Nace Brothers find their musical niche close to home

WARRENSBURG — The Nace Brothers have found success over the years in part by changing their definition of the word. Huge arena tours? Well, that hasn’t worked out, but in Warrensburg and Sedalia, they are the most widely loved local band, and there’s something to be said for that.

“I think your vision of success changes through the years,” said Dave Nace, 57, the drummer and lead singer, in a recent interview at the band’s rehearsal space near Warrensburg.

“As a kid, you think you’re going to set the world on fire, and I don’t know that we’ve done that. But I think we’ve proven in a lot of ways our worth. I think when you have the gift of music, then it’s meant to be shared. We have the opportunity to continue to do that, and that’s a great thing.”

The Nace Brothers — rounded out by Jimmy Nace, 47, on lead guitar and vocals; Tim Williams, 57, on bass and violin; and T.J. Erhardt, 44, on keyboards — are a cover-slash-original band. They’ve put out six albums and they’re working on No. 7, but they also enjoy pushing great songs by other artists. However, this isn’t your typical “Sweet Home Alabama”/“Brown Eyed Girl” bar band, and that’s the way their fans like it.

“Part of the beauty of that is we get to play songs we really like,” Dave said. “We not only get a chance to play songs that Jimmy writes, but also songs by Joe Ely, Dave Alvin, John Hiatt — guys who are great songwriters. It gives us an opportunity to play their music and perhaps turn some people on to it.”

It’s obvious after only a few minutes of chatting with Dave and Jimmy — who formed the band along with Williams in 1982 — that they love music. That love was handed down from their late father, Johnny, who was a Warrensburg music legend himself.

“By the time I was growing up, he was playing five or six nights in the club, lots of popular country music,” Jimmy said. “And he was writing his own songs and going to Nashville about once a year and trying to record an album and keep his career going. And he still had a daytime radio show.

“He had a lot of things going on, but it was always great seeing him get dressed up to go play. It made me go, ‘Man, you’re looking cool, Dad. I want to be like that.’ ”

Arguably, this generation of Nace musicians has been even more successful than the last; Johnny always had side ventures going on, but Dave and Jimmy have made a living entirely through the band.

“We enjoy getting up and playing; that’s what we do,” Dave said. “That’s what we grew up with, that’s what our dad did. If we sell a million records, great. If we don’t, we’re not going to stop playing. That’s one thing that the business, any kind of corporate involvement, can’t affect. It can’t affect what happens between you and your audience when you’re playing.”

The upcoming Missouri State Fair shows mark the 13th straight year that the Nace Brothers will play under the Budweiser tent. It’s not the sameness of the shows that keeps people coming back; it’s the variety.

“We’ve never played the same set twice,” Jimmy said. “There will be bands that play the exact set list in the same order for a year, and I don’t think I could do that. I’m not cut out to do that.”

“When you’ve been playing together as long as we have, you build up that library over time,” Dave said of the band’s substantial repertoire of songs.

“Granted, there are some songs that escape you, but there’s a large library among all four of us that we can pull from.

“You read the crowd. That’s something our dad did, and everything I do comes from there. He really interacted with an audience.”

IF YOU GO
Who: The Nace Brothers
When: 9 p.m. Thursday through Sunday
Where: Budweiser Stage, Missouri State Fair
Admission: Free
Websites: nacebros.com, mostatefair.com