ABC/Image Group LAKeith Urban‘s new single, “We Were,” is his second recent hit to namecheck a classic rock song.
In 2016’s “Wasted Time,” he gives a shout-out to “Sweet Child of Mine” by Guns N’ Roses, while in “We Were,” it’s Def Leppard‘s “Pour Some Sugar on Me.”
“Well I loved that those guys used that reference in that song,” Keith explains, “because it’s such a musical juxtaposition of the style of song. And I really loved that about it.”
“It did remind me a little bit of what we did with ‘Wasted Time’ as well,” he continues, “name-checking Guns N’ Roses, ‘leaning out the window singing “Sweet Child of Mine,”‘ because the song’s nothing like that.”
The Aussie superstar also sees it as a reflection of how we listen to music these days.
“There’s something true about the diversity of music so many people listen to,” he points out. “You know, you could have a George Strait CD and you could have a Def Leppard CD, or really just everything in the car. I mean, everything is open now. Everyone listens to everything.”
“But I also love that ‘Pour Some Sugar on Me’ was just such a classic visual,” he adds. “Of course you’d be singing that at the top of your lungs at a club, you know.”
“Pour Some Sugar on Me” made it to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988.
“We Were” is the lead single from Keith’s next album, the follow-up to last year’s Graffiti U.
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