‘Catch of the Day’ – Cole Swindell – “Middle of a Memory” [AUDIO]

Today we feature a singer and songwriter who earned a college degree in Marketing, and whose biggest break in Nashville came as a merchandiser for Luke Bryan.

Cole Swindell graduated from Georgia Southern University with a degree in Marketing. While still in school in 2005, Swindell met fellow GSU alumni Luke Bryan, who had returned to Statesboro, GA to play a show. The pair, who were fraternity brothers with Sigma Chi, kept in touch, and when Swindell graduated in 2007 he joined Bryan's tour selling merchandise. Bryan encouraged Swindell's writing, eventually recording 9 songs from Swindell, including the #1 hit "Roller Coaster", which Cole co-wrote with Bryan's guitar player Michael Carter.

After three year's of selling merchandise on Bryan's tours, Swindell would sign a publishing deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 2010. Besides Bryan, Cole would have songs recorded by Craig Campbell, Chris Young, Thomas Rhett, Florida Georgia Line and Scotty McCreery. In 2013, again at Bryan's urging, Swindell would release the independently produced "Chillin' It", which was intended originally as a demo, featuring Swindell's vocals and producer Jody Stevens on all the instrumentals. The song received early air-play from satellite radio, which led to Warner Music Nashville offering him a recording contract later in 2013.

Swindell would immediately head back into the studio, this time with Carter as his producer, to record his debut album, also entitled Chillin' It in 2014. He would head out on the road, surprisingly enough as Bryan's opening act on the That's My Kind Of Night tour. While on the road, the title track from the album became a #1 hit. The album would go on to produce 3 more top-5 singles, the #1 singles "Hope You Get Lonely Tonight" and "Ain't Worth The Whiskey" along with "Let Me See Ya Girl", which peaked at #2.

The lead single and title track from Swindell's second album, You Should Be Here, was released in December of 2015 and immediately became one of those songs you couldn't turn away from, not that you would want to. The song was written by Swindell about his father, who passed away suddenly, in 2013, right after the singer singed with Warner Nashville. Written on his tour bus in the parking lot of Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA, Swindell himself called the tune "the song I came to Nashville to write". The album was released in February of this year and it's title track went to #1, Swindell's third chart-topper, on March 26th. The song would remain at the top of the Billboard Hot Country chart for four weeks.

With 5 straight top-2 singles under his bet, Swindell goes for six, and the second single from his sophomore album is in our spotlight today. Cole Swindell and "Middle of a Memory" is today's Catch of the Day, new music you haven't heard, but you'll want to hear it again.