Fort Worth, Texas seems to generate Grammy and Oscar winning songwriters and musicians as easily as Lynchburg, Tennessee distills whisky. 2020 Grammy Award winner Delbert McClinton is from Fort Worth. Grammy winning hit songwriters Townes Van Zandt and Jerry Lynn Williams are also from Fort Worth, as are Oscar winning producer T-Bone Burnett and Grammy winning, millennial blues sensation Leon Bridges. So is John Pops Dennie, a songwriter who is living up to the musical reputation of his hometown and the company he keeps.

Dennie cut his musical teeth hanging and working with legendary musicians like Red Young, keyboardist with Eric Burdon and the Animals; world renowned bassist Chuck Rainey of Steely Dan fame; and Buddy Whittington, guitar player for John Mayal and the Bluesbreakers. “John’s music is an authentic reflection of the fertile North Texas environment where he was raised. He follows a long line of gifted songwriters and singers from Texas. Rest assured there will be more to come from him,” says Warren Ham, Fort Worth native and member of Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band.

Dennie is a deeply philosophical songwriter who places a high value on connecting with people through his music. He is a social activist who believes in reaching others through common experiences despite differences of opinion. Moreover, he has an innate ability to pack a lyrical punch as plotlines develop and resolve within the space of a four-minute song. As America trudges through a surreal 2020, Dennie’s new album “I’ve Got Something to Say” comes at just the right time. The record’s musical stylings run deep and wide with sounds that are at once distinctively Texan, American and global. While Dennie characterizes the album as relevant, but not political, others have described many of the songs as well within the realm of protest music. "In almost 50 years as a disc jockey, playing music's greatest tunes in one of America's biggest markets, I'm not sure I've ever heard a more complete album of conscience. It's a statement of ideals and admonitions that's instrumentally rich, musically interesting, and lyrically surprising. You can't not listen,” says Jody Dean, CBS 11. Indeed, “Here We Are” makes a statement about the consequences of our political choices. “Rose Garden” is a peaceful protest song inspired by the birth of Dennie’s first grandchild and an American legacy of equality and justice that is missing in action. “Adrift” is a commentary on extremism and the bizarre ideas folks will believe to the detriment of their own communities. The album is not without great storytelling, as heard on the tracks “Escape from Bull Run,” a nod to western movies and the civil war, and “Creole Lady,” a swampy southern rocker with a storyline that illustrates the lynching of a black woman whose only mistake was loving a white man in 1930’s America. Texas guitar slinger, Matt Tedder’s beautiful guitar work and Dennie’s twenty-four carat voice illuminate the bluesy “Long Black Cadillac Train,” a song cowritten with Christian Williams about her late father Jerry Lynn Williams, a legendary songwriter who scored hits for Eric Clapton, Robert Plant, Bonnie Rait, B.B King, Stevie Ray Vaughn and more. The album also contains heart rending ballads like “You Can’t Hear Me,” a song that cries out for the addict that you just couldn’t save, and “The Pendulum Swings,” a song that portrays the desolate clock ticking that grows louder when one finds oneself alone at the end of life’s journey. And like every great journey, the title track progresses with buoyant strides that shout to the world about the woman of your dreams. Coming from the creative reserves of a man who is as comfortable listening to Mozart as he is Nirvana, it’s safe to say listeners can find almost anything on this album.

“The music business has changed but writing good songs will always be the same. Thankfully, it’s still about connecting with strangers through shared feelings and experiences.” -John Dennie