New York, NY (Top40 Charts) When someone in
Texas or Oklahoma refers to �red dirt,� there�s a good chance they�re talking about music, not soil. And when it comes to hotbeds of talent, this rich region is sprouting some of the best � including rising country-roots-rock band the Turnpike Troubadours. In the third segment of The Next Waltz, Bruce Robison�s innovative multi-platform music series, the Oklahoma sextet assess their growing popularity and introduce a fine new song, �Come As You Are.�
The song will debut as a music video July 29 at thenextwaltz.com; co-written by
Turnpike Troubadours lead singer-songwriter-guitarist Evan Felker and Old 97�s frontman Rhett Miller, it also will be available for purchase at iTunes. The band�s 6-minute video �biopic,� which captures them recording the track and discussing their career and musical philosophies with fellow musician Robison, also debuts July 29 on the website. Additional material including podcasts and blogs offering further info and insights; streamable artist-picked playlists; and social-media clips will appear on the site and elsewhere.
The Troubadours recorded the beautiful heartbreaker at Robison�s Lockhart studio, the all-analog Bruce�s Country Bunker (yes, it�s a nod to a certain campy yet beloved music film).
Remorse and regret permeate its lyrics, echoing ache a little more loudly with each verse. Well, How did I get to the shape that I�m in/a younger man�s thoughts/some tonic, some gin. And now I�m fumblin� around for a �darlin� don�t go.� The click of the heel to the tap of the toe, Felker sings, his high-lonesome melancholy giving the waltz-time song the feel of a long lived-in classic.
It just might earn that status one day. Press coverage of the band invariably raves about their ability to combine �roadhouse swagger� (Country Weekly) with �harmony and humanity� (Austin American-Statesman), accompanied by predictions about when they�ll break big. For an indie band, they�ve done pretty well so far, selling out larger and larger venues farther and farther from their home turf. And their self-titled last album, released in 2015 on their own Bossier City Records (with Thirty Tigers distribution), debuted at No. 3 on Billboard�s Top Country Albums chart � and No. 5 on its Top Rock Albums chart.
�I love it when a really great band is breaking through; it gives me hope,� Robison says. �Turnpike Troubadours are the next big thing � no gimmicks needed.�
In the interview video, artfully directed and edited by Spencer Peeples, Felker and his bandmates reveal how they progressed from being threatened if they failed to play enough Merle Haggard to hearing audiences sing along to their originals. Felker and Robison also discuss what people seek in a song. Felker says it�s relatability; songs often �paint a picture or sum up something [people] were thinking and hadn�t realized how to say.
Robison, whose credits include writing the No. 1 hits �Travelin� Soldier� (Dixie Chicks), �Wrapped� (George Strait) and �Angry All the Time� (Tim McGraw), in addition to working solo and with his wife,
Kelly Willis, observes, �I think music makes people know that they�re not alone.�
�Absolutely,� Felker answers. �You can really make somebody happy with a damned song.�
About The Next Waltz: The Last Waltz, which documented The Band�s farewell concert, was a momentous, one-time collaboration, but that event eventually led to Levon Helm�s Midnight Ramble recording sessions � and both helped inspire The Next Waltz, a new web series and multiplatform music delivery concept created by renowned Austin singer-songwriter and producer Bruce Robison. Featuring top country talents telling their stories and recording new musical chapters, often with handpicked session players, The Next Waltz references a beloved moment in musical history while presenting a forward-thinking vision of audience engagement. Launched in June with Jerry Jeff Walker, The Next Waltz takes viewers and listeners inside Robison�s Lockhart, Texas, studio for interviews and recording sessions with veteran artists such as Rodney Crowell,
Jack Ingram and
Kelly Willis (Robison�s wife), and up-and-comers including the
Turnpike Troubadours and Sam Outlaw. Telling the story of country music one song at a time, The Next Waltz is �Where country music still lives.�
The Next Waltz links
thenextwaltz.com
facebook.com/thenextwaltz
twitter.com/thenextwaltz
instagram.com/thenextwaltz
