Jason Aldean, Songwriters Ben Hayslip David Lee Murphy Celebrate ‘The Only Way I Know’ No. 1 with ASCAP

Songwriters David Lee Murphy and Ben Hayslip were hoping for a Jason Aldean cut when they wrote “The Only Way I Know.” Little did they know they would get a triple cut, because when Aldean hard the song he knew it was exactly the tune he had been looking for to invite touring partners Luke Bryan and Eric Church to join him in singing. “The minute I heard the song I knew it would work for us to sing,” Aldean said during a party held at ASCAP yesterday (Tuesday) honoring the songwriters and singer. “There are so many people involved when it comes to having a number one single, and on behalf of Eric and Luke, I want to thank all of you.”

Aldean said this will always be a special song for him because of having his friends sing on it with him. “You see who made this party and who didn’t,” he joked, adding, “No, Luke and Eric are both on the road and wish they could have been here to celebrate with Ben and David.”

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The singer added that he is a huge fan of Murphy, who also had a hand in writing his hit “Big Green Tractor.” Aldean, who was celebrating his seventh number one in a row, also complimented Hayslip as a songwriter.

“That’s only one song in my catalog, I have hundreds more,” Hayslip responded, to which Aldean grinned and said, “Bring them over.”

“Number one records never get old,” Hayslip told Billboard.biz. “You work hard every single day and you write a couple hundred songs a year, and then you get one of these, it makes everything worthwhile. It’s hard work paid off. Whenever you walk by a number one plaque in your office or home, it represents a dream come true for you and you always remember that moment it went number one.”

L-R, Front row: Jason Aldean, Ben Hayslip, David Lee Murphy and Michael Knox — Back row: Warner Chappell’s B.J. Hill, This Music’s Connie Harrington and Tim Nichols, Warner Chappell’s Ben Vaughn, This Music’s Rusty Gaston and N2D Publishing’s Douglas Casmus (Ed Rode)

Hayslip, who was the ASCAP Country songwriter of the year in 2012, went on to add, “I am a big David Lee Murphy fan, and the first time we wrote together, I don’t think I opened my mouth for the first couple hours. It was an honor to write this song with him.”

Murphy agreed, saying “You live for it. This is the most fun thing we could possibly do. It’s like Ben said, we go to work every day, and our goal every day is to write a good song, write a song that an artist will want to record. Fortunately for us it was Jason, and the icing on the cake was having Eric and Luke on it too. When they go number one, it’s like winning the Super Bowl or something.”

“All the guys involved in this song have been involved in multiple number ones, and it so great to celebrate with them today,” said Rusty Gaston. “Any number one is an absolute miracle, because there is so much you cannot control to get it there. All these guys are big dreamers, they are all making a living doing something people probably told them might not work out. That is what this song is all about.”

The writers and publishers of the song received plaques from various industry representatives, including the Country Music Association.  Family, friends and peers braved the cold weather in Nashville to help Aldean, Hayslip and Murphy celebrate. Among those in attendance was Hayslip’s 90-year old grandfather, who had traveled from Georgia to see his grandson be honored.

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