Folk blues legend Chris Smither is back with his 20th album, All About The Bones, out May 3rd on Signature Sounds (PRE-ORDER). Recorded at Sonelab Studios in Easthampton, MA by Justin Pizzoferrato (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., the Hold Steady), All About the Bones has an intimate feel that is somehow baroque and austere at once.

The sound and imagery of All About the Bones is as elemental as the inky black shadows cast by a shockingly bright moon. The listener is welcomed into some gothic mansion on an imaginary New Orleans Street, and there in the lamplit parlor confronts the band, a minimalist skeleton crew: Smither’s inimitable propulsive guitar and rumbling baritone are joined seamlessly to producer Goodrich’s carpetbag of instruments, Zak Trojano’s rock-steady, primal drumming, Betty Soo’s diaphanous harmony vocals, and the flat, mournful flood of jazz legend Chris Cheek’s saxophone.

Smither and David Goodrich have been refining their musical conversation for decades, both in the studio and onstage, and by now, their bond verges on the telepathic. Goodrich plays on nearly every track. His sound is by now so translucent that it seems to function as a swath of silence, allowing the songs to burn like ciphers in the crackling air. And oh, the songs on All About the Bones. Smither, after six decades of sharpening his knife as a songwriter, can at this point open damn near anything with a flick of his wrist. God and the Devil are opened here. Mortality is too. Politics, consciousness, renewal, family, vulnerability, surrender… Smither has sat with these topics like so many Zen koans, for so long, that every line is a pearl.

Today Glide is excited to premiere the standout track “Time To Move On, (PRE-ORDER)” which may sound familiar because it happens to be a cover of Tom Petty off the late rock and roll legend’s 1994 solo album Wildflowers. With Smither at the helm, the song is given a fresh perspective and sound with his loping acoustic folk and gorgeously wise folk vocals. While Smither’s own acoustic picking is irresistible and could easily support the track, it’s Goodrich’s bright electric guitar that adds plenty of lively flourish to this timeless track.

“Apparently this is one of the most popular tracks on Tom Petty’s “Wildflowers” album, it certainly grabbed me after Goody suggested it…. Just a great song by a guy who had an uncanny knack for turning out pop hits that don’t sound like they’re meant to be pop hits.” – Chris Smither

LISTEN:

TOUR DATES:

with special guest Peter Mulvey

% with special guest Betty Soo

FR APR 12 Elkton, MD – Elkton Music Hall

SA APR 13 Blairstown, NJ – Roy’s Hall

SU APR 14 Tuckerton, NJ – Lizzie Rose

TH APR 18 Concord, NH – Capitol Center for the Arts (Cloudbelly opens)

FR APR 19 Brownfield, ME – Stone Mountain Arts Center

SA APR 20 Brunswick, ME – Concerts for a Cause

WE MAY 01 Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle Music Hall

TH MAY 02 Nashville, TN – Bluebird Cafe

SA MAY 04 Decatur, GA – Eddie’s Attic

FR MAY 17 Fall River, MA – Narrows Center for Arts #

SA MAY 18 Boston, MA – City Winery Boston #

SU MAY 19 Portsmouth, NH – 3S Artspace #

SA MAY 25 Pomeroy, OH – Fur Peace Ranch #

WE MAY 29 Washington, DC – The Hamilton #

TH MAY 30 Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe Live #

FR MAY 31 Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studios #

SA JUN 01 Northampton, MA – Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity #

TH JUN 06 Annapolis, MD – Ram’s Head On Stage #

FR JUN 07 New York City, NY – Iridium #

TH JUN 20 Madison, WI – The Bur Oak %

FR-SA, JUN 22 – 23 Effingham, IL – Moccasin Creek Festival

FR JUN 21 Evanston, IL – SPACE %

TH JUL 11 Berkeley CA – Freight and Salvage

FR JUL 12 Santa Monica, CA – McCabe’s

SA JUL 13 Santa Monica, CA – McCabe’s

WE JUL 17 Eugene, OR – Shedd Institute

TH JUL 18 Portland, OR – Alberta Rose Theatre

TUE JUL 23 Seattle, WA – Tractor Tavern