Tag: Song Premiere

LISTEN: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass, “Date With an Angel”

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Artist: Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass
Hometown: Landenberg, Pennsylvania
Song: “Date With an Angel”
Album: Bluegrass Troubadour
Release Date: April 23, 2021
Label: Pinecastle Records

In Their Words: “When I heard ‘Date With an Angel’ for the first time, I knew I wanted to record it. Great story songs like this have become synonymous with bluegrass music, because folks can associate the struggles and yearnings in the lyrics to their own lives. I hope you will enjoy this song as much as we do.” — Danny Paisley

Photo courtesy of Danny Paisley & The Southern Grass

LISTEN: Aaron Burdett, “Arlo”

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Artist: Aaron Burdett
Hometown: Saluda, North Carolina
Song: “Arlo”
Release Date: March 19, 2021
Label: Organic Records

In Their Words: “Years ago I used to drive down to play the open mic night at a place called Eddie’s Attic in Georgia. It was a weekly event and I’d go down every six weeks or so. I’d work on my chops and mingle with other writers in one of the premier songwriter venues in the Southeast. Among the semi-regular performers those evenings was a songwriter named Arlo, and although we haven’t seen each other in person for probably 15 years we’ve kept in touch and still talk every week or so. We wax poetic about music and songs and audio gear and guitars or any number of oddball subjects.

“He’s not exactly the character in this song, but he is a character in his own right. Almost every line in the song ‘Arlo’ is something he said to me directly, verbatim. I’ve twisted the meaning and implications of the phrases to suit my vision for the narrator in the song, but the words more or less came from real life, from a real live Arlo, over the past 10 years. We’d talk and afterwards some sentence he said would stick with me so I’d write it down on the ‘Arlo’ sheet. Eventually this song fell out of that collection of phrases and snippets of conversations. Goes to show that you should be careful when you’re being clever around a songwriter, you may hear something you recognize in the next draft.” — Aaron Burdett

Photo credit: Sandlin Gaither

LISTEN: Will Orchard, “Rita”

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Artist: Will Orchard
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts
Song: “Rita”
Album: I Reached My Hand Out
Release Date: March 18, 2021
Label: Better Company

In Their Words: “‘Rita’ is a song about the blurred lines between attraction that’s real and long-lasting, and attraction that’s intense and fleeting. To me, it’s about lacking trust in my own impulses, and constantly questioning if those feelings are valid. I wrote this song while on tour on two separate occasions about a year apart, and the distance between those two moments really helped me put what I was feeling in perspective. The contributions of Allen, Jess, James, and Miles really helped bring this song to life and create the dark and the anxious landscape of those emotions.” — Will Orchard

Photo credit: Tim Ryan

LISTEN: Andy Leftwich, “Through the East Gate”

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Artist: Andy Leftwich
Hometown: Carthage, Tennessee
Song: “Through the East Gate”
Release Date: March 19, 2021
Label: Mountain Home Music Company

In Their Words: “‘Through the East Gate’ is a tune I wrote with the thought in mind of combining old-style fiddling with the new style of fiddlers that we hear today. I’ve always loved old traditional fiddling, and I wanted to somehow capture both the feel of the old style and combine it with the exciting licks and melodies that the newer style brings. This song reminds me of friends and family coming together to play music and to have a great time! I was so honored to have the legendary Mark Schatz join me on bass and clawhammer banjo. After we cut the track, we couldn’t resist recording a track of him dancing to this one!” — Andy Leftwich

Photo credit: Erick Anderson

LISTEN: Claire Kelly, “Sitting Still”

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Artist: Claire Kelly
Hometown: Cary, Illinois; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Nashville, Tennessee
Song: “Sitting Still”
Album: The Scenic Route
Release Date: March 19, 2021

In Their Words: “‘Sitting Still’ was the first song I wrote when the world came to a screeching halt in March of 2020. When the pandemic hit, I hid out with a few Nashville friends on a farmhouse in Tullahoma, Tennessee, to wait out the storm so to speak. We took the days easy out there on the farm: fishing, reading, writing, driving the old Ford truck around the property. Even though our tours had been cancelled and jobs had been lost, we tried to embrace the gift of time we’d be given and find some peace in slowing down.” — Claire Kelly

Photo credit: Jorie Struck

LISTEN: The Golden Roses, “When I’m Gone”

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Artist: The Golden Roses
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Song: “When I’m Gone”
Album: Devil’s in the Details
Release Date: March 19, 2021

In Their Words: “Before I moved to Texas, I went to visit the grave of my grandfather. It was apparent no one had been there in years (myself included). I got to thinking about being forgotten after we die. My grandfather was a well-respected bluegrass man (a banjo picker). Unfortunately, he did his drinking Saturday mornings and not Saturday nights. I think he sent that song to me as a parting gift before my move.” — John Mutchler, The Golden Roses

Photo credit: Trista Alley

LISTEN: Jackson Scribner, “County Rd 497”

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Artist: Jackson Scribner
Hometown: Melissa, Texas
Song: “County Rd 497”
Album: Jackson Scribner
Release Date: March 26, 2021
Label: State Fair Records / We Know Better Records

In Their Words: “I wrote the first verse of this song in the front yard of my grandparents’ house on County Rd 497. That’s the place ya go when ya feel unstable. The song is about the things you have when you’re younger that you don’t expect will ever go away, the ‘it’ll be like this forever’ mentality. Then you grow up and life changes, people and places come and go, and you can really only guess what might stay in your life, you’re never really sure.” — Jackson Scribner

Photo credit: Elaine Dela Pena

LISTEN: Greg Loiacono & Jamie Drake, “Bound to Fall”

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Artists: Greg Loiacono & Jamie Drake
Hometown: Novato, California / Los Angeles, California
Song: “Bound to Fall”
Release Date: March 12, 2021
Label: Blue Rose

In Their Words: “A few years back I had become obsessed with a recording called ‘Please Stay’ by The Cryin’ Shames. It inspired me to dive back into old records of singers singing heartbreak songs from way back like Patti Page, The Everly Brothers, and so on. I hoped to convey that lonely, faraway sound on this record. Once Jamie and I started working on the song together we focused in on this unrequited love that drives the singer almost into a sense of delusion. It was really enjoyable finding ways to convey this through words and melody. This is the second duet that Jamie and I have done together. Her powerful, versatile voice can pretty much do anything. It’s a joy to sing and write with her.” — Greg Loiacono

“In October 2018, Blue Rose introduced me to Greg Loiacono to sing on a duet he’d written called ‘San Felipe.’ Recording that day flowed naturally and led to us wanting to collaborate again in the future. Greg invited me to open for him — along with Scott Hirsch (Hiss Golden Messenger) — at the Sweetwater in Mill Valley, California, and I had a day off, so I took a drive to Greg’s hometown of Novato to work on some co-writes. The photo we used for the art was caught on film during the writing session. ‘Bound to Fall’ became a world for us to step into that was different from ‘San Felipe,’ but similar in that we captured a specific, vintage, musical vibe in an authentic way. It’s quite enjoyable to have musical friends you can accomplish different worlds with; I’m grateful to have found this kind of collaborator in Greg Loiacono.” — Jamie Drake

Photo credit: Aaron Rodriguez

LISTEN: Emily Moment, “Master of One”

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Artist: Emily Moment
Hometown: London, England
Song: “Master of One”
Album: The Party’s Over
Release Date: March 26, 2021

In Their Words: “I was really interested in talking about the idea of people being compulsively drawn to behaviours that harm them. I was in Thailand at the time, reading Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, and he referred to the Fugu fish — a delicacy in Japan — which is poisonous and can kill a person if prepared incorrectly. Allegedly, the ‘tastiest’ portion of this fish is the part nearest to the poison. That was a light bulb for me. I waded out into the South China Sea, zoning out on the passing boats, and wrote most of the song by singing it out loud to myself, finishing it later on my guitar back in London. Recorded live with the band, the combination of the djembe, the dreamy electric riff, and the woody warmth of the room at Urchin Studios just magically clicked the song in place.” — Emily Moment

Photo Courtesy of the Artist

LISTEN: Melody Duncan, “Over the Hill”

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Artist: Melody Duncan
Hometown: Mobile, Alabama
Song: “Over the Hill”
Album: Wolf Song
Release Date: March 12, 2021

In Their Words: “This was the last song I recorded for the album. I wasn’t sure if I was going to put this one on the record until the last moment, but I’m really glad I did. The track is made with only vocals and guitar, and it felt really complete to me. I think the lyrics are pretty straightforward; they’re a kind of journal entry mixed with sentiment I think many of us feel as we age. The longer we live, the more challenges, difficulties, and growth opportunities we face. We learn all these amazing life lessons and have to rise above the accompanying challenges. Sometimes through our experience or culture, we’re taught to fear aging and what it might mean for our bodies and minds. But the song is an expression of being resilient because of what we’ve been through, and despite whatever is ahead. It’s about making it through tough times at every age and stage we are in. It’s a dedication for all of those willing to invest in a good today, even if our bones ache in the morning.” — Melody Duncan

Photo credit: Katy Herndon