Premiere: Ryan Smith’s Four Year Bender

Lovin' Annalee

Rough-hewn experiences define songwriter Ryan Smith who has detailed a raw portrayal of livin’ hard and escaping one’s own self-inflicted obstacles with his band Four Year Bender’s sophomore studio album, Gettin’ Gone. Two years into his sobriety, Smith reflects on a decade-long fight with addiction in this collection of 11 timeless songs.

The album deals with classic country themes like broken hearts, dark days, lonely nights, and taking the high road, and although at times Smith’s songs may sound world-weary and familiar, they throb with a very real and personal heartbeat. For example, the cheery-sounding upbeat melody of “Annalee,” belies the message, which takes a hard left turn right after the sunny opening lines; listeners know Annalee’s a real person, whatever her true name may be.

The song was written in on the dock of Smith’s family’s New England lake house, but shot in the woods, where it’s easy to get lost. Ryan explained the video a bit for Elmore readers:

“We shot the video up in the woods of Marin County. Our director Dalan McNabola suggested we keep it simple and let the song lend itself to interpretation. He made my boots look cool, so he gets a big thumbs-up on my end.

“Lyrically, I was trying to cover the spectrum of emotions after a lousy relationship. The narrator is pissed off and convinced he was done wrong, but throughout the song there are vulnerable moments of confusion and even some tenderness. Who knows? Maybe the narrator just can’t see that he is the one that screwed it all up. I like that idea, but it’s more fun to let the listener decide.”

A favorite at San Francisco’s renowned Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, Four Year Bender’s other members include Sean Leahy (electric guitar), Daria Johnson (drums, percussion), Jennifer Curiel (bass), and James Riddle (keys, accordion, vocals). Dave Zirbel (pedal steel, baritone guitar) and Ward Williams (cello) also perform on Gettin’ Gone.