Tucson Too Late

Album

Bluebird Days

Label

MCA Nashville

Genre

Country

Composer(s)

Jacob Davis;Jordan Davis;Josh Jenkins;Matt Jenkins

Entered Chart

Mar 16, 2024

Peak Date

May 18, 2024

"Tucson Too Late" finds Jordan Davis racing through the Arizona desert to Tucson, trying to save his relationship with the woman he loves. He fears he has let her slip away, and Davis regrets not acting sooner. Davis co-wrote "Tucson Too Late" with his brother Jacob Davis, and with the brothers Josh and Matt Jenkins, reuniting the team behind "Buy Dirt." The same quartet also penned "No Time Soon" and "One Beer in Front of the Other" for the Louisiana native's Bluebird Days album. During a 2022 writing session that Jordan Davis had to miss, Josh Jenkins tossed out the original title, "Tulane Too Late." With a nod to the New Orleans University, he tugged at the Louisiana roots shared by Jacob and Jordan Davis. The initial title wove a connection between Tulane and the winding paths of two-lane highways. In reality, Tulane University's setting lies within an urban grid of starts and stops, far from the wide-open landscapes that echoed in the hearts of the songwriters. They toyed with other locales before hitting on "Tucson Too Late." "That title feels classic," said Matt Jenkins to Billboard. "When you say Tucson,' it just fits the story of getting somewhere too late, the girl's already gone. Nothing feels more lonely and sad than a lonely cactus out in the desert, a tumbleweed rolling across the road." A few weeks later, on July 16, 2022, the other three joined Jordan Davis on tour to write on the bus outside the Magic Springs Water & Theme Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The creative well seemed dry that day until Jordan Davis asked about their "Tucson" song. The "Tucson Too Late" title triggered thoughts of classic country numbers like "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," "Marina del Rey" and "Miami, My Amy." Keith Whitley's romantic song about a long-distance relationship, "Miami, My Amy," served as inspiration for the four songwriters. "I write more with them more than I write with anybody," Davis said. "I think it's cool for us, every time we get together it like, what can we do, what have we not done, what is something that we can try to write today that'll challenge us that's different? And I remember talking about 'Miami, My Amy,' you know how that song just grabs you, and as you can tell, out of that conversation came 'Tuscon Too Late.' I really like the way we kept this very simple, we let the lyrics speak, we tried to really just kinda make the listener feel the kinda worry that this guy was going through trying to get this girl back." Davis' regular producer, former Boys Like Girls guitarist Paul DiGiovanni, produced the track. "I think Paul absolutely nailed the production on it in letting the vocals speak and letting the lyrics shine," commented Davis. Davis released "Tucson Too Late" via MCA Nashville as the fourth single from Bluebird Days. He believes it is the most traditional song he has ever released, similar to the music he grew up listening to. Tucson is the second-largest city in Arizona, after Phoenix. Located in the southeastern part of the state, it lies about 108 miles (174 km) southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles (97 km) north of the United States–Mexico border. Tucson is known for its desert climate and its vibrant Mexican American culture. Davis isn't the first major artist to record a song about the Arizona city. Bruce Springsteen recorded "Tucson Train" for his 2019 Western Stars album. His song tells the story of a man who leaves his home in San Francisco for a new life in Arizona. He leaves behind his lover; they had a volatile relationship, but after they're separated, they realize how much they miss each other. The man is overjoyed when he learns his lover is coming to visit him on the Tucson train.

I didn't know if we were over or just on the rocks
Was me thinking I can save us just a mirage?
I was burning up a highway, it kept getting longer
With every turn of these tires, she just kept getting goner

And the sky was showing no signs of rain
Ain't nothing delaying that plane

I'm racing through the desert
Thinking I can catch her
But losing ground in this Chevrolet
And that 747 somewhere between here and heaven
And heaven knows I let her slip away
I showed up and she's gone
Guess I got to Tucson too late

I wonder if she sat there stirring vodka with a straw
Was she counting down the seconds or maybe having second thoughts?
And was moving on made up in her mind?
Would she have changed it if she knew that I

Was racing through the desert
Thinking I can catch her
But losing ground in this Chevrolet?
And that 747 somewhere between here and heaven
And heaven knows I let her slip away (slip away)
I showed up and she's gone
Guess I got to Tucson too late, ooh

Now she's on some silver wings flying
And me I'm on the bad side of good timing, yeah-yeah

I'm racing through the desert
Thinking I can catch her
But losing ground in this Chevrolet (Chevrolet)
That 747 somewhere between here and heaven
And heaven knows I let her slip away (slip away)
I showed up and she's gone
Guess I waited too long
Like a sad country song
Damn, I got to Tucson too late

Tucson too late
Too late
Oh, I got to Tucson too late