With a sneaky half-time groove and a slinky fiddle and guitar trade-off, America’s favorite Western Swing masters Asleep At The Wheel—and their very special guest, the beloved Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter Lyle Lovett—ease right into their new single, “There You Go Again.” Written just before the recording sessions for The Wheel’s new album Half A Hundred Years, “There You Go Again” is a feel-good, light-hearted jab at pretentiousness and all the silly ways it shows up in the writers’ lives, brought together with flourishes of fiddle and steel before crescendoing into a full-on New Orleans second line, walking back out the door as quickly as it came in. “I suppose it’s a song about pretentious people!” says The Wheel’s fearless ringleader Ray Benson of their new song. “My pal Lyle Lovett, one of the most unpretentious people I know, joined in and made it a very special track.” Fans can listen to “There You Go Again feat. Lyle Lovett” right now at this link and pre-order or pre-save Half A Hundred Years ahead of its October 1st release right here.
On October 15th, Asleep At The Wheel will take the stage at Austin, Texas’s brand new Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park for a special guest-laden concert covering the band’s fruitful 50-year-long career. Asleep at the Wheel alumni returning for the event are singer Chris O'Connell, steel guitarist Cindy Cashdollar, bassist Tony Garnier, multi-instrumentalist Danny Levin, pianists Floyd Domino and John Michael Whitby, fiddler Jason Roberts and drummer David Sanger. Additionally, The Wheel is expecting a very special guest or two who are not to be missed. Check out a preview of the concert at Austin 360 and purchase tickets for the Oct. 15 show here.
Half A Hundred Years is a nineteen-track celebration of Asleep At The Wheel’s half-century-long career, filled out by a number of world-class friends of the band; a guest-list testament to Asleep at the Wheel’s reputation as a cornerstone of American music for the last 50 years. Greats like Willie Nelson, George Strait, Emmylou Harris, Lee Ann Womack, and the aforementioned Lovett appear throughout Half A Hundred Years on a host of classic and destined-to-be-classic Western Swing and Country tunes. Additionally, three original members of Asleep at the Wheel—Chris O’Connell, Leroy Preston, and Lucky Oceans—returned after 4o years to lend their voices and musicianship to a number of tracks on Half A Hundred Years. Ahead of the album release, CMT shared The Wheel’s take on the Bob Wills classic, “Take Me Back To Tulsa,” which features two more Texas icons, George Strait and Willie Nelson, and Rolling Stone premiered the album’s title track, saying, “Elevated by buoyant horns and singer Ray Benson’s drawling baritone, [“Half A Hundred Years”] is the ultimate road song.”
Half A Hundred Years Tracklist:
Half A Hundred Years
It’s The Same Old South feat. Chris O’Connell
I Do What I Must feat. Leroy Preston
There You Go Again feat. Lyle Lovett
My Little Baby feat. Chris O’Connell
Paycheck To Paycheck feat. Leroy Preston
Word To The Wise feat. Bill Kirchen
That’s How I Remember It feat. Chris O’Connell
The Photo feat. Leroy Preston
I Love You Most Of All (When You’re Not Here) feat. Lucky Oceans
The Wheel Boogie
Take Me Back To Tulsa feat. George Strait and Willie Nelson
The Letter That Johnny Walker Read feat. Lee Ann Womack
Bump Bounce Boogie Feat. Chris O'Connell, Elizabeth McQueen, & Katie Shore
Miles And Miles Of Texas
Get Your Kicks On Route 66 Feat. Leroy Preston, Johnny Nicholas, & Ray Benson
Marie Feat. Willie Nelson
Spanish Two Step Feat. Johnny Gimble And Jesse Ashlock
The Road Will Hold Me Tonight Feat. Emmylou Harris And Willie Nelson