Country music star Willie Watson has set a release date for his debut solo album, after leaving his band, Old Crow Medicine Show, most famous for their song “Wagon Wheel.” This week, Watson announced that his self-titled LP will drop on September 13th.
Along with the new album announcement, Watson — who helped found Old Crow Medicine Show in the late ’90s — also released the first single, “Real Love,” and its accompanying video, directed by Joseph Wasilewski. The video follows Willie and his wife Mindy as they slow dance through significant places in their relationship.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“‘Real Love’ is a love song I wrote for my wife,” Watson said in a press release. “It kinda turned out to be the story of my life and it’s clear now that she’s standing in the center of everything. We’ve been looking for each other for a long time and now we can’t even remember all the struggle it took to get here.”
“After 30 years of playing music professionally – this is my debut album,” Watson added. “This record is me beating the devil, or the story of what finally did it anyway. I didn’t make any specific pact or anything but I know we’ve been tangled up most of my life. Now that he’s gone I can love myself again.”
Watson recorded his debut album in Los Angeles with producers Gabe Witcher (Punch Brothers) and Kenneth Pattengale (Milk Carton Kids) and with a crack band of players including Paul Kowert on bass (Punch Brothers), Dylan Day on guitar (Jenny Lewis, Nick Hakim), Benmont Tench on keys (The Heartbreakers), Jason Boesel on drums (Bright Eyes, Jenny Lewis), and new massive talent Sami Braman on fiddle.
Next month, Watson will head out on a major North American tour running through December, after first playing the The Trails End Music Festival in June. A full list of tour dates is below, with the bulk of them on sale Friday, June 21st at 10AM local. Find tickets here.
TOUR DATES:
June 28-29 – Etna, CA – The Trails End Music Festival
July 18 – Exeter, NH – The Word Barn
July 19 – Portland, ME – State Theater *
July 20 – Trumansberg, NY – Finger Lakes GrassRoots Festival
July 23 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Caffe Lena
July 25 – Burlington, VT – Nectar’s
July 26 – Hiram, ME – Ossipee Valley Music Festival
Aug 22 – Salt Spring Island, BC – Pitchfork Social
Aug 23 – Victoria, BC – The Orillia Street Music Hall
Sept 21 – Lyons, CO – Planet Bluegrass
Sept 25 – Knoxville, TN – Bijou Theater
Sept 28 – Lexington, KY – The Burl
Sept 29 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
Oct 1 – Indianapolis, IN – HI-Fi Annex
Oct 2 – Evanston, IL – SPACE
Oct 4 – Stoughton, WI – Stoughton Opera House
Oct 5 – Green Lake, WI – Thrasher Opera House
Oct 6 – Minneapolis, MN – Dakota
Oct 30 – Los Angeles, CA – Pico Union Project
Nov 1 – Felton, CA – Felton Music Hall
Nov 2 – Petaluma, CA – Mystic Theater & Music Hall
Nov 3 – Berkeley, CA – Freight & Salvage
Nov 6 – Seattle, WA – Tractor Tavern
Nov 7 – Bellingham, WA – Wild Buffalo
Nov 8 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
Nov 9 – Vancouver, BC – Biltmore Cabaret
Nov 11 – Missoula, MT – Top Hat Lounge
Nov 12 – Bozeman, MT – The Rialto
Nov 15 – Fort Collins, CO – The Coast
Nov 16 – Denver, CO – Globe Hall
Nov 19 – Kansas City, MO – Knuckleheads
Nov 20 – St Louis, MO – The Pageant *
Nov 21 – Des Moines, IA – Val Air Ballroom West *
Nov 22 – Milwaukee, WI – Riverside Theater *
Nov 23 – Iowa City, IA – Hancher Auditorium *
Dec 3 – Nashville, TN – Basement East
Dec 4 – Asheville, NC – The Grey Eagle Music Hall
Dec 6 – Washington DC – Union Stage
Dec 7 – Charlottesville, Va – The Southern
Dec 8 – Ardmore, PA – Ardmore Music Hall
Dec 10 – Boston, MA – The Sinclair
Dec 12 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
Dec 13 – Woodstock, NY – Levon Helm Studios
Dec 14 – Ithaca, NY – Hangar Theatre
* supporting Old Crow Medicine Show
