Jake Xerxes Fussell Announces New Album The Old Beloved Path: Hear “Rock Island Line”
For over a decade now, Jake Xerxes Fussell's records have been making traditional folk music come alive for modern ears. Today he's announcing his latest, The Old Beloved Path , set for release on Fat Possum this fall. The lead single is out now, a contemporary take on "Rock Island Line" that transforms the American traditional into a tender alt-country ballad. The post Jake Xerxes Fussell Announces New Album <em>The Old Beloved Path</em>: Hear “Rock Island Line” appeared first on Stereogum .
For over a decade now, Jake Xerxes Fussell's records have been making traditional folk music come alive for modern ears. Today he's announcing his latest, The Old Beloved Path , set for release on Fat Possum this fall. The lead single is out now, a contemporary take on "Rock Island Line" that transforms the American traditional into a tender alt-country ballad.
"Rock Island Line" is covered often enough that Fussell had never considered performing it himself, but a recording of the song by Lonnie Donegan unlocked fresh inspiration for him. He offered this context:
The song struck me as very beautiful, but just singing the verses wasn’t working for me. I couldn’t relate. So, I wound up putting it together with an old English nursery rhyme that I had been kicking around. "Wire, briar, limberlock/ How many geese is in our flock?" and "If you want to ride you got to ride it like you’re flyin, get your ticket at the station on the Rock Island Line." Marrying those two things, I felt like something worked, it felt like a song to me.
Listen below, where you can also find The Old Beloved Path 's tracklist and Fussell's tour dates, including some shows with Naima Bock and Dougie Poole.
TRACKLIST: 01 "No. 1" 02 "Rock Island Line" 03 "Every Time I Go To Town" 04 "Rosin Some" 05 "Boney" 06 "Early Early In The Spring" 07 "Boll Weevil" 08 "Sandy Land" 09 "Of All The Beast-es In The World"
TOUR DATES: 08/01 - Lansing, NC @ Fly Around Festival 08/08-09 - Edmonton, AB @ Edmonton Folk Festival 08/20 - Chicago, IL @ Fretboard Summit 09/12 - Durham, NC @ The Carolina Theater [Eno River Association 60th Anniversary] 10/02 - Liverpool, UK @ St Michael's Church * 10/03 - Manchester, UK @ Hallé St Peter's * 10/05 - Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club * 10/06 - Glasgow, UK @ St Luke's * 10/08 - Cork, IE @ Cyprus Avenue 10/09 - Galway, IE @ Róisín Dubh 10/10 - Dublin, IE @ Button Factory 10/12 - Bristol, UK @ St George's * 10/13 - Brighton, UK @ Concorde 2 * 10/14 - London, UK @ Union Chapel * 10/24 - Buena Vista, GA @ Pasaquan 11/03 - Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room + 11/04 - Boise, ID @ Shrine Social Club + 11/05 - Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater + 11/06 - Centralia, WA @ The Juice Box + 11/07 - Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore Cabaret + 11/08 - Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern + 11/11 - San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall + 11/12 - Felton, CA @ Felton Music Hall + 11/13 - South Pasadena, CA @ Sid the Cat Auditorium + 11/14 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar + 12/02 - Copenhagen, DK @ Hotel Cecil 12/03 - Oslo, NO @ Røverstaden 12/04 - Stockholm, SE @ Nalen Klubb 12/05 - Gothenburg, SE @ Pustervik 12/07 - The Hague, NL @ PAARD 12/08 - Brussels, BE @ Botanique Rotonde 12/09 - Hamburg, DE @ Nachstasyl 12/10 - Berlin, DE @ Theater im Delphi 12/11 - Cologne, DE @ Stadtgarten 12/12 - Paris, FR @ Le Hasard Ludique 12/13 - Bruges, BE @ Duyster Festival
The Old Beloved Path is out 9/18 on Fat Possum. Pre-order it here .
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