United States ruler Donald Trump’s Board of Peace has vowed to send thousands of troops to Gaza for deployment. Trump announced the initiative in a Truth Social post, stating that countries participating will formalize their commitments at a meeting on February 19th in Washington. “Member States have pledged more than $5 BILLION DOLLARS toward the …

Well… Much to the delight of many Red Dirt country fans, it’s safe to say that the Turnpike Troubadours are the biggest (and arguably best) they’ve ever been. In addition to scoring massive opening spots on Cross Canadian Ragweed’s highly successful “Boys From Oklahoma” concert series, both in Stillwater, Oklahoma and Waco, Texas, the Red Dirt legends would also score huge appearances at Zach Bryan’s concerts last summer, notably performing to his huge, sold-out shows at both BST Hyde Park in London and Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. With six albums’ worth of what can only be described as brilliance over the past 15 years, the Oklahomans have proven time and time again why many (myself included) view them as the greatest country band of all time. Simply put, they’re everything you want out of a modern country band. Between frontman, Evan Felker’s, masterful writing ability, Kyle Nix’s brilliant fiddle work on each album, RC Edward’s equally stellar songwriting and basswork and Ryan Engleman’s always-slick guitar riffs, Turnpike is the quintessential country band of the 21st century. With all of that being said, there’s been one, admittedly hilarious cliché (if you can even call it that) that Felker and Co. have relied on throughout their career. “What is that cliché?” you might ask. Simply put, it’s the use of the word “well.” Quite obviously, this is in no way a criticism of Felker’s writing and Turnpike’s music. With that said, however, once you notice how many times they start off songs with the word, you simply cannot unhear it. This notion was first brought to the attention of Turnpike fans when TikTok user, NattyByNature, posted a compilation of a plethora of different songs, ranging from “Gin, Smoke Lies” and “Long Hot Summer Day” to “The Bird Hunters” and “Easton & Main,” all containing Felker’s iconic opening line. @natty.issues Well… #turnpiketroubadours #theturnpiketroubadours #littlerock #fyp #reddirtcountry #countrymusic #americana #southern #zydeco #arkansas #evanfelker ♬ original sound – NattyByNature Since NattyByNature’s post back in May 2025, the sound clip has been an ongoing joke among Turnpike fans and has even been used by the likes of fellow artists, Wyatt Flores and The Castellows, while promoting shows with the Red Dirt legends. It’s one of those clips that are truly only funny if you’re a massive Turnpike fan, and it had me thinking, “Just how many songs actually start out with ‘well?'” After going through all six of their studio albums, the answer is a staggering 29 songs start out with the phrase. Diving into the numbers, that’s a whopping 42.6% of their 68 officially released songs. In case you were wondering, their sophomore album, Goodbye Normal Street has the most with 9/11 songs starting with “well,” while their most recent record, The Price of Admission, has the least with only one song, “Searching For A Light,” starting with the phrase. Without further ado, here are all 29 Turnpike songs that start with Felker’s iconic, “well.” “Every Girl” Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, she was born in the mornin’, late October, San Antone” “Down on Washington” Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, you’re standing there. You said life ain’t fair” “Kansas City Southern” Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, I was working on the KCS Rail Line. Katie was the girl down the street” “Whole Damn Town” Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, I can go downtown and drink till dawn” “The Funeral” Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, now stage right enter Jimmy, just a counterfeit James Dean” “Long Hot Summer Day”* Album: Diamonds & Gasoline Lyric: “Well, I’m gonna pick up some of these empties, Lord, as soon as I find where they lay” “Gin, Smoke Lies” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, in the early autumn wind, a lonely dove is flyin'” “Before The Devil Knows We’re Dead” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, he was pushing 80, but he acted 22” “Southern Son” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, I guess I was born with a gun in my hand” “Blue Star” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, you have been a fighting man. You’ve seen your share of war” “Call a Spade a Spade” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, you got a ring. You got a new last name” “Morgan Street” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, the movers and shakers on Morgan Street, passing out booze, tattoos and scars” “Empty As a Drum” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, two old red-nose whiskey drunks were talking politics” “Wrecked” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, lookin’ back, when I met you, we were shinin’, we were brand new” “Quit While I’m Ahead” Album: Goodbye Normal Street Lyric: “Well, I won’t lie and say I didn’t think the good ones all were taken” “The Bird Hunters” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, the covey took wing. Shotgun’s a-singing” “A Little Song” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, I’ve got a little tune that I could hum to turn back time” “Easton & Main” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, I left my heart in Tulsa on the corner of Easton and Main” “7 Oaks” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, that banker, he keeps calling, telling us our mortgage is overdue” “Doreen” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, when I first met Dorren, she was barely 17; she was drinking whiskey sours in the bar” “Bossier City” Album: Turnpike Troubadours  Lyric: “Well, Robbie’s got a brand new girlfriend; she’s got a script for pills” “The Winding Stair Mountain Blues” Album: A Long Way from Your Heart Lyric: “Well, I turned and shut my eyes as you let the gravel fly” “Unrung” Album: A Long Way from Your Heart Lyric: “Well, I can tell you she’s a bad idea for the good it would do” “The Hard Way” Album: A Long Way from Your Heart Lyric: “Well, I just hit town. You know the old routine.” “Oklahoma Stars” Album: A Long Way from Your Heart Lyric: “Well, the night goes on forever, and you try to make it last” “Brought Me” Album: A Cat in the Rain Lyric: “Well, I have loved you for so long, I have no memory of fallin'” “Lucille” Album: A Cat in the Rain Lyric: “Well, the neons were new and robin egg blue and brandin’ iron red, they had nothin’ on you” “Black Sky”* Album: A Cat in the Rain Lyric: “Well, I sure take it with me wherever I go and you might like to see it, but it never does show” “Searching For A Light” Album: The Price of Admission Lyric: “Well, you come out of nowhere like a small-town force of nature” * – cover songThe post Just How Many Turnpike Troubadours Songs Start Out With The Word “Well”? first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

Suddenly warnings about cannabis are everywhere. At the beginning of February, researchers reported severe mental illness has spiked in young people in Canada alongside access to high-potency cannabis. The next day came the release of "A Killing In Cannabis," a book about a 2019 murder in California — and the violence that plagues the marijuana business and that legalization has not resolved. Then, on Feb. 9, the New York Times dropped its support for full cannabis legalization. Writing that the United States has "a Marijuana Problem," the paper admitted cannabis addiction and psychosis have become a crisis. It called for a ban on THC extracts, a move that would recriminalize much of the legal industry. (THC is the chemical in the plant that gets users high, and vapes offering near-pure hits of THC are now popular among users — and a big driver of industry profits.)

These days, it's hard to miss cannabis dispensaries. In the 40 states (plus D.C.) that have legalized medical marijuana, storefronts and advertisements promote cannabis as a treatment for virtually every condition, from chronic pain to anxiety to (ironically) drug addiction. Many consumers appear persuaded. In one survey, more than a quarter of adults in the United States and Canada have tried cannabis for medical purposes. But how well-supported are these claims? A new review published in JAMA, which attempted to examine every high-quality study from the last 15 years alongside guidelines from major medical societies, came to a sobering conclusion: For most uses, the evidence was limited or inconclusive. In many cases, medical organizations recommend against using cannabis because the evidence for harm outweighed potential benefits.

After years of doubling down on the legalization of marijuana and minimizing its harms, The New York Times has finally broken the seal of truth by admitting that marijuana is far more harmful than most people want to acknowledge. The article, titled "It's Time for America to Admit That It Has a Marijuana Problem," marks a dramatic reversal and walks back years of misleading claims. This shift is significant because, in the past, The New York Times compared restrictions on marijuana to the era of alcohol prohibition and portrayed cannabis as benign, even medicinal. It denied the risk of addiction, as many speculated that legalization would not significantly increase use. The Times was highly influential in shaping public opinion and policy, contributing to the widespread legalization of marijuana across 24 states for recreational use and 40 states for medical use. This week, it quietly began to reverse course.

"The only thing that relieves the pain is cannabis." That message came from Jeffrey from Virginia, who is still experiencing debilitating pain from a car accident about 10 years ago. Like many others, he took issue with my recent column on a study showing the current evidence does not support cannabis as a treatment for most medical uses. Sandy from Massachusetts similarly reached out to say that the drug has been a "lifesaver" in addressing her fibromyalgia.