Each week Release Day Picks profiles new LPs and EPs Team JamBase will be checking out on release day Friday. This week we highlight new albums by Lukas Nelson + POTR, Duane Betts, Colter Wall and The Jauntee. Read on for more insight into the records we have all queued up to spin.
Lukas Nelson & Promise Of The Real – Sticks And Stones
Lukas Nelson + POTR return with Sticks And Stones, a new album arriving today through 6ACE Records/Thirty Tigers. The follow-up to 2021’s A Few Stars Apart presents 12 new songs written solely by Lukas Nelson. The self-produced album includes the lead single, “More Than Friends” featuring country star Lainey Wilson. Regarding the new album, Nelson stated:
“This album is about celebrating the human connection, joy and excitement. We went from quiet and introspective on A Few Stars Apart to something big and fun to really showcase the band’s talent and performance. You can listen to the album Sticks and Stones from start to finish and get the songs to dance to and then the quiet, poignant songs. To me, this album is the perfect setlist.”
Duane Betts – Wild & Precious Life
Guitarist/singer-songwriter Duane Betts released his debut solo album, Wild & Precious Life, today through Royal Potato Family. Betts previously released an EP of originals entitled Sketches of American Music in 2018. Work on the material that would be included on Wild & Precious Life began in 2020 when Betts was at his homes in Florida and Wyoming while live music was paused due to the pandemic. His 2019 marriage and road to sobriety were among the topics that were infused into his songwriting. A chance meeting with Derek Trucks and his wife and musical partner, Susan Tedeschi, kicked the process into high gear. Betts spoke with the pair while attending a birthday party in the Florida Keys.
“I told them I wanted to make a solo album and really capture that old school Florida vibe,” explained Betts, “and Susan said I should just use their studio.”
Betts put together a band consisting of guitarist Johnny Stachela, bassist Berry Duane Oakley, keyboardist John Ginty and Tedeschi Trucks Band drummer Tyler “Falcon” Greenwell to accompany him to Tedeschi and Trucks’ Swamp Raga Studio facility in Jacksonville, Florida. Trucks appears on the album, along with special guests, vocalist Nicki Bluhm and guitarist Marcus King.
Colter Wall – Little Songs
Colter Wall issued his latest album, Little Songs, through his own La Honda Records in a new partnership with RCA Records. The Canadian singer-songwriter wrote the songs on the new album in his native Battle Creek, Saskatchewan. Wall returned to Yellowdog Studios in Wimberly, Texas — where he recorded his 2020 LP, Western Swing & Waltzes and Other Punchy Songs, to record Little Songs. Wall once again worked with Western Swing co-producer Patrick Lyons on the new album. Little Songs is comprised of eight originals and two covers: Ian Tyson’s “The Coyote & The Cowboy” and Hoyt Axton’s “Evangelina.”
“These songs were written over the last three years,” Wall said of the material on the new record. “I penned most of them from home and I think the songs reflect that.”
The Jauntee – Anything
The Jauntee‘s new album, Anything, was released today via Regime Music Group. The Boston-bred, Colorado-based jam quartet with nearly a decade’s worth of touring experience, The Jauntee’s last three albums have seen the band — drummer Scott Ferber, guitarist Caton Sollenberger, keyboardist Tyler Adams and bassist John Loland — focusing on their live experience. Those releases include the band’s Jaunts Of Our Lives series and the 2018 live/studio album Always Never Knowing, which was captured in front of a small audience at The Bridge Sound & Stage in the band’s hometown of Boston. Anything is The Jauntee’s first true studio album since 2015’s Excelsior. Ferber detailed The Jauntee’s new record:
“I’m proud to say that Anything is The Jauntee’s finest studio effort to date. Recording it ourselves during the pandemic gave us the opportunity to really fine-tune solos and song arrangements. We spent a lot of time on vocal harmonies and instrument overdubs of all sorts. We made a conscious effort to make the songs sound as full as possible using ‘studio magic’ and layering without worrying about how the live arrangements will sound. I think this collection of tunes will stand on their own as unique versions that can be revisited and enjoyed for different reasons than their respective ‘live’ versions.”
Compiled by Team JamBase.
