Wade Bowen still can’t believe Vince Gill returned his call.

“It’s all still a blur to me,” Bowen says with a laugh during a recent interview with Taste of Country. “Honestly, I don't even know how we even connected. It really came out of nowhere. I'm still just blown away. It's crazy.”

What is not crazy is the fact that these two talented singers went and created a masterpiece in the form of the endearing new song "A Guitar, a Singer and a Song".

But that wasn’t always the plan.

“When I first wrote the song. I thought this was going to be one of those ‘me and a guitar’ songs that we would just stick it at the end of the record,” remembers Bowen of the song he wrote alongside Lori McKenna. “I had written this one for myself, you know?”

Indeed, it's well noted that it wasn’t too long ago that the longtime singer-songwriter found himself wading a bit in the deep waters of country music, trying to find a life preserver in the trying times caused by the relentless pandemic a couple of years back.

“When a song is written about the music industry, you have to be careful and make sure it's done right, so people truly understand it,” he says of the song that will be featured on Bowen’s upcoming album Somewhere Between the Secret and the Truth, which serves as his first solo project in four years. “But I do think if you do it right, people who are really fans of music really like to hear songs like this that really tell the story of what goes on in our heads.”

Still, the Texas native had no intention of collaborating with anyone, much less Vince Gill, on the song. But make no mistake, Bowen has always been a fan of the “When I Call Your Name” hitmaker.

“The few times I have met him, he has been one of the nicest human beings I've ever met in my life,” Bowen says. “He is the best of the best.”

At first, Bowen and his team contacted Gill, just on the off chance he would lend some harmonies to "A Guitar, a Singer and a Song." But Bowen says he couldn’t help but push the request it a little further.

“I told him that I felt like a lot of this song was inspired and influenced by me following his career,” says Bowen. “And if he happened to feel inspired to take a solo or sing a verse or just sing harmonies, I would be beyond honored. And then he just said, ‘Cool, I'm in on all three.’ He took my favorite verse of the whole song, which I thought was perfect for him. It's just a dream come true.”

And while the whole process occurred over emails and such, Bowen says that the two are starting to show signs of a true friendship.

“Since finishing the song, we have exchanged a few texts and phone calls,” admits Bowen proudly. “He called me just out of the blue one time and I just randomly picked up because it was a 615 number. From the moment from we talked, I was laughing so hard. He's such a great person."

He lets loose another laugh, adding, "I'm just hoping we become best friends.”

Top 10 Country Songs of 2022 So Far, Ranked

There are plenty of feel-good country jams on this list of the top country songs of 2022, but the No. 1 song is a gut punch. These 10 songs are ranked by critical acclaim, radio and sales success, and importance to the genre.

Five of the 10 artists made our Top Country Songs list from 2021 as well, but there are no repeats. If a song made a previous list or didn't spend most of its time on the charts in 2022, it's not eligible. So, before you ask where your favorite song is, be sure the miss isn't just a technicality.

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