Bonnie “Prince” Billy, also known as Will Oldham, has crafted an authentic country album titled The Purple Bird. This new project was developed in Nashville with esteemed producer David “Ferg” Ferguson and a group of top-tier session musicians. Interestingly, the album is being released under No Quarter Records instead of his usual label, Drag City, while Domino is handling the UK and EU distribution.
Oldham first crossed paths with Ferguson about 20 years ago during the production of Johnny Cash’s American III, which features the cover of “I See A Darkness.” Their longstanding friendship and collaboration have flourished over the years, evidenced during a past conversation with Oldham and Matt Sweeney about Superwolves. For The Purple Bird, inspired by a childhood drawing by Ferguson which appears on the album cover, the duo worked closely together in the songwriting process.
Oldham shared his thoughts:
I’ve collaborated with various friends on records like The Brave and the Bold with Tortoise, the two Superwolf albums with Matt Sweeney, The Wonder Show of the World with Emmett Kelly, and Get on Jolly with Mick Turner. In those cases, the collaborators received prominent credit because that’s common practice in the industry. However, for The Purple Bird, my collaborator was producer David Ferguson. He’s not only a remarkable musical talent but also a cherished friend. Our collaboration stemmed from years of shared challenges and triumphs in music. The trust we built is palpable in this record, and every time I listen to it, I’m filled with gratitude for the opportunity to create such work.
Oldham mentioned that Ferguson advised him, “I don’t wanna do a country record, just do your shit, Will.” Despite this, the leading single “Our Home” has a distinctly country feel, featuring a duet with Grammy-winning mandolinist Tim O’Brien, who co-wrote the song. A music video for this track is available below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Turned To Dust (Rolling On)”
02 “London May”
03 “Tonight With The Dogs I’m Sleeping”
04 “Boise, Idaho”
05 “The Water’s Fine”
06 “Sometimes It’s Hard To Breathe”
07 “New Water”
08 “Guns Are For Cowards”
09 “Downstream”
10 “One of These Days (I’m Gonna Spend The Whole Night With You)”
11 “Is My Living In Vain?”
12 “Our Home”
The Purple Bird will be released on January 31 via No Quarter/Domino. You can pre-order it here.
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