Delbert McClinton may be a Tall, Dark, and Handsome man according to the title of his new album, but it's a boy who steals the show in the new video for "If I Hock My Guitar," premiering exclusively on Billboard today (Sept. 12).
In the charming clip, a young man lip syncs the song into a bathroom mirror as he grooms himself for a little bit of courtin': walking across a field, flowers in hand, to the front porch of the object of his affections. McClinton, meanwhile, performs the song sitting in a stable near Nashville as a horse named Hot Mess looks on.
"I hadn't done a video in so long I didn't know what to expect, but it came off pretty cool," McClinton tells Billboard, acknowledging that it took a minute for him to come to grips with the concept.
"They started sending me ideas and I couldn't really picture it," he says, "but I finally settled on the one we did 'cause it made more sense than anything to me. My part took less than an hour. The horse was blind in one eye and the guy handling her was quite the legitimate cowboy type and he was in love with her — and I don't blame him. She was a real sweetheart."
The video comes nearly two months after Tall, Dark, and Handsome's release, and McClinton is still pleased with the set — recorded with his Self-Made Men band and a notably more energetic and rowdy work than his last outing, Prick of the Litter, in 2017.
"When we were making it, our byword was 'We're not fucking around,'" recalls McClinton, who also published a memoir two years ago. "We went in there and seriously worked on it and had a lot of fun and made a really good record. I've been working with these guys the last five or six years, and it turned into the best thing that's ever happened to me. They play no more than three chords, but the way they do it we can go anywhere, and we did."
Adding to the excitement this time was a fresh injection of horn parts, arranged by Jim Hope. "Jim came in and put those horn parts on 'Mexico' and that turned it into a monster," McClinton gushes. "He's a freak, the best there is. He's played on everything I've ever done in the last 20 years, but he really got to show off on this one. It thrills me every time I hear it. I still love listening to the record."
McClinton is just as happy playing the songs live, which he does routinely and has been since Tall, Dark, and Handsome came out. He'll play at Americana Fest on Sept. 14 and has sporadic dates booked into March — including his 26th Sandy Beaches Cruise in January — which is the way McClinton likes to do things these days.
"I've cut back on my work, some," he explains. "I work two weekends a month. Any more than that is getting too much for me. I've seen all the hotel rooms I ever want to see…it's just that time in my life. I love being at home and I'm taking a little time to stop and smell the roses. I'm the luckiest guy you know: I do what I damn well please, and can’t nobody stop me. As long as I'm healthy, I'm rockin', man."
The video for "If I Hock My Guitar" is below.