Today, the legendary Jessi Colter announces the release of her new album, Edge of Forever, marking an exalting return to the chart-topping sound, style and songwriting that originally made her the First Lady of Outlaw Country. Out October 27th on Appalachia Record Co., the ten-track collection was produced by Margo Price and mixed by Shooter Jennings, son of Colter and her late husband Waylon Jennings. Together with Price's unbeatable live band, they recorded the LP over the course of several days in a Nashville studio, creating what would become a sonic culmination of the many touchstones that make up Colter's storied and still-evolving career. As the followup to 2017's Lenny Kaye-produced The Psalms, Edge of Forever has songs that span the past decade and far beyond, from never-before-heard tunes that Jessi Colter and Waylon Jennings wrote during the outlaw era's golden age in the 1970s, to long-lost sheet music discovered in an old briefcase, newer gospel-influenced numbers, honky-tonk hymns and collaborations with her daughter, Jenni Eddy Jennings.
Pre-order the album HERE, and listen to "Standing on the Edge of Forever," Jessi Colter's first new single in six years: HERE
As her 13th studio album release, Edge of Forever brings the start of a bright new chapter for Jessi Colter, arriving in the same year that she celebrates her return to the stage, a recent remarriage and more. On album opener "Standing on the Edge of Forever" she sings about confidence, religion and a desire for new experiences, self-reflecting over a sultry arrangement of psychedelic rock and soul-stirring gospel. Songs like "I Wanna Be With You" (feat. Margo Price) may have never seen the light of day after they were written in the 1970s, but on Edge of Forever they take on new life from an artist who has never let themselves be boxed in. Previously recorded favorites such as "With or Without You" and "Maybe You Should" (feat. Margo Price) are resurrected with timeless verve, while "Can't Nobody Do Me Like Jesus" reworks an old spiritual into a scorching, rock n' roll celebration. Elsewhere across the album – on "Angel in the Fire," which Jessi Colter wrote for her friend Lisa Kristofferson, or "Fine Wine" (written by Jenni Eddy Jennings & Margo Price) and "Secret Place" (written by Jessi Colter & Jenni Eddy Jennings) - Colter contemplates lasting impressions of loved ones, and the powers of peace, compassion and redemption.
"It was really sheer enjoyment for me to be able to do, because I really hadn't planned anything much further. Edge of Forever is a love project," says Jessi Colter, who became instant friends with Margo Price after first meeting at a book event in 2017.
"When the force of nature that is Jessi Colter rolled into my life and picked me up in her Mercedes convertible, I knew I was in for a wild ride," adds Margo Price, who also contributes vocals, guitar and percussion to the LP, alongside a virtuosic band of engineer and guitarist Alex Munoz, pianist Micah Hulscher, guitarist Jamie Davis, bassist Kevin Black, drummer Dillon Napier, pedal steel and dobro player Luke Schneider, guitarist and harmonica player Jeremy Ivey, and more. "When I felt lost, I could call on her and she would pray for me - with me. Jessi has such a strong faith, it's inspiring to be near her. When she sang 'Standing on the Edge of Forever' and 'Angel in the Fire' back to back for me, I was blown away. It was such refined writing, the work of someone who had been continuously, quietly honing her craft. I knew she had to make another album and told her I would love to be a part of that experience."
In 2023, Jessi Colter's legacy speaks for itself, and will only be further solidified with the release of Edge of Forever. As a GRAMMY Hall of Fame Award recipient and certified country star, Jessi Colter is the artist who brought outlaw music to the Top 40 with the chart-topping "I'm Not Lisa" in 1975, which has since been covered by Marianne Faithful, Faith Hill and more. She was the lone woman to appear on the genre-defining Wanted! The Outlaws compilation alongside Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Tompall Glaser – the first country album to go platinum. Having grown up playing piano at tent revivals led by her Pentecostal minister mother, she turned towards gospel music in the latter half of her career, and her vision and voice have always remained singular. "Jessi Colter's sound drew only from the richest source material," praised Rolling Stone, when naming I'm Jessi Colter among the Greatest Country Albums of All Time. "Country, certainly, but also gospel, funk, and blues.
Following a performance at The Ryman Auditorium this past spring, Jessi Colter will soon return to Nashville, where she'll play 3rd and Lindsley as part of AmericanaFest on September 20th. Find tickets and more details HERE.
