New Music Friday: January 31, 2025
Grayson Jenkins, Cristina Vane, J.R. Carroll, Charley Crockett, and more
Welcome back to Wick’s Picks! Below you’ll find my new music picks for the week, which are compiled into a larger, year-long Spotify playlist with all the other songs I’ve highlighted in 2025 at the end of this post. As always, thank you for your support, and enjoy!
J.R. Carroll - “Hometown Hero”
I know I’m slow getting around to the new record from J.R. Carroll, but now that I finally have dove into it I can’t get enough of the ballad “Hometown Hero.” The song compares and contrasts Carroll’s life as a rising songwriter in Oklahoma’s red dirt scene with his role as a member of Zach Bryan’s band who’s toured the world and how the success he’s having lately with both often comes with one thing that’s hard to shake — loneliness.
Charley Crockett - “Lonesome Drifter“
Charley Crockett may just be the hardest working man in show business. The Texas troubadour has released fourteen albums in the past decade, with a fifteenth — Lonesome Drifter — due out March 14. To celebrate the record’s announcement Crockett dropped it’s title track this morning, a dark and swampy mix of outlaw country, delta blues and rock’n roll that sees his signature swag on full display.
Anderson East - “Say I Love You”
Anderson East sings about how four little words can make all the world feel right on “Say I Love You.” The song is the lead single from East’s first album in four years, Worthy, which will also mark his debut with Rounder Records when it drops on May 30.
Grayson Jenkins - “Good Times Go” (feat. Pony Bradshaw)
Western Kentucky’s Grayson Jenkins welcomes North Georgia Rounder Pony Bradshaw to sing about small, once bustling towns now reduced to shells of their former selves on “Good Times Go.” Inspired by his time living in Ravenna, Ky. in 2019, the song is the first single from a batch of new tunes that Jenkins plans to release in the months ahead.
Alison Krauss & Union Station - “Looks Like The End Of The Road“
Alison Krauss & Union Station — one of modern bluegrass music’s most revered and accomplished acts — unveiled its first album in fourteen years (Arcadia) with the haunting single, “Looks Like The End Of The Road.” On it Krauss and company remain true to form as she welcomes a new face to the band in Russell Moore — formerly ringleader of bluegrass stalwarts Russell Moore & IIIrd Tyme Out — on guitar and vocals, further elevating the group’s immaculate arrangements.
Harper O’Neill - “My Love, My Love“
Texas songbird Harper O’Neill sings of her literal “ride or die” partner on “My Love, My Love,” a rock’n reminder that the most reliable and loving people in our lives are the ones that always feel like they’re a phone call or text away, no matter how many miles and dirt roads sit between you.
Jack Van Cleaf - “Rattlesnake” (feat. Zach Bryan)
California born folk singer welcomes megastar Zach Bryan for his latest single, “Rattlesnake,” a slow but steady ballad that taps into Bryan’s trademark sad boy alt-country along with indie folk elements as the two sing about the vertigo of early adulthood and grappling with their post-college success. The song is the first single from Van Cleaf’s forthcoming record JVC out May 9.
Cristina Vane - “Shake It Babe”
One of the most well-rounded pickers on the circuit who can hit you with some clawhammer banjo one moment and mesmerize you with slide guitar the next, Cristina Vane leans into her bluesy side (perhaps) more than ever before on “Shake It Babe,” the high octane latest single from her album Hear My Call expected Feb. 21.
Various Artists - “Steam Powered Aereo Plane”
An all-star cast of bluegrass women including Kathy Mattea, Alison Brown, Brittany Haas, Sierra Hull, Megan Lovell, and Missy Raines join together for this cover of bluegrass trailblazer John Hartford’s timeless hit “Steam Powered Aereo Plane.” The song is the latest single from Julia Belle: The John Hartford Fiddle Tune Project Volume II — an 18-song, female-focused compilation featuring nearly 50 different artists — that will be available Feb. 28.
Jesse Welles - “Horses”
The millennial Bob Dylan, Jesse Welles, is back today with “Horses,” a tune about not letting the darkness in the world weigh you down that’s also one of his first recorded songs featuring a full, electric band. The result is a composition that adds even more life to Welles vibrant lyrics about the state of the world at large, further illustrating his talent as well as the power music has to pull back the curtains on divisive topics in a way that most other forms of art or communication can.
Coming Next Week
Next Wednesday, Feb. 5, on my radio show I’ll be joined by Lexington musicians/record producers Duane Lundy and J. Tom Hnatow to preview the tribute concert to their dear and late friend, Robby Cosenza, taking place at The Burl on Feb. 8. You can join us that evening at 7 p.m. live on Hound FM, The Hound mobile app or HoundFM.com.
Also, stay tuned for a post here early next week recapping this weekend’s John Hartford Days celebration taking place at the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum in Owensboro. Have a great weekend!
