Jason Isbell's songs are filled with ghosts. They're haunted by spirits both welcome and unwelcome, by the personal and historical legacies that make us who we are. Nowhere Is this more evident than on his 2013 breakthrough album Southeastern. Isbell offers confessions. reflections. and promises that contront and make communion with those who have come before and remain wIth us still. Its twelve tracks represent an extended meditation on the concept articulated by another celebrated southern storyteller, author William Faulkner: "The past is never dead. It isn't even past."

The American south isn't just Brent Cobb's home. It's his muse, too. A Georgia native, he fills his Grammy-nominated songwriting with the sounds and stories of an area that's been home to southern rockers, soul singers, country legends, and bluesmen. Cobb has a name for that rich tapestry of music — "southern eclectic" — and he offers up his own version of it with his newest album, Southern Star. 

"Down here, there's a lot going on and there's nothing going on at the same time," he says. "You've got all these different cultures in the south, and everything is mixed in together. Otis Redding and Little Richard were from the same town in Georgia. So were the Allman Brothers. James Brown and Ray Charles grew up right down the road. All these sounds reflect the South itself, and that music has influenced the whole world. It's definitely influenced mine."

Filled with country-soul songwriting, laid back grooves, and classic storytelling, Southern Star distills the best parts of southern culture into 10 of the strongest songs in Cobb's catalog. He began writing the material after leaving Nashville — where he spent a decade releasing solo records like 2016's Shine On Rainy Day (which earned a Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album) while penning hit songs for Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, and dozens of others — and returning with his family to Georgia. It was a time of change. Not long after celebrating the arrival of his second child, Cobb found himself mourning the death of his longtime friend, Jason "Rowdy" Cope of The Steel Woods. 

"Rowdy was like my older brother," says Cobb, who named Southern Star in part after a small-town bar that he and Cope used to frequent. "He loved the music that came out of Georgia, and he helped me appreciate it even more. A lot of artists like to branch out and become experimental as their career continues, but I sort of go the opposite way. I feel like I can never go wrong if I continue to get closer and closer to the core of who I am and what I love, musically. Coming back to Georgia helped me with that. Southern Star is the sound of me getting closer to the source."

Don't let Cobb's breezy songs about rural life fool you. There's some serious complexity lurking beneath the surface. At first glance, "It's a Start" unfolds like the soundtrack to a leisurely afternoon in the south, with Cobb singing the praises of crawfish, barbecue, and day-drinking. Dig deeper, though, and the song reveals itself to be something more universal: a reminder to appreciate the small things in life, stay mindful, and chase down new horizons at your own pace. To Cobb, there's something distinctly southern about that message, too. "Sometimes, there ain't shit going on down here," he says with a laugh, "but since there's nothing else to do, you learn to be laid back. You learn to use your imagination, and you wind up imitating your surroundings. These songs sound like the place that inspired them. On 'It's a Start,' when the organ comes in, it reminds me of the sound of the cicadas and frogs you hear in the springtime."

Cobb doesn't just imitate his surroundings with Southern Star. He immerses himself within them. To record the album, he headed to Macon and set up shop at Capricorn Sound Studios, where artists like the Marshall Tucker Band, Charlie Daniels, and Percy Sledge once roamed the halls. "I decided to use all local musicians," says Cobb, who self-produced the album with help from Oran Thorton. "I wanted Southern Star to shine a light on the southern players who are still living and working in Macon. Everyone on the album is a Georgia native apart from Jimmy Matt Rowland, who plays keys, and Oran Thornton, my engineer and co-producer. That's it. I wanted to capture that 'southern eclectic' sound on this album, and I don't think you can capture it without being in it."

Eclectic, indeed. Track like "Devil Ain't Done," "Livin' the Dream," and "On't Know When" dish up greasy servings of country-fried funky-tonk, while "Patina" and "Kick the Can" evoke the unhurried sounds of 1970s folk music. "When Country Came Back To Town" even shifts its focus to Los Angeles (where Cobb recorded his indie debut, No Place to Leave, with producers Shooter Jennings and his own Grammy-winning cousin, Dave Cobb) and Nashville. The song is a salute to the unsung heroes of the music communities in both cities, laced with shout-outs to Nikki Lane, Hayes Carll, and others. "It's about the friends I've made along the nearly 20-year-old path it's taken for the independent country movement to grow into what it is today," he adds. 

During the months leading up to Southern Star's release, Cobb spent much of his time on the road, playing to stadium crowds of 60,000 people as Luke Combs' opening act. Perhaps that's why Southern Star feels so well-timed. Not only is it a snapshot of an artist at the peak of his songwriting abilities; it's also a love letter to his southern roots, made all the more potent by his recent travels. 

"You know how when you’re growing up, you're told that if you ever get lost out there, look for the northern star to help find direction back home?" he asks. "Well, I'm from Georgia, so I always look for the southern star. This album, the songs, the sounds… they're all a product of where I'm from, both musically and environmentally. Historically and presently, that area also happens to be the same place that cultivated a good many of the most influential artists in the whole world of music. Music as we know it would not exist without the American south. It's funky and sentimental. It's simple and complex."

With Brent Cobb, the southern star shines on. 

After forty years of marriage, Buddy and Julie Miller have learned to welcome a song however it arrives, questioning only where the song is taking them rather than where it originated. There’s no process, no assembly-line procedure, just an openness to those bursts of inspiration and those hours of refinement, which means their fourth album together, In the Throes, sounds lively and diverse, eccentric and slightly askew: a deeply soulful collision of mournful gospel, dusty country, cosmic blues, lusty rockabilly, ecstatic r&b, and anything else that crosses their minds.

This new Deluxe Edition features the original 12 tracks including the hit singles “Ghost Story” and “Hate My Heart,” plus 6 additional songs including “Take Me Out” and her latest single “Out Of That Truck.” Carrie is a true multiformat, multimedia superstar, spanning achievements in music, TV, film, and as a New York Times bestselling author and successful entrepreneur. She has sold more than 85 million records worldwide and recorded 28 #1 singles (14 of which she co-wrote).

Will Johnson’s ninth solo album, No Ordinary Crown, hums with palpable motion. Travelers, runners and conductors fill its lyrics, and gesticulating storms and emotional highs and lows seep through the instinctual quality of its rock ’n roll performances. It’s also cabled by ephemeral momentum.

The songs were conceived in stolen moments and brief windows of time between the responsibilities of family and a multi-hyphenate career. The singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, painter and novelist describes the demo process as “fairly jagged,” a gathering and stitching of audio snippets recorded via cell phone and dictaphone over a year and half. “I finalized the songson short tours where I could hear my thoughts a bitmore clearly,” he says.

Bluegrass is a brand new studio album that captures a dozen classic Willie Nelson compositions--including "On the Road Again," "Yesterday's Wine," "Still is Still Moving to Me," "Good Hearted Woman" and more--freshly interpreted by Willie and an ensemble of crack players. In a seven decade career that has seen him explore genres from one end of the musical spectrum to the other, this is his first full album dedicated to genre. Willie and longtime producer Buddy Cannon, picked personal and fan favorite compositions from across his career to perform anew for this salute to the Appalachian old-time string band music which profoundly influenced Willie's songwriting sensibilities and the direction of American country music in general. Using his own catalog as source material, Willie chose songs combining the kind of strong melodies, memorable storylines and tight ensemble-interplay found in traditional bluegrass interpretations of the roots of American folk songs. With Bluegrass, Willie uncovers new truths in his own songs.

Rustin’ in the Rain is the eagerly anticipated new album from singer-songwriter Tyler Childers. This collection of new songs is Childers’ sixth studio album, and the follow up to his critically acclaimed release Can I Take My Hounds to Heaven?. 

Rustin’ in the Rain is produced by Childers alongside his longtime band The Food Stamps, and the album features the heartfelt single “In Your Love,” which Tyler first teased to fans earlier in 2023 during his Bonnaroo Music Festival performance.

Golden State, the second full-length from singer/songwriter Logan Ledger, marks a stylistic departure from the timeless country noir of Ledger’s critically lauded debut. This time around, Ledger worked with producer Shooter Jennings, dreaming up a lush and spirited sound partly inspired by the California country-rock scene of the late-’60s and early-’70s. The result is a sublime setting for Ledger’s layered meditations on loss and despair and the search for transcendence.

The alt-country understated star's Grammy-Award winning album features lead single "Brace for Impact (Live a Little)", a track that also boasts an enigmatic music video which includes, among other visuals, and hot rod coffin, a cover of Nivana's "In Bloom", and the orchestrally enhanced "Breakers Roar." A respected and celebrated record, it has received a score of 86 from metacritic signalling "universal acclaim."

Following the release of his new single “Standing Room Only,” three-time Grammy® winner and superstar Tim McGraw’s 17th studio album of the same name, Standing Room Only, will release on August 25, 2023. McGraw has sold more than 89 million records worldwide, has dominated the charts with 46 #1 singles and is the most-played country artist since his debut in 1992.

City of Gold is the follow up to last year’s GRAMMY-winning Best Bluegrass Album, which also saw her nominated for Best New Artist.  The album, which was produced by Bluegrass legend Jerry Douglas, and features a guest appearance from Dave Matthews, presents a band of top notch musicians, fronted by Tuttle, firing on all cylinders.  The songs are rooted in Bluegrass, but expand on Tuttle’s ability to add elements of Indie Rock, Folk and Americana.  Lyrically, the songs range from the personal (“The First Time I Fell In Love”) to the political (“Down Home Dispensary”) along with tributes to Alice in Wonderland (“Alice In The Bluegrass”) and her birth state of California (“San Joaquin”).  Tuttle is one of the most exciting young voices/players in Bluegrass/Americana/Folk and 2023 is shaping up to be another big year for her with non-stop touring including stops at Bonnaroo, Newport Folk Festival, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, not to mention opening slots on a run of dates with Dierks Bentley, along with some dates on Willie Nelson’s Outlaw Music Fest Tour.

Solid Gold, the long-awaited solo debut album from acclaimed musician Miles Miller will be released July 7 via Thirty Tigers.

Produced by Sturgill Simpson, the album features twelve original songs and marks the first body of work released by Miller as a solo artist. The album was recorded over the course of three days in January 2022 in Nashville, TN.

Of the album, Miller shares, “Solid Gold is a love story, but about love being around and love leaving. It’s an entire story essentially about wanting to get back to the love you have, realizing you shouldn’t give it away, to love leaving, hitting the road because of it leaving, feeling love on the road, love from home, to realizing you need to keep walking and wish them well. It’s an album about the cycle of a love story that crumbles.”

Raised in central Kentucky, Miller has spent the better part of the past decade on the road as a drummer for artists including Sturgill Simpson and Town Mountain. In 2009, he was discovered by acclaimed producer Dave Cobb after playing drum covers on YouTube at the age of 16. While drumming and vocals are what he has been most noted for, playing guitar is his first love.

Spending time off of the road allowed him to hone in on his songwriting and it became clear that the time had come to step away from the drum kit and focus on his own artistic vision. This June, Miller will embark on a handful of dates supporting Tyler Childers. Additional tour dates to be announced.

Wild Creatures is a career retrospective album containing twenty-three of Neko Case’s most impactful tracks from her discography, and will now be available on CD and 2x LP.

With a career spanning over twenty years, she has famously collaborated with The New Pornographers and Case/Lang/Veirs in addition to releasing many critically acclaimed solo albums, including ‘Fox Confessor Brings The Flood’, ‘Middle Cyclone’ and most recently 2018’s ‘Hell-On’.

Gathering power year after year, Neko sings with the fierce abandon of a newborn infant crying in a basket in the woods. Since escaping the labels of country and Americana, the gorgeous train-whistle vocals of her early career sit submerged in her later style, where their ghost can appear any minute. When her voice jumps an octave, it’s almost visible, like sparks at night. “I never knew where I wanted to go or what I wanted to do with my voice,” she says, “but I just wanted to do it so bad.”

The Vinyl configurations include: 2 LPs with printed inner sleeves, in a Gate- fold jacket.

RSD Essential 039 * The Avett Brothers' 2007 release "Emotionalism" is the album that caught the attention of legendary producer Rick Rubin and got him to sign the band to their first major studio. "Emotionalism" also was their first album to crack the charts. Full of new Folk, Blues and Bluegrass riffs for a modern world, it is a lively take on everything from romance to paranoia. Of course, they still kick in some solid Rock 'N' Roll for good measure.

Tommy Prine’s debut album “This Far South'' coming June 23, 2023 is not only a long awaited introduction but a testimony to Prine’s 20’s and the loss, love, and growth that has defined them. Co-produced by close friend and kindred musical spirit, Ruston Kelly, and beloved Nashville engineer and producer, Gena Johnson, the album is rich and dynamic from cathartic jams to nostalgic storytelling.

It wasn’t until Prine reached his mid-twenties, though, that he considered a career of his own in music and began to share with others the songs he wrote in private. His songs were quickly met with excitement and enthusiasm, which sonically brings together a colorful patchwork of musical influences and lyrically explores existential questions and emotional experiences.

The album’s title track, “This Far South'' marks a turning point in Prine’s life as he found himself struggling to escape a dark, aimless period. He ultimately found the courage to act on choices that would see him to the other, brighter, side.

“There were several years where I felt without purpose, spent all my time partying, and just existing. I found myself at a fork in the road and chose the better path, and in that moment, I swore I would never be This Far South again.”

Grief is a major throughline of Prine’s current work.  In 2017, Prine lost his best friend to an overdose.

“Since then, I have lost some more friends and have others who are still navigating the ups and downs of struggles with drug abuse.”

His song, “Letter To My Brother”,  was written as a message to the friends he’s lost, those in Recovery, and to friends who are still struggling.

He still grapples with the passing of his father in April of 2020.  “The world lost one of the greatest songwriters of all time, but I lost my dad.”  Prine bears the loss of his father and the memories he carries for others on the track, “By The Way”.

“When I'm playing certain songs, I can literally look out in the crowd and tell who else has lost their dad,” he says. “I can immediately tell which people have experienced, specifically, losing their father. They'll come up and tell me afterwards, and I'll be like, ‘Yeah, like, I figured that this conversation was going to happen,’ because I could see their reaction. It’s been really powerful to see real-deal evidence that grief is a shared experience, and that suffering is a shared experience between humans.”

Prine capped off 2022 with his first solo tour across the United States. He was heavily involved with You Got Gold, an event series in Nashville honoring the life and songs of John Prine, and performed at AmericanaFest as an official showcasing artist.  He also debuted two original songs, “Ships in the Harbor” and “Turning Stones”.

“Ships in the Harbor” is a tender meditation on impermanence and change, with Prine communicating the universal experience of loss through poetic observations of the seemingly mundane.  The song found its way onto a series of editorial playlists including Spotify’s Fresh Folk playlist and Amazon’s Fresh Folk & Ameriana playlist.  It was also praised by a number of outlets including Billboard, Garden & Gun, and Saving Country Music who wrote, “With one song, Tommy Prine has already accomplished what many musicians and songwriters work their entire careers to accomplish, which is to make such an indelible emotional connection with an audience.”

This year, alongside his own runs of headline shows, Prine opened for Tyler Childer on his “Send In The Hounds Tour” in London.  He was also named one of Amazon Music’s 2023 Breakthrough Artists to Watch.

“I feel like I've learned more about myself in the last year and a half than I ever have in my life,” Prine says. “And I think that speaks a lot to doing something that I'm passionate about. I love and respect the craft. Just hitting the road and doing what so many people before me have done and will continue to do, it's really resonated with me. I think it's transformed me into the person that I am meant to be.”

HOLLER is the forthcoming album from The Watson Twins produced by Grammy Nominated producer Butch Walker and recorded "live" at his studio the Butcher Shop in Nashville. This collection of songs finds the twins leaning deeper into their Americana & Country roots. The LP features the same energetic, foot stompin' feel as their single "Two Timin'" (Released 5.20.22). Accompanied by their Nashville based touring band, HOLLER is a true departure. From the blues inspired "Sissy Said" to the country soul of "Never Be Another You" the sisters showcase their celebrated sibling harmonies and strongest songwriting to date. “The Palace” and “Know My Name” are the only co-writes on the album and came out of a chance meeting at an East Nashville coffee shop with Jacob Sooter (writer/producer) and Brian Elmquist (The Lone Bellow). Walker not only produced the record, but contributed background vocals and acoustic guitar throughout the LP as well as lead electric guitar on "Never Be Another You", "Love You The Best" and "Southern Manners". The Trio’s harmonies shine on the twangy "Honky Tonk Heart" and the cinematic journey of "Hundred Miles". Walker's expertise and producing prowess are the perfect complement, elevating this collection of songs and making it a "must listen”.

"In 2004 the Drive-By Truckers released what would become the best selling album in their illustrious catalog. The Dirty South is a concept album that examines the state of the South, and unveils the hypocrisy, irony, and tragedy that continues to exist. The album features live show staples like, “Tornadoes”, “Where The Devil Dont Stay” and “Puttin People On The Moon” as well as rarities like “Goode’s Field Road” and “Daddy’s Cup.”

The Complete Dirty South is a band-led rework of the original album. Principal member, Patterson Hood, took the reins and reimagined this record as it was originally intended. The complete version features resequenced audio, three additional tracks, four remixes along with updated vocals. The packaging comes with a perfect bound book featuring liner notes from Patterson Hood, track by track descriptions from Mike Cooley and Jason Isbell as well as never before seen photos along with updated artwork from the late Wes Freed.

“This ‘Director’s Cut’ is the way it was always intended to be heard” - Patterson Hood"

10 Year Anniversary Edition of Sturgill Simpson's debut album High Top Mountain. The anniversary edition includes an "Old King Coal" blacked out album cover with a glossy embossed jacket, and is pressed on translucent black vinyl. Sturgill Simpson's authenticity stands out like an island of hope in a sea of tacky. Pure and uncompromising, devoid of gloss and fakery. High Top Mountain’s dozen instant classics evoke the sound of timeless country in its many guises and brings back the lyrical forthrightness and depth that permeated the music Simpson absorbed during his Kentucky childhood. Bonafide mountain hillbilly soul, as pure as you are going to find anywhere.

Robert Ellis is redefining himself with Yesterday's News- a record of unhurried meditations delivered by an artist learning to slow down and appreciate the tiny miracles that make life worth living. Hailed by NPR for his “musical daring and impeccable song craft,” and Rolling Stone for his “sharp eye for storytelling,” Ellis recorded Yesterday's News to tape in just two days, embracing a raw minimalism that prizes patience and restraint above all else: "close your eyes and drift into a dream."

Sweet Western Sound is Tanya Tucker’s first album of new music since 2019’s 2x-Grammy Award-winning, While I’m Livin’, the re-introduction that revitalized her career and brought her music to a new generation of fans. While that album’s stripped-down, singer-songwriter approach leaned toward the acoustic side, Sweet Western Sound’s framework is more muscular, evoking, at times, the vintage West Coast country-rock productions of the ‘70s and ‘80s. Produced by Brandi Carlile and Shooter Jennings. 

Titled after the church the Antioch, Tennessee native grew up attending, the debut full-length project features 13 tracks, including his current single, "Need A Favor." Earlier this week, Jelly Roll teased the announcement with images of Whitsitt Chapel's outdoor sign featuring song lyrics from current and yet-to-be-released tracks on the album. Additional track list information will be announced at a later date.

"This album is about growth and gratitude happening in my life. I wanted to create a project that felt hopeful. I believe the worst feeling a person can have is feeling hopeless or worthless. This is therapeutic music. Real music for real people with real problems," he shares.

JELLY ROLL / WHITSITT CHAPEL

Jordan Davis will release his 2nd studio album, Bluebird Days, on Double LP on June 2, 2023. The highly anticipated album features 17 songs, including the #1 double-platinum CMA Song of the Year, “Buy Dirt” feat. Luke Bryan. The hit song (about faith, family and friends) continues to resonate with fans worldwide, topping the Country Radio Airplay chart for 2 weeks, amassing over 735M global streams and earning NSAI Song of the Year. The album also includes the #1 Country hit, “What My World Spins Around.”

“You don’t want your stuff to vanish,” says Joe Perniceabout the twenty-fifth anniversary reissue of Overcome By Happiness. “Not that I’m looking to get famous, but you need to connect with the world. There’s something that reaffirms your own life in that echo that comes back to you—even if it’s your own voice coming back.

”The story of Overcome By Happinessis one of great risk and greater payoff. It’s the story of a disgruntled country singer struggling to define himself against prevailing musical trends. It’s the story of a songwriter just finding his voice, an artist so desperate to express himself that he scrapped one band to form another, risking his record contract and arguably his career to put the sounds he heard in his head onto tape. It’s the story of a musician embracing the sounds of his childhood: AM easy listening, sophisticated chamber pop, baroque lounge music, Bread, the Carpenters, Bacharach, Manilow. It’s the story of a poet driving through Massachusetts in a rusted-out Bonneville with a wooden bumper.

This time has come for this story to be told on vinyl. Released 25 years later to the day, New West Records is proud to present the remastered 25th anniversary edition of Overcome By Happinesson vinyl. This release features two orange and white splatter LPs held by thumb notch sleeves inside of a hardback book gatefold. The album audio also includes a 13 Track Bonus LP featuring 8 Previously Unreleased Demo Recordings The package features a 52-page book showcasing extensive liner notes, printed lyrics, forward and track by track written by Joe Pernice as well as previously unseen photographs. Each copy comes with a 5x7 autographed print.

A lot can be said about El Dorodo that hasn’t been said before. We can talk about their beginnings, their roots, their lineage and their heritage, but that does not even begin to scratch the surface that is the iceberg of El Dorodo. Before the age of woefully crafted template songs that littered radio all across America, there was an age of radio and song craft that spoke to everyone on a common level. These words tell stories — stories of heartache, stories of past good times…but mostly heartache. A universal understanding of the human emotion coupled with every great sound that music has to offer, all in one place. El Dorodo is all of these things and all of these things are Country music. El Dorodo appreciates, respects and loves all types of “good” music. You may hear aspects of these different genres represented in our music. We are fans first. Our hearts lie in Country/Western/Old Time music and culture. We represent true, honest Country music to be consumed by the masses and we do so with full hearts. Our aim is to get back to the basics of love…El Dorodo is country music.

Golden-voiced Mavericks frontman Raul Malo lets his guitar do the singing in this 10-song collection highlighting his skill as an arranger and instrumentalist. From midnight in Havana to the beaches of California, hear Malo‘s full range of musical influences on display as he explores a wild variety of textures from surf guitar licks, lush earthen tones, spaghetti western to big band jams and more, accompanied occasionally by his Mavericks bandmates. It’s a sonic adventure befitting his time leading music’s most shape-shifting band.

Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Parker McCollum is following up his breakout major label debut, Gold Chain Cowboy, with his forthcoming studio album, Never Enough, out May 12 (MCA Nashville). McCollum earned his first-ever No. 1 hit with his double-platinum certified premiere single, “Pretty Heart,” and his follow-up gold certified single, “To Be Loved by You,” also hit No. 1 on the charts.

It’s been a time of intense, worldwide change over the past few years… or maybe it all depends on scale. Zooming out to a geological timeline, maybe not much has changed at all. On his sixth album Wilderness Within You, acclaimed singer/songwriter Parker Millsap explores this flux between the here and now and the big BIG picture, while reckoning with questions about humanity’s place on this planet. The result is a study in contrasts: the personal versus the cosmic, sparse acoustic compositions sitting next to lush psychedelic improvisations. Above all, Wilderness Within You is an understanding of darkness while expressing an abundance of gratitude for life itself.

Born and raised in Purcell, Okla., a tiny town with a huge sky, Millsap learned early on how to express gratitude through song while playing gospel in the church band. Long-time fans will recognize the album’s foundations – acoustic instrumentation and solid songwriting centered around Millsap’s show-stopping voice. They’ll also spot the evolution towards more experimentation and sampling from other musical cultures. Beyond the opening “Greetings and Thanks,” which puts to music “The Thanksgiving Address” of the indigenous peoples of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy — all proceeds from the song will be donated to the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force — the album continues on with a series of auditory landscapes and thoughtful insights including “Running on Time,” which contrasts a sweet message about patience with distorted electronic harmonies. The second half of Wilderness turns darker and moodier with the industrial, buzz-saw “Half a World Away,” which finds Millsap questioning “who murders for my meat? who gets it here from there?” At the other end of the sonic spectrum is the beautiful, roots-y title track, a duet with the legendary Gillian Welch. The track illustrates Millsap’s understanding of nature as something that humans are not separate from - that life is stunningly beautiful most of the time, but does contain streaks of darkness that are just as natural: “There’s a field that’s full of violets, there’s a bruise that’s purple brown / There’s a little bit of violence, and a lot of fertile ground.”

In a broader sense, Wilderness Within You poses many weighty questions without easy answers. While Millsap can feel deeply discouraged by the way things are going wrong in the world, especially with the climate crisis, Wilderness Within You is threaded with hope and thankfulness for all we do have. This idea is beautifully etched on “Magic,” an anthem about the power of paying attention – a torch song perfect for listeners to join in and belt along to.

“I really do want people to feel the magic,” Millsap said, echoing lyrics from the song. “It’s out there.”

In celebration of the album’s 20th anniversary, Emmylou Harris’ Stumble Into Grace will be available on vinyl for the first time.  The release will be available on special bone colored vinyl.  When the album was initially released, it was an immediate critical and commercial success.  It includes almost all original compositions written by Harris and was produced by Malcolm Burn (Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp, The Neville Brothers).  The album also features a host of guest artists including Daniel Lanois, Gillian Welch, Linda Ronstadt, The McGarrigle Sisters, Kevin Salem, Ethan Johns and more.

Take a look at the cover of Rodney Crowell’s brilliant new album, The Chicago Sessions, and you might recognize a familiar callback to the legendary songwriter’s 1978 debut.

“In a lot of ways, this album feels like that very first record to me,” Crowell reflects. “When my daughter Chelsea suggested we lay the artwork out similarly, the connection made perfect sense. There’s something very simple, very innocent about it. It’s just me and the band in a room together, loose and live and having fun.”

Produced by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, The Chicago Sessions is indeed a throwback to Crowell’s early days of making records, but it’s no nostalgia trip. The songs here are vital and timely, touching on everything from love and mortality to race and religion, and the performances are nothing short of intoxicating, fueled by raw guitars, honky-tonk piano, and tight, punchy drums. Tweedy wields a light touch as a producer, his influence subtle yet unmistakable, and engineer Tom Schick’s mixes are dynamic and alive, alternately lush and spacious in all the right places with a spotlight fixed firmly on Crowell’s warm, weathered vocals throughout. Put it all together and you’ve got a masterful, cross-generational collaboration that manages to feel both fresh and familiar all at once, an incisive, engaging collection that balances careful craftsmanship with joyful liberation at every turn.

Over 3 decades ago, Peter One was a STAR. A country music star, in West Africa. With his singing partner Jess Sah Bi, Peter played to sold out arenas. In 1985, Our Garden Needs Its Flowers, launched the two Ivory Coast musicians into regional stardom across greater West Africa. Now solo, Peter One ultimately decided to emigrate to the US to further his music career. Come Back to Me features songs in English, French and his native African language. 

Logan Halstead will release his anticipated debut album, Dark Black Coal, May 5 via Thirty Tigers.

Age is a number, and Logan Halstead constantly reminds us of that. At just 15 years old, he wrote his first song, "Dark Black Coal", a powerful and haunting song about life for many of the people where he is from who had to work in the coal mines of southern West Virginia. Logan Halstead, 18 years old, is a country/folk/americana singer-songwriter who grew up in Comfort, WV. Logan pulls most of his music from the struggle and hardship of his life and those around him. Small-town living isn't intensely stimulating socially or economically, but spiritually there is always a yearning for more.

Being from WV and KY, it's no surprise that Tyler Childers and Sturgill Simpson influence him, but he has also found a lot of inspiration from Nicholas Jamerson and Cole Chaney. "All these folks mentioned have laid a path and shown that it's okay to be from these parts; we're not so looked down on anymore..." says Logan. It's given him the ability to be proud of who he is and has led him to be a driving force in the scene of young artists from the Appalachian region. 

Logan doesn't like to put himself in a box sonically or stylistically. Still, many would adorn it as Appalachian/Americana music. Above all, it is raw and honest, and the writing wrapped in wisdom one might only think someone two decades older than could conjure. While the masses clamored for more content, Halstead took his time and found the right partners for his debut album. He decided to cut his project at the famous Sound Emporium Studios in Nashville, TN. He was accompanied by the one and only Lawrence Rothman (Amanda Shires, Margo Price, Angel Olson, and many more). When asked about the recording process, Logan said, "It was a great experience; Lawrence is top-notch. They made me feel comfortable just to go in and do what I do, and to get to record in a place like that is a dream come true, especially for a holler kid". Lawrence, who saw success at a very young age, was a perfect fit because they understood Logan's position and angst and allowed Logan to express himself freely.

In 2020 Logan released "Dark Black Coal" on Youtube, which has since amassed almost 6 million views. The success of that single has allowed Logan to build a great fan base through YouTube, touring, and opening for folks like Zach Bryan, Charles Wesley Godwin, Town Mountain, and many more. With the record's release over a year after he created the album, Our Vinyl came into his life at the perfect time. Halstead released a taste of his upcoming project, and with that four-song EP, Logan gained over 120,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. 

With the success of "Dark Black Coal" it's no surprise that it became the title for his first album. He signed with Thirty Tigers and is excited to partner with them on his release. The release date is slated for May 5th, and he will be touring those songs throughout May. Expect to see his name on festival billings, support tours, and in a town near you. "I want my music to keep evolving and improve my craft. I want to be the best I can be and give my fans shows to remember" says Halstead. Like all musicians, they hope to achieve a successful career but don't expect Logan Halstead to change who he is or what he believes in to reach it. Authentically himself, he strives to always be honest and authentic to his fans.

Renowned singer, songwriter, musician, artist and best-selling author Josh Ritter will release his anticipated new album, Spectral Lines, April 28 via Thirty Tigers.

Produced by Ritter’s longtime collaborator Sam Kassirer (Lake Street Dive, Langhorne Slim), Spectral Lines finds Ritter expanding beyond the bounds of his previous work to create a record both atmospheric and profound. Dedicated to the memory of his mother, Ritter searches for commonality across these ten seamless tracks by exploring life’s most universal ideas—love, devotion and what it means to be connected, to both each other and to ourselves.

“I think it’s important for us to share some of our most basic and common experiences with each other, however we can. That’s what we really, really need right now. I know we have common experiences, and it’s important to telegraph those back because they don’t have to be lonely experiences.” - Josh Ritter

One of today’s most thoughtful and prolific voices, Ritter has released ten studio albums including 2019’s widely acclaimed, Fever Breaks, of which NPR Music praised, “He remains a hydrant of ideas while embodying an endless capacity for empathy and indignation, often within a single song.” In addition to his work as a musician, Ritter is also a national best-selling author, having released two novels to date: 2011’s Bright’s Passage and 2021’s The Great Glorious Goddamn of It All, for which the film rights have recently been optioned for development. Released to critical attention, Stephen King wrote in The New York Times Book Review that Bright’s Passage “shines with a compressed lyricism that recalls Ray Bradbury in his prime…This is the work of a gifted novelist.”

In celebration of the new record, Ritter and his band, the Royal City Band, will return to the road in spring ‘23 with headline shows at Chicago’s Thalia Hall, Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, Washington, DC’s Lincoln Theatre, Philadelphia’s Keswick Theatre, Boston’s House of Blues and New York’s Beacon Theatre among others. Visit www.joshritter.com for full details.

In addition to Ritter (vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar) and Kassirer (piano, organ, mellotron, synthesizers, drums), Spectral Lines also features Jocie Adams (clarinet, synthesizers, background vocals), Matt Douglas (woodwinds), Zachariah Hickman (upright bass, electric bass), Rich Hinman (electric guitar, pedal steel), Shane Leonard (drums, percussion, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass), Kevin O’Connell (drums, percussion, electric bass, electric guitar) and Dietrich Strause (acoustic guitar, electric guitar). 

"Everything clicks on Safe to Run, the fourth album from singer, songwriter Esther Rose. It’s the quiet culmination of years spent fully immersed in a developing artistry, and presents Rose’s always vividly detailed emotional scenes with new levels of clarity and control. As with previous work, her songwriting transfigures the chaos and uncertainty of a life in progress, but here she introduces a newfound pop element that attaches unshakably catchy hooks to even the darkest stretches of the journey.

Rose takes an unblinking look at her own vulnerabilities as well as more universal concerns, somehow never taking herself too seriously in the process. This manifests as a critique of the insidious sexism of the music industry on “Dream Girl,” but quickly melts into a hazy memoryscape of the dive bar drama and suspended hovering of her early 20s on “Chet Baker.” The song “Safe to Run” (a gorgeous duet with Hurray for the Riff Raff’s Alynda Segarra) directly merges the personal with the global, superimposing feelings of spiritual displacement onto the larger, looming dread of climate grief. Rose breathes in the ecstasy of the natural world in one line and makes fun of herself a few bars later. There are ghosts in the room for most of her songs, but she’s invited them in and is cracking jokes with them over a drink or two.

Ultimately all of these new advancements become twinkles of light in the background as they fold into the big picture impact of the songs themselves. Esther Rose translates her world into eleven curious and captivating scenes. While the songs are stunning one by one, absorbing Safe to Run as a whole feels like witnessing something taking shape, experiencing the headspins of the elevation and the slow return to equilibrium as the clouds start clearing."

- The Western Chill collector's edition is a specially designed box containing multiple pieces for the ultimate Robert Earl Keen fan.

- Contains a double sleeve album (14 songs total), a graphic novel that tells the tale of how Western Chill was written, a full music video DVD of all the songs that are on the LPs and a songbook with lyrics, notes and chords so the purchaser can play along.

- All four items are artfully packaged together in a 13.5 x13.5 box with magnetic closure.

The War And Treaty will release their major label debut, The Lover’s Game, via Mercury Nashville on March 10, 2023. The husband-and-wife team of Michael Trotter, Jr. and Tanya Trotter were recently nominated for Duo/Group of the Year at the 2022 Americana Honors & Awards ceremony. They have amassed a following as eclectic as their sound – a bluesy yet joyful fusion of Southern soul, gospel, country and rock n’ roll. Indie Exclusive Clear LP.

Amongst the nearly 150 albums that Willie Nelson has released, he has a number of amazing full-album tributes to songwriters from Kris Kristofferson and George Gershwin to Ray Price and Cindy Walker. Adding to that list is a new studio album dedicated to songwriting legend Harlen Howard who has scores of country hits including a number that crossed over to pop and even R&B charts. A member of both the Country Music Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall Of Fame, Howard wrote hits for Ray Charles (“Busted”), Buck Owens (“I’ve Got A Tiger By The Tail”), Conway Twitty (the title track), Bobby Bare (“The Streets Of Baltimore”) and so many more. Produced by longtime collaborator Buddy Cannon and featuring a murderers’ row of crack Nashville musicians, I Don’t Know A Thing About Love is an amazing addition to Willie’s unparalleled catalog.

Morgan Wallen's 3rd studio album, One Thing At A Time, is set for release via Big Loud/Mercury/Republic on 3/3/23. Wallen's 36-song, deeply personal album combines his musical influences (country/alternative/hip-hop). With so much new music, the stage is set for his 63-date/30 stadium One Night At A Time World Tour. This album follows the success of his 4x platinum, Dangerous: The Double Album, which notched historical chart status at Billboard's longest running Top 10 album for a solo artist.

The Shootouts didn’t expect to be back in the studio so soon after the release of their Top 10 Americana album 'Bullseye'. But when one of country music’s most legendary artists agrees to produce your next record, you don’t say no. That’s what happened when a mutual friend introduced the band to Ray Benson – longtime frontman and 10-time Grammy-winning founder of Asleep at the Wheel. Just months after the April 2021 release of Bullseye, the Shootouts found themselves hard at work with Benson and co-producer Sam Seifert on the album that would become 'Stampede'. The new album 'Stampede' continues to follow the Shootouts mission statement of embracing the various roots of country music while filtering it through the lense of a band from Northeast Ohio. It features special guests Asleep at the Wheel, Raul Malo, Jim Lauderdale, Buddy Miller, and Marty Stuart.

Harris’s sophomore effort, Boomerang Town marks a bold step forward for this country-folk-leaning singer-songwriter. It is an arresting, ambitious song-cycle that explores the generational arc of family, the stranglehold of addiction, and the fragile ties that bind us together as Americans. This is a record that understands that love and grief are two sides of the same coin. 

Jaimee Harris turned 30 during the pandemic. It’s a milestone that is a rite of passage even during normal times. But for this Texas-born singer-songwriter, it came in the midst of one of the strangest and most tumultuous periods in American history. When the world stopped during lockdown, Harris, like many others, found herself gazing back into the past, ruminating on the nature of her hometown and family origins, and reckoning with their imprint on her. The term ‘nostalgia’ derives from the Greek words nostos (return) and algos (pain), and if Harris’s Boomerang Town can be regarded as a nostalgic album, it is only nostalgic in the sense that the longing for home is a desire to return to the past and heal old wounds.

For Harris, the album began gestating around 2016, a time of great loss for many in the Americana community, with the songwriter losing several musicians close to her. The shift in the nation’s political landscape had ushered in a new level of polarization that saw whole swaths of cultural life being demonized. For someone who grew up in a small town outside of Waco, Harris believed the values instilled in her by her parents were not entirely in line with how many on the left were viewing — and vilifying — Christians, citing them as responsible for the new change in leadership. As a person in recovery, Harris has had to re-evaluate her own connection to faith and find strength in a higher power (“Though he’s not necessarily a blue-eyed Jesus,” she laughs), though she certainly knows what it’s like to “be told how to vote” in a Southern church setting.

It was from the intersection of these social, personal, and political currents the album was born. And while much of the material on Boomerang Town was inspired by personal experience, the songs on this collection are far from autobiographical xeroxed copies. More than anything, they come from a place of emotional truth.

“My goal is to just write the best possible song I can write,” Harris says, “and I wanted to have ten songs that made sense together sonically. I still believe in the album format, and I wanted to lay the groundwork as a solid songwriter.” On Boomerang Town, Jaimee Harris, who was able to find her way out — unlike so many others — has accomplished all that, and much more.

Boomerang Town is available on CD and LP.  The Vinyl packaging features a translucent outer sleeve with a striking design that compliments the official underlying album artwork. 

In just three remarkable solo albums Margo Price has cemented herself as a force in American music and a generational talent. On her fourth full-length Strays, recorded in Topanga Canyon and produced by Jonathan Wilson, the singer and songwriter presents a clear-eyed mission statement delivered in blistering rock and roll. Margo Price has something to say, and nothing to prove. 

With her spellbinding voice and time-bending sensibilities, Sierra Ferrell makes music that’s as fantastically vagabond as the artist herself. On her highly anticipated Rounder debut Long Time Coming, Ferrell shares a dozen songs beautifully unbound by genre or era, instantly transporting her audience to an infinitely more enchanted world.

From their earliest self-released EPs to 2021’s Cast-Iron Pansexual—the album that earned praise from Rolling Stone and American Songwriter for its examination of faith, sexual identity, and self-acceptance—Adeem the Artist has continued to build a following by blending Appalachian musical influences and poetic flair with a healthy dose of comedic instinct. 

"Humor has always been a part of my life," explains the Eastern Tennessee-based songwriter, citing comedians Andy Kaufman and Sarah Silverman as artistic influences in addition to musicians like John Prine and Blind Boy Fuller. Growing up, first in North Carolina and later in Syracuse, New York, Adeem quickly realized that with the right delivery, dark jokes could offer a socially acceptable way to open up about the tough stuff. "My parents are both from a lot of generational trauma, and I was born right at the heart of it,” they say. “Humor is just how we survived." 

Adeem’s twang-studded gospel represents a worldview too often excluded from modern country music, one that converts shame into celebration. It turns out, folks like the sound of embracing the parts of ourselves we’re told to bury—so much so that when Adeem turned to fans to support the follow-up album to Cast-Iron Pansexual, thousands obliged. Dubbing it a “redneck fundraiser,” the seventh-generation Carolinian raised the money to release White Trash Revelry by asking for one dollar at a time through social media. “With four quarters and a Venmo,” they joked, “baby, you can make this dream come true.” Adeem emerged from the fundraiser $15,000 later with a name for their new record label—Four Quarters Records—and the resolve to write an unapologetic next chapter.

White Trash Revelry delivers, tempering Adeem’s beloved comedic sensibilities with vulnerable moments and highly specific personal details. Tender strings and clear vocals on "Middle of a Heart" give way to nuanced storytelling about small-town rites of passage and mixed messages about love, violence, and honor. And "Heritage of Arrogance" tackles larger societal issues, struggling to reconcile open-minded intentions with the deeply flawed and historical narratives too often peddled by white Southerners. But the album’s namesake revelry is around every corner, too. 

"They play country songs in heaven, but in hell we play ‘em loud," they sing on the standout single “Going to Hell.” Regardless of your thoughts on the afterlife, Adeem sings with an easy-going charisma that makes it easy to want to follow them—to heaven, to hell, or to some raucous, welcoming party in between. 

"As long as I can remember I wanted to make a record with my dad,” Billy Strings says. The dream to make a proper studio album is finally realized. Me and Dad, out November 18, is a collection of 14 classics that Billy and his dad, Terry Barber, know like the back of their hands. It's the music that made Billy the musician and human he is today. The album represents a lifelong goal finally achieved and a way for the Grammy-winning musician to honor the man who taught him how to play guitar.

In 1984, Willie Nelson was at the height of his popularity, having racked up sixteen #1 country hits over the previous decade and crossing over to the pop charts multiple times, while starring in a series of hit movies and becoming one of the most recognized figures in popular culture. He united fans across genres and generations and his live shows had become legendary. In February of that year, he performed in Tokyo to kick off a five city tour that marked his first time playing in Japan, showing how global his appeal had become. The first shows were at the Budokan, the legendary martial arts hall and the February 23rd show was recorded and filmed for broadcast, eventually seeing release only as a laser disc in Japan. However the video was never seen anywhere else and the audio was never released at all…until now. The audio has been lovingly remixed by Willie’s longtime band member Mickey Raphael and includes 29 songs across two CDs. Also included is 27 of the songs on a DVD with the new audio mix and the picture restored to high definition. The show is an amazing collection of hits from “Whiskey River” to “Always On My Mind,” “On The Road Again” to “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys.” Also included are amazing covers of songs like “Me And Bobby McGee,” “Georgia On My Mind” and “Stardust” and so much more. 

After the success of her critically-acclaimed 2021 release Daddy’ s Country Gold, Melissa Carper, dubbed “HillBillie Holiday” by friend and collaborator Chris Scruggs, was eager to get back in the studio. With co-producers Andrija Tokic (St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Hurray For The Riff Raff) and Dennis Crouch (The Time Jumpers) behind the boards again at Tokic’s analog paradise The Bomb Shelter in Nashville, Carper assembled that same crew of magical music makers - plus a few more - to embark on her newest effort, Ramblin’ Soul, set for release November 18th via Thirty Tigers.

Carper’s deep, old-timey music roots were firmly planted as a child, playing upright bass and singing in her family’s traveling country band in rural Nebraska. Her love of country classics was cultivated as she laid beneath the console listening to her parents’ record collection. Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, and more became the soundtrack of her youth. When Carper’s father gifted her a collection of Jimmie Rodgers’ recordings, she began to find her voice and calling as a songwriter.

Carper attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on a music scholarship, and spent much of her time in the music library, instinctively drawn to the great jazz classics and jazz vocalists such as Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole. She also discovered Lead Belly, uncovering a deep well within when singing his songs. Carper stands firmly on the shoulders of American ramblers, crooners, and songsters - the building blocks of her musical foundation. In 2020, grappling with the loss of regular gigs, Carper and Patek moved to a friend’s farm near Austin, working in exchange for housing, organic vegetables, and fresh, country air. The simpler life afforded Carper the space and rejuvenation needed to channel her muse, and begin writing for her next album.

“I had a handful of songs about rambling around and living a free life that I wanted to weave through the album,” Carper recalls. “I wrote the title track driving back home to Texas, and it felt like the seeds of the next album were planted. I also knew I wanted Ramblin’ Soul to have a different feel than Daddy’s Country Gold, with more upbeat and diverse styles and grooves.” Ramblin’ Soul features a co-write with life long ramblin’ buddy and bandmate Gina Gallina, a song penned by friend and frequent collaborator Brennen Leigh; a reimagined classic from folk pioneer Odetta; and ten Carper originals. The album ventures into blues, early rock and roll, and old school soul, along with Carper’s signature styles of country, western swing, and jazz. Carper’s lifelong, steadfast listening has come to fruition in the songs on Ramblin’ Soul. Her childhood love of the family record collection planted the seeds of what is her own bountiful orchard today.

Billy Joe Shaver’s songs were stories of his life; they were real, and they were raw. Many artists have covered Billy Joe songs over the years. From Willie to Waylon to Elvis and Cash. Billy Joe’s influence on some of the greatest of artists is what inspired this project. Now, with Live Forever: A Tribute to Billy Joe Shaver a whole new batch of artists and songwriters are taking their cut at one of the greatest songwriting catalogs of all time. This album is a testament to Billy Joe’s words and the deep impact they had on so many wonderful songwriters and performers. He’s a hero to so many, and New West is honored to pay homage to the legacy of Billy Joe Shaver. Just like the songs he left behind him, he’s gonna live forever now.

Blue is the fourth studio album by singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell, released on June 22, 1971, by Reprise Records. Written and produced entirely by Mitchell, it was recorded in 1971 at A&M Studios in Hollywood, California. Created just after her breakup with Graham Nash and during an intense relationship with James Taylor, Blue explores various facets of relationships from infatuation on "A Case of You" to insecurity on "This Flight Tonight". 

Today, Blue is generally regarded by music critics as one of the greatest albums of all time; the cohesion of Mitchell's songwriting, compositions and voice are frequent areas of praise. In other words, this album is ESSENTIAL.