JD McPherson returns with Nite Owls on September 27 via New West Records. The 10-song set was produced by McPherson and is his first album of original songs in six years. Nite Owls follows his critically acclaimed 2017 studio album Undivided Heart & Soul as well as 2018’s universally praised holiday collection SOCKS.
Over the course of his career, McPherson has blazed a singular musical trail. It is one steeped in a deep affinity for foundational rock ‘n’ roll, rockabilly and r&b (among other mid-century American-made sounds), and filtered through a unique and alluringly idiosyncratic songwriting sensibility. The new Nite Owls is unlike anything in his catalog. While it shows McPherson further sharpening his songcraft in the service of ten, dynamic, and hard-hitting rock ‘n’ roll tunes, he has also reached deeper into his stylistic toolbox to incorporate elements of glam, new wave, post-punk, surf rock, and other sounds into the mix.
“To me, the thread between Duane Eddy and Depeche Mode is that single-note, reverb-y guitar style,” McPherson says about connecting some of these dots. “So it felt natural to blend that kind of big-string guitar thing with the classic stuff and a dash of surf. It made sense.”
Brooklyn Vegan shared the album highlight “Don’t Travel Through the Night Alone” this week and the song is available across digital platforms today. McPherson says, “The lyrics came quickly, but a long time after the musical ideas. I think now the song is just a story about getting unstuck.” Share JD McPherson’s “Don’t Travel Through The Night Alone.”
Variety previously premiered the first single “Sunshine Getaway” alongside a discussion with McPherson about the album. One of his most infectious tracks to date, the album’s lead off track is a blast of beaming, T. Rex inspired glam rock that, despite its title and sunny musical demeanor, has a darker sentiment at its core. Hear it HERE. McPherson also previously shared the album highlight “Shining Like Gold” as well.
“There’s no saxophone this time, there’s no r&b piano, but it’s a rock ‘n’ roll record,” McPherson says of Nite Owls. “To me, it’s the next logical step from my last one, Undivided Heart & Soul.” That album, it’s worth noting, was released back in 2017. Which is not to say he hasn’t been busy over the years. After the release of SOCKS the following year, McPherson released the Warm Covers 2 EP in 2023 which featured his interpretations of songs from Iggy Pop to the Pixies to Big Al Downing. He has also spent the last few years on the road with Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, serving as the support act on the duo’s ongoing joint tour — and also as a guitarist in their backing band as well.
These experiences helped McPherson through a particularly difficult period in his personal and professional life. “I actually recorded a version of Nite Owls several years ago in L.A., but the environment within my band just wasn’t working at all,” McPherson reveals. “It was a painful time. And then the pandemic hit, and I went pretty dark.” To make this version of the record, he retreated to familiar environs, Reliable Recorders in Chicago. “I went back to where I made my first record, and it was a wonderful experience.” With a core group of musicians that have been in his orbit for years, they recorded Nite Owls quick and fast and live. That electricity and immediacy is baked into every groove.
McPherson has also announced his initial tour dates in support of Nite Owls. Launching the evening of the album release at Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville, TN, the tour will feature stops at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City, the legendary First Avenue in Minneapolis, the El Rey in Los Angeles, Pappy & Harriets in Pioneertown, and more. Ahead of the the launch of the Nite Owls tour, McPherson is currently on the road with Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, both as a part of their backing band as well as with his own support performances throughout the summer. Please see tour dates, with more to be added, below.
Prior to the release of Nite Owls, McPherson will also release Socks: A Kid’s Christmas Lament, his first ever children's book, on September 10th via Walker Books US, a division of Candlewick Press. Based on the title track from his cult classic Christmas album, McPherson pays hilarious homage to a stereotypically bad gift - and its disappointed recipients - in a deftly extended picture-book version of his song. Brought to energetic life in droll, retro artwork by Anika Orrock, who illustrated the original album cover, Socks will prove a perfect fit for anyone who has ever gotten stressed over holiday gift-giving - and everyone, big or small, who's come to appreciate the love wrapped up in even the humblest present. Of the book, the legendary singer-songwriter Nick Lowe said "It's not inconceivable that JD's song, here teamed with Anika Orrock's brilliant illustrations, is so groovy that parents, on reading their kids' letters to Santa, will start to see 'and a pair of argyles, please' at the bottom."
JD McPherson’s Nite Owls will be available across digital platforms, on compact disc, and standard black vinyl. An extremely limited to 300 Purple Vinyl Edition autographed by McPherson will be available exclusively Direct-to-Fan via Bandcamp & New West Records. A limited splatter color vinyl edition as well as a limited compact disc edition both signed by McPherson will be available via Independent Retailers. Nite Owls is available for pre-order NOW via NEW WEST RECORDS.
JD McPherson Nite Owls Track Listing:
1. Sunshine Getaway
2. I Can’t Go Anywhere with You (Feat. Bloodshot Bill)
3. Just Like Summer
4. Nite Owls
5. Shining Like Gold
6. The Rock and Roll Girls
7. Baby Blues
8. The Phantom Lover of New Rochelle
9. Don’t Travel Through the Night Alone
10. That’s What a Love Song Does to You
JD McPherson On Tour:
Supporting Robert Plant & Alison Krauss:
August 21 – Murphys, CA – Ironstone Amphitheater
August 22 – Stanford, CA – Frost Amphitheater
August 24 – Paso Robles, CA – Vina Robles Amphitheatre
August 25 – Highland, CA – Yaamava’ Theater
August 26 – Flagstaff, AZ – Pepsi Amphitheatre
August 28 – Santa Fe, NM – The Santa Fe Opera
August 29 – Santa Fe, NM – The Santa Fe Opera
August 31 – Colorado Springs, CO – Ford Amphitheater
September 1 – Vail, CO – Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater
Nite Owls Headline Tour:
September 27 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl
September 28 – Atlanta, GA – Terminal West
September 29 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle
October 1 – Washington, DC – The Atlantis
October 2 – Ardmore, PA – Ardmore Music Hall
October 4 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
October 5 - Troy, NY - The Hangar
October 6 – Boston, MA – The Sinclair
October 8 – Toronto, ON – The Concert Hall
October 9 – Detroit, MI – Magic Bag
October 11 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
October 12 – Chicago, IL – Metro
November 7 – Little Rock, AR – Whitewater Tavern
November 8 – Dallas, TX – The Kessler
November 9 – Austin, TX – Scoot Inn
November 12 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
November 14 – Pioneertown, CA – Pappy & Harriet's
November 15 – Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre
November 16 – San Francisco, CA – August Hall
November 18 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
November 19 – Seattle, WA – The Crocodile
November 21 – Salt Lake City, UT – Commonwealth Room
November 22 – Fort Collins, CO – Aggie Theatre
November 23 – Denver, CO – Gothic Theatre
