Waco native Wade Bowen began recording Solid Ground intent on making the artistic statement of his career – a high bar considering the twenty years of success he's enjoyed – but as his personal odometer rolled over into his fourth decade, his focus is more on legacy than next Saturday night.

Bowen's mission to set himself apart as a songwriter is driven in part by wanting to measure up to an almost impossible standard (Clark). He wonders if he or any other current musician will ever be able to measure up in any meaningful way.

"Solid Ground hits the bar more than anything I've never done before. It has an edge and the balls we've always had live but hadn't gotten down on a record until now," he said. "I don't know if Guy Clark would like the record, but I'd feel comfortable playing those songs on a stage with him and asking him what he thought."

With Solid Ground, Bowen has made his clearest statement. It's the one that took him 40 years to make, and the wait and hard work to get there has been worth it.