story writers and poets as inspirations. John Steinbeck is referenced Messenger's "Not So Sure." Pug cited Walt Whitman as the biggest influence on Nation of Heat, calling "Hymn #35" the "palest imitation of 'Leaves of Grass' in recorded history!" He told Rolling Stone that the biggest influence on The Great Despiser was short story writer Raymond Carver, praising him for how "when you return to a piece of his that you read long ago and realize just how much of your own detail was placed in the gaps." Pug has stated that he is attracted to "the narrative of the individual and the individual being the only thing you can be sure is real in yourself," which, he says, drew him to Walt Whitman and John Steinbeck when he was younger, and Raymond Carver and Cormac McCarthy as he has grown older. Pug has cited John Hiatt as an influence on his melodic sense and narrative structures. He described the first John Prine record he received from his dad as a memorable moment in his development as a songwriter: Pug credits Steve Earle for teaching him "everything," calling his time touring with him a "master class" in performance. He later told PopMatters: With Windfall, Pug cites more contemporary influences, such as Josh Ritter, Ryan Adams, and M. Ward. However, Pug's trademark literary influences are still present: the chorus of "The Measure," which repeats, "all we’ve lost is nothing to what we’ve found" is inspired by a quote by Frederick Buechner's novel Godric. Of the reference, Pug explained: Throughout his career, Joe Pug has performed and recorded covers in tribute to his influences. He performed Harvey "Tex" Thomas Young's "You Can Go Crazy" on Young's More Than We Was album. On Dead Man's Town: A Tribute to Born in the U.S.A., Pug performed Bruce Springsteen's "Downbound Train", telling Esquire: The Working Songwriter podcast In 2016, Pug began releasing a podcast entitled "The Working Songwriter", consisting of conversations with artists on "working songwriters talking to one another about life on the road, life in the studio, and life in the writer’s room" " Discography Studio AlbumsMessenger (2010)The Great Despiser (2012)Windfall (2015)The Flood in Color (2019)The Diving Sun (2021)Nation of Heat Revisited (2022) Studio EPsNation of Heat (2009)In the Meantime (2010) Live AlbumsLive at Lincoln Hall'' (2011) References External links JoePug.Eu European website NPR NPR feature of "Hymn 101" Listen and Download Joe