Kelsey Lamb Sets the Bar with “Me & the Bar”

Over the past few years, the ladies have taken over here at Southern Fellow. There is one simple reason. They put in the work. As a guy, though, I find it challenging to relate 100% to a song written by a female. So I often have to visit Gold Leaf, my favorite coffee shop, pick a woman out of the crowd, and craft a review based on what I think she will pull from the song. But, today is the first time, in a long time, that I don’t have to do that. “Me & the Bar” is the latest single from Kelsey Lamb, and it’s hitting pretty close to home.

I stopped going to bars many years ago, but when I started Southern Fellow, I wanted to feel the pulse of the local music scene, so I went back. The Rockin’ Ranch might not be much, but it was always the place to go. So I went back. So many things hadn’t changed, but some things had. Now they have Latin night on Thursdays, and on Friday country bands had all but vanished. It only took a ten-minute conversation with David, the new manager, to realize he needed help and I had the artists.

The Rockin’ Ranch may not be back to its heyday yet, but it is getting there. One thing that came from this collaboration is that I have a bar. Something I have never had before. I get to blow off steam with friends or make a bad decision with people who have been there. I can fall in and out of love in one night or discover a new friend. It’s not much, but it’s mine, and at times, it knows me better than I know myself sometimes. I didn’t put any of this together until I heard ‘Me & the Bar” from Kelsey Lamb.

It doesn’t stop there. I am relatively confident Kelsey wasn’t thinking about me when she sat down with Brandy Neely and Chealsea Summers to write this song. Yet, there are nuggets in “Me & the Bar” that I connect to. For example, there is a line about being overdressed. If you know me, that’s been my style since I was a kid. As a guy, it scares me how well this song relates to me, but the mature part is glad that it exists. I think you will be happy it does as well.