Paul Nourigat Premieres the Music Video for His Mindful New Single “Bad Cards”

Paul Nourigat knows what it’s like to be dealt a tough set. But as you can hear on his new single “Bad Cards,” he’s turned those life lessons into something positive. Today, Nourigat unveils the accompanying music video for the new track, a nice, laidback dose of folk rock.

The song is from his new studio album, Smiles That Pass By, and features plenty of inspired lyrics. “Bad Cards” really emphasizes Nourigat’s grounded approach to songwriting. He’s willing to admit that he has it better than most. But he’s also had his share of bad cards to deal with.

With some comments on his new single, Nourigat shares:

“Like each of the ten originals on my coming album, ‘Bad Cards’ shares an honest life lesson from my six decades on earth. Having battled through many challenges over the years, it’s clear to me that a positive mindset is crucial for a life of happiness, and ‘Bad Cards’ describes those realities and the feelings we all experience. Sometimes it helps to simply know we are not alone in our struggles, and that the night will turn back into day.

“Like all of my music, the song is pure analogue, recorded in-studio with talented Portland session musicians backing my vocals and harmonica. To lock in this track’s vibe, we tapped into Portland’s Paul Brainard on sweet pedal steel, drummer Ji Tanzer, and my son Nick Nourigat on blues guitar, with Anna B delivering backing vocals from Paris.”

As a musician, you could say that Nourigat was extremely late to the party. It was only five years ago that he picked up a guitar and began recording. With no musical training, driven by sheer determination, he learned how to play guitar and ukulele, sing, write songs, and produce them. Inspired by classical Americana, Nourigat has etched out his own space within this style of music.

Smiles That Pass By features both uplifting and empowering songs entrenched within folk, rock, country, and blues. At the age of 65, he feels like he’s at a point where he wants to share the things on his mind. He’s lived a life of many highs and lows, some of which include living in twelve homes as a child and teenager as a result of his father being in the military. Additionally, he survived a serious motorcycle crash, where he lost some fingers.

Everything about Nourigat points to a man who rises to the occasion in the face of challenge. Which makes his songs so relatable. He writes them for listeners who want to hear stories, which speaks to his career as an author. He has published ten books over the last decade, in addition to the 150 or so songs he has written. Thank god for artists like Nourigat, proving to us that you can do anything at any time, with any limitation, as long as you put your mind to it.

Paul Nourigat ‘Bad Cards’ album artwork