Rodney Clawson wowed audiences with this song in May at a songwriters’ round with Ashley Gorley at the Country Music Hall of Fame. At the time, Clawson said that he didn’t know if the song would appear on Luke Bryan’s newest album, Kill The Lights, due out August 7. Now it’s looking like Bryan is not only including the song, but according to Taste of Country, is making it a single.
“Fast,” written by Bryan with Clawson and Luke Laird, is a gorgeous song. Unlike some of Bryan’s more recent releases, it’s slowed down and lyric-focused. It hooks nostalgically on things that were fast – “fast / that’s the kind of car you wanna drive when you’re sixteen, fast / that’s the kind of boys that you want on the home team, fast / yeah, you think you’re gonna catch your big dreams just like that, fast / and here you are, looking back,” the song begins.
The song is simultaneously uplifting and melancholy, and manages to reflect on the fickle nature of time without sounding tired or clichéd. It’s an incredibly strong song, and one that could do well for Bryan as a pivot point – “Kick The Dust Up” sold poorly compared with previous singles or first-look-at-a-new-album releases from artists like Jason Aldean or Florida Georgia Line.
Bryan played the song at his CMA Fest fan club event.