Michael Reynolds is pleased to announce that he will release a new album, Tarnished NIckel Sky, on August 16th via Blue Élan Records. You can pre-order the album here. The latest single, "26 Horses," is out today and has been premiered by Americana Highways. Listen to it here.
After a decade-long hiatus, Reynolds, former lead vocalist and songwriter for the acclaimed alt-country band Pinmonkey is back with this compelling new album produced by Grammy-winner Ray Kennedy (Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams.) It marks an unexpected and triumphant return to the music scene.
Reynolds's home recordings were sketches of songs just written for himself. They found their way into the hands of his former manager, who began to share them around town. The demos eventually reached the ears of Blue Élan Records co-founder Kirk Pasich, who soon proposed a record contract. More than a decade after he'd walked away from Music City, Michael Reynolds was again the buzz of Nashville. "And when Ray Kennedy offers to produce your album," says Michael, "you just say yes."
We sat at my kitchen table; I handed him my Martin Guitar, and the first thing he played was 'Where The Crossroads Meet,'" remembers Ray Kennedy, the five-time Grammy-winning producer of classic albums by Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Chris Knight, and Rodney Crowell. "I heard an effortless poetry that felt literary. His voice is the most evocative tenor since Vince Gill, and it pulls you in. With each song he sang, I knew exactly what the album needed to be." Kennedy brought Reynolds into the studio backed by a first-call band that included guitarist Joshua Grange (Beck, James Taylor, Lucinda Williams), drummer Fred Eltringham (Sheryl Crow, Kacey Musgraves), bassist Steve Mackey (The Wallflowers, Luke Combs), and pedal steel guitarist Dan Dugmore (John Prine, Linda Ronstadt, Sturgill Simpson), plus background vocalists Anthony Crawford (Steve Winwood, Neil Young) and Shelly Fairchild (Eric Church, Tanya Tucker).
About the single, Reynolds states, "26 Horses began as a dream…literally. I heard the chorus in a dream and wrote it down as soon as I woke up. As it developed, it became a song of longing and hope—of eternal optimism in the face of adversity, of letting go and leaving the past where it lay while forging ahead, without fear, into an unknown future where "…the day is dawning, and the heavens are open wide."
Reflecting on his journey, Reynolds shares, "After Pinmonkey broke up, I spent years trying to find my next step until I allowed myself to enjoy the moment, which turned into a ten-year break from music." Settling into a small town outside of Nashville, he continued writing songs, not for the industry but for himself. This organic process resulted in deeply evocative songs, capturing solitude, regret, and human yearning themes.
Tarnished Nickel Sky is a testament to Reynolds' artistic rebirth, showcasing eleven self-penned tracks that explore themes of redemption, longing, and the passage of time. As Reynolds puts it, "Letting go of expectations and simply following where the songs led me was the most freeing experience. Tarnished Nickel Sky is who I am."
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Produced and engineered by Ray Kennedy.
Recorded at Room and Board Studio in Nashville, TN.
Joshua Grange – Electric Guitars, Acoustic Guitar
Fred Eltringham – Drums
Steve Mackey – Bass
Dan Dugmore – Lap Steel
Ray Kennedy – Tambourine
Anthony Crawford – Background Vocal
TRACK LISTING
1. Three Days
2. Where The Crossroads Meet
3. Take Me Down
4. Can’t You Hear Jerusalem Moan
5. 26 Horses
6. Fades
7. Southern Boy
8. Two Hours From Jackson
9. So Many Trains
10. The Whiskey Goes Down Easy
11. Sweet Blossom
