Following his bluegrass tease in early 2023 with the release of "Old Home Place," Mo Pitney is making good on his promise of more bluegrass music with the announcement of his partnership with banjoist John Meyer. Born of an enduring friendship and a love of traditional bluegrass music, Pitney Meyer is a musical brotherhood and songwriting collaboration.
What began with informal jam sessions in hallways and stairwells during SPBGMA and IBMA conferences, evolved into a mutually deep reverence for an art form that was built on human connection and heart. Pitney Meyer found themselves creating songs out of these spontaneous sessions, eventually feeling the pull to record a collection in the most authentic way possible. "I knew we wanted to record a live album so I immediately became interested in using tape for that reason," says Mo. "Our heroes, this is the way they recorded. They sat in a circle gathered around in a room and made music."
Committed to capturing the human element at every level of the recording process, Pitney Meyer, alongside Serve Productions, built a completely analog recording studio in the heart of an 1837 hand-hewn log cabin, formerly owned by Johnny Cash, now the Storytellers Hideaway Farm in Bon Aqua, Tennessee. "It’s interesting, I think, learning about this property," says John. "What this was for Johnny Cash, was sort of his place to get away from it all. So in a way, we’re kind of here for the same reason. We want to make music but we want it to be defined by the music."
"That Sounds Lonesome" serves as the perfect introduction to Pitney Meyer with John's solid banjo kick and roll throughout the track, coupled with Mo's well-loved lead vocal. John adds tenor and Nate Burie, who also plays mandolin, sings baritone. The band track is complete with award-winner Jenee Fleenor on fiddle and Blake Pitney on bass. The single is quintessential bluegrass in feel but with a fresh take on the lonesome theme:
Coon dogs bayin', Know what he's sayin'
Whistling winds a playin' through a weeping willow tree
Wood floors creakin', Tin roof is leakin'
The company I'm keepin' is the shadow of a dream
That sounds lonesome, That sounds lonesome
The sounds a little lonesome to me
That sounds lonesome, Low down and then some
That sounds a little lonesome to me
"My first introduction to being overjoyed with music is with Bluegrass," continues Mo. "Jimmy Martin, Tony Rice, Larry Sparks, Del McCoury. Now, it’s like the best of all worlds with John and I being able to come out here and have songs that we’ve written, stories that mean something to us, but sounds like the old joyful, child-like bluegrass that we grew up loving."
"This form of music is inherently nostalgic," John adds, "But it can’t only be nostalgia. There has to be something fresh, there has to be something from your heart. What’s your story? How do you tell that? I really think that’s what’s been happening with this music and that’s why it’s been resonating with us and with others."
Pitney Meyer will celebrate the release of "That Sounds Lonesome" with its World Premiere on BanjoRadio with Hall of Fame Broadcaster Kyle Cantrell on July 18th at 7:00am CT and again at 10am CT. The duo will appear live July 19th on WSM 650 AM with Coffee, Country & Cody at 8:15am CT and on RFD TV at 12noon CT. Additionally, Bluegrass Today will premiere the official video for "That Sounds Lonesome."
"That Sounds Lonesome" will be available everywhere Friday, July 19th. Presave the song here. For more on Pitney Meyer, visit PitneyMeyer.com.
About Pitney Meyer
PITNEY MEYER is the inspired bluegrass collaboration of Mo Pitney & John Meyer, born out of jam sessions and music gatherings in living rooms, festivals, and stages like the Station Inn where Mo and John played a sold-out residency. With Mo on acoustic guitar and John on banjo, they are joined on-stage by Nate Burie (mandolin) and Blake Pitney (bass), along with a rotating list of top-tier fiddle players including CMA Musician of the Year Jenee Fleenor, Ivy Phillips, and Ron Stewart. Their debut record is scheduled to be released Spring 2025.
