box.  We’ve always thought it had a car-chase kind of feel to it, and Dave’s Telecaster work just carries the listener from section to section.  It’s a pretty unique melding of vocal warmth and guitar grit, plus there’s just all that motion that this song has.  As you listen, there is this really cool hand off from guitar to vocal, to harmony, and back to the electric guitar.

It’s catchy like a pop song might be, but gritty – somebody referred to Dave’s guitar tone as “swampy,” and I don’t know if that’s true, but I like it.

7.) The music video for Run a Little Faster looks as if it were a real joy to create and bring to life! Were you involved in pretty much all of the aspects of fashioning together this memorable video?

The video is a collaboration between myself and Doni Rawan.  I sent him the song and some ideas on key parts of the song to highlight.  We went back and forth with several drafts, crafting the type of video that would best represent this song.  It was the first time that I had worked this closely with editing video.  I treated the video like I would a final mix process with an audio track, giving time-stamp specifics about things that I thought were effective and possibilities for refinement.  I did some of the final tweaks and edits, but most of the beautiful 4K video work is Doni’s.  

8.) Who inspires you musically?

There are so many artists.  It all depends upon the quality of the songwriting.  I’m definitely a lyric-focused writer, so I am deeply inspired by those lyrics-forward songwriters like Jason Isbell, Tyler Childers, John Prine, Lori McKenna, and Sarah Morris.  

I grew up listening to the KFGO AM Radio out of Fargo, ND, so 70s country is where I started with music.  Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson are so deeply ingrained into who I am as a musician and songwriter.  Carrying that forward, I am inspired by the songwriting of Minnesota singer/songwriters Emily Haavik, Christopher David Hanson, Ted Hajnasiewicz, Matthew French, Andy Ulseth, and Nikki Lemire.  Each has this command of the language that is ultimately used to best serve the song.  I feel lucky to be living in this time where amazing songs and stellar songwriters seem to be everywhere.

9.) On the heels of the release of Run a Little Faster, can fans look forward to catching you on the performing/touring circuit?

My friend Ted Hajnsiewicz and I have been working on a duo project known as “The International Treasures.”  Incidentally, it is a moniker given to us by our dear friend Matthew French.  Matt is such a wonderful and genuine person that it feels like a gift.  The Treasures are playing The Aster Cafe in support of Amanda B. Perry on Thursday, March 30th at 7 PM.  We are also appearing on a triple bill with Taylor James Donskey and Grand Glad on Thursday, April 20th at Bryant Lake Bowl in Minneapolis.  On April 29th, we’ll be playing Dusty’s Big Green Booth in Northeast Minneapolis with Eli Gardner and Josh Cleveland.  The Treasures are working on a northern Minnesota swing in June and a visit to Iowa sometime in August.

10.) What does your trusty Magic 8 Ball say about a possible LP or EP release from you before the end of 2023?

I’m so glad you asked!  I must have gotten a defective Magic 8 Ball, because every answer has been a wonderful one so far for this year.  Exciting things are coming up in 2023!  The International Treasures are working towards an album release in Minneapolis on September 17, 2023. We’ve recorded our first album, “Together we are the International Treasures,” and are reaching the final stages of mixing, headed to mastering.  Early summer should see a single or two being dropped, so stay tuned!

11.) Any final thoughts which you might like to share with readers about Run a Little Faster?

Just that I’m so very grateful that I got to be a part of this song!  From step one to releasing the single this week, it has been such a joy.  It definitely is a collaboration that has taught me so much.  I think that collaborative magic is something that is palpable as you listen to this song.  It really has been something special for me. 

12.) Final – SILLY! – Question: Favorite movie about the music scene – This Is Spinal Tap, Almost Famous, La Bamba or Walk the Line?

YES – Are you kidding me?  Walk The Line all the way!  Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash are staple figures in my childhood.  Some kids had fairy tales, I had Johnny Cash!