Chris Pierce has announced his new album, Songs for the Heavy Hearted, is coming out on August 21st. Produced by frequent collaborators David Resnik and Niko Bolas (Neil Young, The Mavericks), the album features collaborations with Allison Russell, Steve Earle, Grey DeLisle, and Garrison Starr, and along with this news, he’s released the single This Sunlit Morning.
“This Sunlit Morning came from holding the weight of the times we’re living in,” shares Pierce. “Every day, we’re staring into some new kind of chaos, division, or corruption, and if we’re not careful, it can start to pull us away from what is right in front of us. This song is about remembering to pause and reflect on what we’ve been blessed with. The simple things that can keep us rooted when the world starts feeling unsteady. We still have to get out there and fight for a better world. We still have to speak up for people whose voices are ignored or silenced. Sometimes, we need to pause just long enough to remember what we’re fighting for in the first place.”
At its core, the album is being described as a diary and a love letter to freedom fighters everywhere; its constant refrain is that love, joy, hope, and softness are not things we need to sacrifice to fight the good fight. Pierce hopes the album embodies the belief that “we shall overcome.”
“Sometimes, we’re going to get beaten and broken,” Pierce reflects. “But, even if you fire, arrest or threaten to imprison us, we’re going to pick ourselves up, brush ourselves off and start again the next day. I’m still going to be out there moving forward with my voice, harmonicas and guitar in hand.” Chris Pierce has been a singular voice in American roots music for over 20 years. Over the course of eight solo albums, many side projects and more guest appearances than most could do in one lifetime, his songs have given voice to the voiceless while shedding light into dark and hidden corners of the American dream.
“Songs for the Heavy Hearted” Tracklisting:
1. This Sunlit Morning
2. First Day of School
3. Madonna of the San Joaquin
4. It Ain’t Ever Wrong to Be Free
5. Kalief Browder (feat. Allison Russell)
6. Spirits All Over This Land
7. We Ain’t There Yet (feat. Garrison Starr)
8. You Do Not Weep Alone
9. That Was My Pride (feat. Grey DeLisle)
10. Yours Can Go With Mine
11. Two Angels (feat. Steve Earle)
12. A Soft Place to Land
