Some years back, Nashville fixture Mando Saenz wrote “Pocket Change” with his singer/songwriter pal Shelley Colvin on the banks of the Tennessee River near Muscle Shoals, Ala.
“We had a side project called Brown’s Ferry for a smidge,” says Saenz, whose songs have been recorded by everyone from Kim Richey and Jack Ingram to Midland and Miranda Lambert. “It was one of a bunch of tunes we wrote.”
Colvin went on to record “Pocket Change” for her self-titled 2012 debut, and Saenz did the same a year later for Studebaker. Country superstar Hailey Whitters and Americana crooner Rob Baird have also covered the track.
“It’s always been a favorite to play live over the years,” says Saenz. “Good uptempo songs are always nice to have around.”
With this searing rendition from Sophie Gault, “Pocket Change” is now in its fifth iteration—and counting. It’s the latest single from Unhinged (Torrez Music Group), the Maryland-raised, Nashville-based twang-rocker’s third LP. Available January 23, the album was produced by Alex Torrez (Gault’s manager) and David Dorn (Braxton Keith, Gabe Lee), with engineering and mixing by Grammy winner Brandon Bell (Joni Mitchell, Brandi Carlile, Billy Strings).
Saenz had originally pitched “Pocket Change” to Torrez for another of his artists. “I guess he played it for Sophie, and she took to it,” says Saenz. “I’m glad, because she definitely caught the aggressive garage/country spirit of the song.”
“It has a grit all its own, and I loved leaning into that attitude in my version,” says Gault, who’s spent the past few years making a name for herself as an uncompromising alternative voice on the Music City scene. “Having Mando sing with me took it to another level.”
We’re proud to premiere Sophie Gault’s “Pocket Change.”
—Hobart Rowland
See Sophie Gault live.
