Mark Farner will release Closer to My Home, his long-awaited new studio album, on November 8th via Righteous Rock Records with distribution by MVD Entertainment Group. Bridging past and present, the grit of industry, and the calloused hard work of a rural man, the project champions Farner’s multi-faceted artistry. Celebrating the 55th anniversary of the iconic Grand Funk Railroad hit “(I’m Your Captain) Closer To My Home,” the album is highlighted with a re-record, finding Farner in exactly the same form as 1970.

"There was no such thing as a click track back then. We played to the drummer. All of those hits back then, all of that music, it was all played to a real person, a drummer in a bone suit," Farner tells us about recreating the song. "So we did a tempo map. Josh Egan, who played drums on this particular cut, [Egen] did a tempo map of Brewer's original tempo, how it went up and down. I mean, if you looked at that map, you're going, 'What the hell?' You know, I mean, it was all over the place, but it doesn't sound like it. It's just naturally in and out. If the drummer does a fill, a lot of times, he's gonna make it to one before you do a pure tapping. (Laughing) He gets excited about what he's doing. So we wanted to capture that, and Josh certainly did. And he played Ludwig drums, just like Brewer played on the original track."

Farner talks to us more about the project and whether a reunion with the original Grand Funk Railroad is in the works or not.

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Award-winning artist and songwriter Brad Tursi of multi-platinum-selling band Old Dominion releases his first-ever solo project, Parallel Love, on July 19th.

Parallel Love is a collection of songs that have been written over the past ten years that are reflective of where the accomplished artist, guitarist, and writer is in the present moment. Created and released with the band's full support, the project features co-writes with Stephen Wilson Jr., Dan Isbell, Jessi Alexander, and Matt Jenkins. Tursi produced the entire project as well, with Ben West and Marc Scibilia co-producing select tracks.

In addition to his role with the reigning CMA and ACM Vocal Group of the Year, Tursi is a Grammy-nominated songwriter, has earned multiple CMA Triple Play Awards for writing three No. 1 songs in 12 months, been named AIMP Artist Writer of the Year, and co-written hits for Kenny Chesney, Luke Bryan, Tyler Hubbard, Josh Turner, Darius Rucker, and Cole Swindell, among others.

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The musician discusses his new spoken-word solo album

Country, bluegrass, and Americana legend John McEuen release his long-awaited album, The Newsman: A Man Of Record, in April via Compass Records. In this project for McEuen, the album has ten spoken word tracks and one instrumental piece. Each one tells a special story in a way that's like a play, with John's style of music in the background. The album starts with a story about a newspaper seller who had a big impact on John when he was getting started in Los Angeles and ends with "Jules' Theme," a song inspired by Jules Verne talking about his wife, who passed away in a French cemetery. Every part of the album is carefully put together to make it unforgettable.

The collection spans various literary themes from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Civil War-era poem "Killed at the Ford" (which we premiered) to Robert Service's "The Cremation of Sam McGee" about a Yukon prospector. Other tracks include Stephen Vincent Benét's "The Mountain Whippoorwill," Hank Williams Sr.'s "Fly Trouble," and Walter Brennan's "Old Rivers." Thomas Monroe's Vietnam War reflection "Nui Ba Den" contrasts with more recent compositions like John Carter Cash's "The Guitar Of Pineapple John," Hans Olson's "I'll Be Glad (When They Run Out Of Gas)," and Thaddeus Bryant's "Red Clay."

McEuen was set to support the project, but underwent an unexpected medical procedure around the time of the album's release, forcing him to be sidelined for several months.

We recently chatted with the country legend to discuss the project, his latest book, and his history with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.

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