Carrie Underwood makes heartfelt tribute to Brett James
Carrie Underwood has written a heartfelt tribute for her ‘Jesus Take The Wheel’ Grammy-winning co-writer Brett James, who passed away in a plane crash at the age of 57.
The tragic incident took place in North Carolina. The plane, which was registered under his name, departed from Nashville on September 18th, but, unfortunately, never made it to safety. James died alongside his wife Melody Wilson and stepdaughter Meryl Maxwell Wilson.
She began her post with the words, “Some things are just unfathomable. The loss of Brett James to his family, friends and our music community is too great to put into words.”
Underwood continued, “Brett was the epitome of “cool.” I see him in my mind riding up to my cabins to write on his motorcycle…his hair somehow perfectly coiffed despite being under a helmet for however long. I always loved hearing him sing “Cowboy Casanova” because a sassy girl anthem should’ve sounded ridiculous coming from a macho dude like him, but somehow, he even made that cool.”
James had over 300 major label songs under his belt, including 26 number one tracks. However, Underwood shared, he remained graceful throughout his career. She wrote, “I remember writing with him on a song that he basically wrote 75 per cent of and had ready when he walked in the room. We filled in the blanks and added a little melody and I told him after that I didn’t feel right splitting the credit evenly when he did most of the work. He wouldn’t have it. He insisted that everything be equal. He was just that kind of guy.”
James previously expressed his humble astonishment that ‘Jesus Take The Wheel’ won ‘Best Country Song’ at the Grammys. In 2011, he shared with Songwriter Universe, “At the time we didn’t know it would be a hit. But it turned out to be the right song for the right artist.”
The ‘Before He Cheats’ singer then turned to their shared faith in her tribute, adding, “Brett loved the Lord. Which is the only comfort we can hold on to now. We even had the pleasure of singing together at church. My favorite songs to sing of ours are the ones that he or we wrote about Jesus because the thoughts and feelings behind them are so genuine and pure. I won’t ever sing one note of them again without thinking of him.”
Underwood described her grief at his passing like “a hole in all of us that I fear won’t ever go away,” adding, “It will forever be a reminder that this life is but a moment…we have to make the most of each day we’re given here on earth. Each day is a gift.”
She signed off, “I’m asking all of you to pray for his family, friends and all of us that were blessed enough to know Brett. Love you, man. I’ll see you again someday.” Along with her moving words, she shared three pictures of the pair throughout the years.
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