Probably the best way to get an idea about singer Chris Knight is to think of him as a country guy with lots of dog-eared books on the shelf: novels by William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor and Cormac McCarthy. 

"Reading Cormac McCarthy just makes me want to write more," Knight said. "Some of the sentences in those books will just send chills down your spine."

Knight's been tingling spines himself since his first, self-titled release back in 1998. His latest was last year's "Enough Rope."

SONGWRITING
Whether Knight plays solo or with a band, when he sits down to write, the words are a more immediate concern than the finished song to come.

"A lot of the songs I write are stories " songs and stories at the same time. But, it's easier to write off of a story than a hook. I'd like to write hooks like Tom Petty, but I can't," he said.

Though Knight " a former coal mine reclamation inspector in his home state " sounds like a guy who lives and breathes country traditions, his musical background zigs and zags. 

"I liked Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and Tom T. Hall, but mostly I was into Southern rock and pop music."  "Tory Troutman