MountainCity: Behind the Lyrics “Ours is My Favorite”
(Denver, CO) Fifteen years ago this week marks the moment Dave saw Tara for the first time, as he was onstage singing in an open-air tent above Boulder Valley as the sun was setting over the Rocky Mountains.
History in the making for these two that fateful summer evening, as they were married just a little more than a year later. The whole story was immortalized in Dave’s favorite of their MountainCity songs, so far, “Ours is My Favorite.”
The song, originally released July 1, 2016, is a love story in three parts, from the first moment Dave sees Tara to their dating and engagement and finally a look at their wedding day. But it’s really just the beginning for Dave and Tara Powers, the husband-wife singing/songwriting duo known as MountainCity. The chorus speaks of an ongoing friendship and lasting love between the two. We asked them to give us all the insider secrets on this song. Here’s the rest of the story…
Once Upon a Time, Verse 1
Q: Dave, tell us a little about how this song first came about.
Dave: I had been contemplating the idea that there are tons of amazing love stories in the world and out of them all, ours is my favorite.
I was sitting in our bedroom one afternoon during one of our song writing days and the lyrics, melody, and chords all came to me in about 15 minutes. I picked 3 stories that are meaningful to me about our love story, and the words just flowed right out of my heart.
Just as I finished the lyrics, I grabbed my guitar to see if the melody and chords that I heard in my head would even work together. I hadn’t played anything yet, and then Tara walked into the room to see what I was working on. I showed her the song and I couldn’t keep it together. I just started crying my eyes out.
She took out her phone and started recording me as I was crying my way through the song. She said it was cute. I say it might be a piece of blackmail at some point.
Q: Besides recording your husband’s deep emotions while he was trying to sing to you, Tara, what were you thinking when you first heard the song?
Tara: I loved listening to Dave tell our story through song and really seeing the emotion come to him from the beautiful memories he was writing about! The melody and story together gave me chills!
Q: So Dave, seeing Tara sort of bowled you over, then? What is verse one about?
Dave: The first time I saw Tara was August 28, 2002. I was playing music in a yellow and white striped tent and she walked in on the 3rd song of my set. I almost passed out because of her breathtaking beauty!
We didn’t actually meet until about a month later.
Q: What do you remember about finally meeting him, Tara?
Tara: It was my little brother’s 18th birthday party. I remember I said hello to everyone in there except for Dave. He was the only one in the room I truly wanted to greet! Oh, the games we play when we really, really like someone. 🙂
Q: Since you were married about a year after that, what do you think made things work out so quickly between you two?
Dave: About 2 months before meeting Tara I had finally come to the place where I didn’t need a girlfriend in order to feel validated. I also treated girls like crap before I met her, and I recognized that I needed to prioritize friendship before jumping into a dating relationship.
In the first 6 months of knowing Tara, she became my best friend. I totally enjoyed her as a person. She is one of those rare relationships that I just resonated with at a heart-level right away. And that is one of the strengths of our marriage to this day! I love her like crazy, and I also just genuinely like her!
Q: The lyrics actually mention that, that you declared your ‘like,’ and ‘love,’ for her. Can you explain what you mean by that?
Dave: I know tons of people that love their spouse or family members and they don’t really like them. They don’t enjoy hanging out with each other. They do love each other, but they aren’t enthusiastic about hearing the other person’s stories or sharing any stories of their own.
Every now and then you’ll meet someone that, within the first 5 minutes of meeting them, you think to yourself, Wow, I really like this person! When it happens, it can be so sweet. Throughout our almost 14 years of marriage, I’ve tried to be intentional and genuine about pursuing friendship with Tara. I keep trying to love her and like her!
Cover art by The Tentmakers
Insider Info, Verse 2
Q: So, the first verse references that cataclysmic moment you saw Tara and the progression into dating, and those first 6 months of becoming best friends. The second verse briefly describes the night you proposed to her. Tell us the story!
Dave: “Our song” is, “Come Away With Me” by Norah Jones. [Hear MountainCity’s version here]
In preparation for the night that I was planning to ask for her hand in marriage, I called a radio station and asked them to play that song at the strike of midnight. They agreed and I was so excited! My plan was to go to a certain spot on an old country road near my house, turn on the radio, and while our song was playing, just sort of nonchalantly ask her to get out of the car and dance with me. I envisioned that during the middle of the song, I’d get down on my knees and ask her to be my wife!
It was a brilliant plan that did not actually work!
We got to the place on the country road and pulled over. I clicked on the radio, turned to that radio station and…Come Away With Me was nowhere to be found. In desperation I flipped to other radio stations, just hoping that the rap station might accidentally be playing Norah Jones. But to no avail.
My mind was spinning, looking for solutions. I thought, “I’ll just sing it to her myself!”
So I asked her to get out in front of the car, which was parked next to a mosquito-infested irrigation ditch, and started singing the song and asked her to dance with me in the headlights. Then I got down on my knees and asked her for her hand. She literally jumped up and down and said, “YES!!!!!” And in retrospect, it was better than I planned! 🙂
Q: Does that bring back good memories, Tara?
Tara: It really was perfect because he was perfect for me. When it’s right and you are so in love you can pretty much propose anywhere and it’s amazing! It could have been any country road as long as it was Dave Powers asking!
I really love remembering the night he asked me to marry him. Oh, the sweetness of that night and then specifically the line from the song in the third verse about, “sharing the same name.” I was ecstatic and so proud to wear the name, “Powers,” for the rest of my life.
The whole song actually brings me back to very giddy and passionate memories that make up our story from dating to the day we said, I do.
The Rest of the Story, Verse 3
Q: Well, let’s talk about the third verse, the wedding day.
Tara: I had nerves and was so busy in preparation on my wedding day that I forgot to eat and I felt a little sick sitting outside of that little church. But the moment I locked eyes with him down the aisle, all fear, sickness and nervousness just vanished. This was my destiny. The day was finally here to make a promise to my best friend and the love of my life.
Dave: There were so many incredible things about our wedding day, but a memory that is burned into my heart was standing up front, in a little country church, holding hands with Tara, and our family, friends, and God all surrounding us.
I spoke the vows that I had written to her, “Tara, I love you so much and I really like you!” She started laughing and a couple of minutes later, she read her vows to me. She said virtually the exact same words I had just said to her! She said that she loved me and she really liked me! We were geeking out on each other big time, and we still are to this day!
Happily Ever After, the song goes on
Q: Even though MountainCity songs include a variety of genres and styles, you went full-blown country on “Ours is My Favorite,” Dave. Can you imagine other country artists singing it, and who would you want to hear sing it of you had a choice?
Dave: I could see this song resonating with other country artists, and I would be thrilled if it ever did! Ha!
But if I could choose to hear someone else sing it? Brad Paisely, hands down!
Q: The lyrics of this song are very romantic. What is it like to have a husband able to express his love for you in song like this, Tara?
Tara: I know the stigma is that men cannot share their feelings and, although that may be true for many people, I am very grateful that Dave can openly share his love for me, even when it makes him cry.
Q: Even though this song is a very personal story, can you imagine other artists singing it?
Tara: I think our desire is to sing our stories, but for others to take our songs and imagine themselves in them even if it isn’t the exact representation. It’s amazing when you realize others have felt the same way that you have at different times in your life. You realize you aren’t alone and we love to share our love!
Q: Some of your fans have called “I fell for you baby, I’m still down for the count” one of the greatest country lyrics of all time. What do you think of that? What do you think is the best part of the song lyrically?
Dave: Ha! That is extremely kind of those fans, but I’m quite sure there are much better lyrics out there! My favorite part of the song is verse 3. It chokes me up almost every time I sing it.
Q: What’s your favorite lyric in this song, Tara?
Tara: I think that one of my favorite lines in the song happens in the chorus when he says, “when you are singing in the morning or when you hardly make a sound.” The reason I love that part is that makes the song very personal for me. I am always singing and I think I wake him up most mornings with my singing. 🙂
But he also loves me even in my silent moments and when I am quiet it usually means I am processing something, or maybe a little sad. He is telling me he loves me in whatever emotional state I happen to be in. That is extremely powerful to me.
Q: What was it like recording this song?
Tara: My favorite moment while we were recording, was me sitting with the producer in another room. Dave went silent as he was in the middle of singing the song. The producer thought something had gone wrong with the mic. I suspected Dave was just having an emotional moment and probably crying. He was.
(–Jeanie Rhoades)
Read the original post about the release of “Ours is My Favorite,” HERE
LISTEN to or PURCHASE the song HERE
LISTEN to all MountainCity music HERE
LIKE and FOLLOW MountainCity on Facebook
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Dave would like to thank his sponsor, Strymon
Dave’s 2 favorite Strymon pedals
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