Earlier this year, Paste sent a contingent aboard the Cayamo cruise in the Western Caribbean, and a couple days in, Buddy Miller and Emmylou Harris joined an already esteemed line-up that included Patty Griffin, Lyle Lovett, Shawn Colvin, John Hiatt and others.
Paste: Hi, this is Josh Jackson, editor of Paste magazine, we’re here in the Paste lounge on the Cayamo cruise, somewhere in the Caribbean, and I’m joined today by Buddy Miller, welcome, Buddy.
Buddy Miller: Hey, thanks for having me in.
Paste: So are you having a good time on the cruise? You’ve only been here three or four days now…
Miller: Three or four days, it seems like it’s gone by real fast. It seemed like a little bit longer, but I’ve been having a great time.
Paste: I see that you’ve got your set number of shows, but you appear to be on stage every other hour, it seems like, with somebody.
Miller: No, but I’ve been sitting in a little bit, and I’m playing with Emmylou [Harris], and played with Shawn Colvin last night, and sat in with Patty [Griffin], we were on tour together for a few weeks, that was just too much fun, and this whole boat seems like an extension of that, with a lot more folks on it.
Paste: Yeah, one of my favorite moments so far this week was when you played the Mark Heard song “Worry Too Much” and you had Emmylou, Shawn and Patty coming up on stage, that was incredible.
Miller: That was incredible and unexpected, yeah, that was great fun.
Paste: You guys were just on a tour together and did a lot of collaboration; what is it about that that you love, playing with other people?
Miller: Well, I love playing with other people and working with other people all the time no matter what it is, a record or playing. That particular group, you know, I’ve been playing with Emmylou for quite a long time, for 10 or 12 years. I’ve been such a huge fan of Patty’s since before her first record came out. I just love everything she does, and her singing just kills me. And I’ve got to sit in a time or two and sing on a record or two also. And Shawn I’ve known for about 30 years. We used to play together, so it’s, like, being together with people you really love and just having fun every night—it was not like work. Plus, the singing was otherworldly.
Paste: You recently had an Americana Music Award for Best Song. What are your plans for the future? Do you have another album coming out? Are you about to tour again?
Miller: Yeah, I’m going home from the boat and finishing up a record that I’m gonna start, and it’ll be out in August, I’m hoping. I’m just putting the pieces together, and I’m hoping to talk my wife Julie into being a pretty big part of that record.
Paste: Will this be another duet album?
Miller: I don’t know what it’s gonna be yet, but I know there’s gonna be a record out in August and I know she’s written a ton of great songs, so you know… We’re just getting home, and we play around the house and see what happens.