“They could have eaten anywhere,
but they came to Miss
America to see her, to chat with
her, to connect with her. The
song was inspired by the connection,
and the difference we
can all make in our daily lives. I
finished the lyric in New York after
having breakfast in the Jersey
City diner. The waitress in the
diner very much inspired the lyric.
I never got to ask her name.”
Burke began writing the song in
Nashville while spending a night
in Kris Kristofferson’s old apartment.
He had met a friend at Australia
Music Week, which features
Aussie artists in Nashville, who
said the guy that owns the apartment
now sometimes rents it out
when he is touring.
“It just so happened he was
about to go out on a tour and I
was able to rent the place for one
night,” said Burke. “It’s very close
to the main strip. It’s a tiny one
bedroom apartment on the third
floor of a three story building. The
owner has kept it very close to the
original style and there are guitars
on the wall. I was able to pull one
down and just hang out and take
it all in. I was going through the
lyrics of ‘Sunday Morning Coming
Down,’ and looking around the
place. I swear Kris wrote that song
in the same room I was in while
writing ‘Little Miss America.’”
Originally from Dublin, Burke
moved to Sydney in 1997 on a
one year working holiday visa.
He ended up getting a job, then
NJ STAGE - ISSUE 73
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