Walker McGuire – aka Jordan Walker and Johnny McGuire – have had quite the life changing 12 months. Following years of honing their craft and playing countless shows, the duo signed to Broken Bow Records’ Wheelhouse Records last September when their single Til Tomorrow gave them their first Top 40 hit. Since then the guys have been working hard in the studio and on the road, and they made their Grand Ole Opry debut back in July. The past week Walker McGuire have been in the UK for Country Music Week and yesterday they performed as part of the Sunday Daytime Hub line-up at The Borderline.
Opening their set with Back Together, the duo quickly showcased their harmonies as they sung about piecing together a night dominated by drinking. The break-up song explores a familiar trope in the Country genre but it was a strong start to the set. Mysteries of the World kept the tempo mid and featured a very catchy melody and chorus. The song explores the idea of wondering how you ended up in a relationship with someone you thought was out of your league. It’s the kind of song that will be adopted for proposals and weddings in the years to come.
One of the highlights of the set was Ol What’s Her Name, a song that the duo originally released back in 2014. Before launching into the song, the guys explained that it was based on a true story about the time Jordan fell for a Spanish girl, whose name he couldn’t remember. It was a tongue in cheek moment and it showcased the humorous side of the band, which was really nice to see.
Between songs Jordan and Johnny exchanged plenty of banter and they were genuinely very warm and funny. They had the audience in stitches as they called out one of their crew in the audience who they claimed wore a cowboy hat only when he wasn’t back home in Texas. Both guys clearly have great senses of humour and it was fun listening to them interacting with one another and the audience.
The set’s penultimate song was When It Rains It Pours, a song recorded by Luke Combs who co-wrote it with Jordan. The audience lapped it up and sang along to every word. It’s proven to be a hit for Combs and it highlights the strength of Jordan’s songwriting.
Walker McGuire brought their set to a close with Til Tomorrow, their breakout single. It’s a contemporary slice of Country with a pop edge that makes it perfect for the current landscape on Country radio. Listening to them performing it live, it’s no surprise that it’s been a big hit for them amassing well over 20 million streams and counting.
As the guys finished their set, it was clear they’d won a room full of new fans. Walker McGuire are both gifted songwriters and together they have something really special. Their material shows a lot of promise for their forthcoming debut album and their rapport is very entertaining. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on them and I don’t think it’ll be long before they crash into the Top 10 on the Country charts.
[brid video=”168965″ player=”531″ title=”Walker McGuire Til Tomorrow (Lyric Video)”]
Set list: 1. Back Together 2. Mysteries of the World 3. 18 Forever 4. Ol What’s Her Name 5. When It Rains It Pours 6. Til Tomorrow Performance date: 8th October 2017
