In some ways, award-winning songwriter, instrumentalist, producer and artist Mac McAnally is a paradox.


He is beyond dispute one of the most respected musicians of our time. His peers have made that clear by honoring him as CMA Musician of the Year for an unprecedented nine years and electing him to the Nashville Songwriters Halls of Fame, Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame, and Alabama Music Hall of Fame.


Yet he is also one of the softest-spoken and self-effacing figures anywhere on the public stage. In fact, despite decades of recording countless sessions, releasing solo albums, and writing a parade of hits that include No. 1 singles for Kenny Chesney, Alabama, Sawyer Brown and Shenandoah, Mac seems a little uncomfortable in the spotlight. His reluctance to toot his own horn is a welcome anomaly these days — and that makes his accomplishments even more impressive.



For all that he has achieved, one dream remained elusive. Typically, it was Mac’s altruism, rather than any drive toward greater fame, that made it happen.



Southbound is Mac’s 16th album. It’s packed with a generous selection of 16 tracks. And it’s his first to feature his songs arranged for symphony orchestra. Recorded with the FestivalSouth orchestra conducted by Jay Dean and a rhythm section that includes Mac’s colleagues in Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band, Southbound doesn’t just give Mac’s writing, instrumental skills and expressive vocals the attention they deserve. It also serves several worthy causes that speak personally to him: Extra Table, which brings food to the hungry in Mississippi, and the University of Southern Mississippi’s music program.



The idea traces back to a performance by Mac at a fundraiser for another charity four or five years ago. The event was hosted by Robert St. John, Mississippi’s top chef for three consecutive years, Mississippi Restauranteur of the Year and a generous supporter of charities too.



“While we were stuck in a dressing room while they were doing their silent auction, Robert started telling me about Extra Table, which he founded in my home state for underprivileged kids, of which we have many,” Mac remembers. “Mississippi has always been one of the three poorest states in the union — usually the poorest. I said, ‘If there’s anything you ever need, let me know.’ And he said, ‘Oh, I’m about to.’”



Mac laughs and continues. “He told me about a fundraiser they do every year down in Hattiesburg, where he lives. He said, ‘I’d love to hear some of your songs with orchestra.’ And I said, ‘Let’s talk.’”

The marriage of large ensembles and popular songs had always intrigued Mac. His father’s collection of big band jazz records planted that awareness. So did the countrypolitan classics he heard over the signals that trickled intermittently into the family radio back in Belmont, Mississippi. He also bought copies of the classical LPs that band directors at his school would sell when they were replaced each year. “Football and basketball were more important in the Southeast,” he explains, with a smile.