Everyone knows that old joke about country music: If you play a country song backwards, you get your wife back, you get your dog back and you get your truck back. But just because a topic is well-worn doesn’t mean there isn’t anything compelling left to say, and country singer-songwriter Ward Davis has a way of making even the most rutted cliches feel different. In his track “Good and Drunk,” Davis sings about divorce, kicking off with the lines “drove myself to the lawyer's today / and picked up a pen and signed my wife away,” but rather than looking back at an ideal woman or red-lipsticked cheat, the song is pure aftermath lament, with the wife garnering just the one mention. That more subtle songwriting is typical of Davis, who has penned lyrics for country notables Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Trace Adkins, Sammy Kershaw and more, all while releasing his own music, most recently the four-track EP Asunder (Ward Davis Music, 2018). For fans of classic, heart-aching country, Davis’ show at Neurolux is sure to be worth the $20 cover charge.