Colter Wall Releases Two New Songs
He works on cattle ranches from interior Canada to the western United States and Texas most of the time these days. But every once in a while, Colter Wall will stop by the studio and record a couple when he feels so inclined. That is what the Saskatchewan native did recently, and he’s just released them on La Honda Records. Colter Wall fans are hoping is the first taste of more new music that he has in the offing.
Known just as much for his cowboy song covers as he is his originals, the new Colter Wall music includes both, starting with a rendition of “Let’s All Help The Cowboys (Sing The Blues),” written by “Cowboy Jack Clement, and performed famously by Waylon Jennings. Though the song was never released as a single, it is considered one of Waylon’s signature tunes released on his 1975 album Dreaming My Dreams produced by Jack Clement.
The second track is “Cypress Hills and the Big Country,” written by Colter Wall about southwestern Saskatchewan where he is from, evoking the native landscape and the expanse of the prairie, and the flora and fauna of the region running along the Coulee into Alberta. It very much fits into the Cowboy and Western aspect of Colter Wall’s music.
Joining Colter on the tracks is Patrick Lyons on mandolin, dobro, and guitar, with Jake Groves playing harmonica on “Let’s All Help The Cowboys.” Colter Wall continues to surprise with the amount of reception he’s receiving for his old cowboy songs that conventional thought would have you believe are too outmoded for today’s listeners. But in a headlong search for authenticity by many, Colter Wall has emerged as one of the most authentic voices to be found.
Stay tuned for hopefully more information on new music forthcoming. Meanwhile, the two new singles are available for play and download.
September 21, 2022 @ 9:27 am
Nice! Is it just me or is that “Devil Wears a Suit..” voice showing up a little more than it has been?
September 21, 2022 @ 9:42 am
He’s always been working on his voice, which is why he sounds a little different on each record. He probably is finding out how to bleed back into that Imaginary Appalachia tone again without straining or damaging his voice like he had to at the time.
September 21, 2022 @ 9:43 am
Oh yes!!! Loving it!!
September 21, 2022 @ 10:57 am
His sound is very unique. But not just the voice. He’s seems to have a distinct sound on the guitar as well. Is it just me?
September 21, 2022 @ 11:18 am
Think a big part of it is just old, rusty strings. I believe he also plays a old mahogany-top acoustic, which gives a very warm, low-treble sound, and he mostly fingerpicks using a sort of mixed style. Classic old cowboy technique.
May 31, 2023 @ 8:53 pm
No its not just you. I truly feel he’s one of the best guitarist I’ve ever heard. The sound of his guitar is like his strings are way on the loose side and every string he plucks is a story in itself. Couple that with his voice and it is why he has such a following. He is so legit.
September 21, 2022 @ 11:37 am
Zach Bryan releases two new songs in between having another plate of pancakes for breakfast, but more power to Coltere, anyway!
/sarcasm
September 21, 2022 @ 12:50 pm
I love that Colter Wall’s music exists, don’t get me wrong. I hate to come across as a complainer over legitimately good material. However, when Imaginary Appalachia dropped, it was so sonically and thematically diverse. I had high hopes that he would be a creative luminary for the genre. Instead, he’s become a novelty act more or less. He’s a throwback who sings cowpoke tunes, and there’s a place for that in music. I guess I won’t expect him to blow my mind with ventures into uncharted creative territory at this point in his career, and that’s fine.
September 21, 2022 @ 8:33 pm
I would agree with you if it was an act, but for Colter it isn’t. He actually just lives this life and sings about it. I love that authenticity that’s missing with so many artists.
September 22, 2022 @ 9:26 am
Yeah, I’m not accusing him of being a contrived gimmick or anything. I think he’s incredibly authentic, and I don’t hold the fact that he’s a prominent politician’s kid against him on the authenticity front.
I’m just more or less expressing my personal taste. He was a more interesting artist *to me* in the first two releases, as he seemed to paint with a broader creative pallet. He seems to stay in the pocket now. That said, it definitely works; I just have to be in a real particular mood.
September 22, 2022 @ 10:08 am
That I will agree on. I personally didn’t love Imaginary Appalachia compared to Colter Wall. The self-titled album is amazing. That being said, I do enjoy what he does now, because there’s no one else doing this type of country out there.
September 22, 2022 @ 10:33 am
And perhaps that’s what I need to have in mind when I listen to him – he’s unique and necessary in what he does.
I’ll give the his newer albums a listen today with fresh ears.
September 24, 2022 @ 10:16 pm
The politician’s son who sings “don’t trust no politician” is really authentic
September 24, 2022 @ 10:43 pm
Have you every thought maybe he’s singing that BECAUSE his dad is a politician?
September 24, 2022 @ 10:39 pm
His dad is Brad Wall lol. Sorry, but Colter Wall is not “authentic” just because he chose to be a ranch hand and sing cowboy tunes. Nothing against the guy but it’s a bit ridiculous to call him authentic when there are 5th generation cowboys out there doing the same thing with no recognition
September 24, 2022 @ 10:46 pm
This comes up every time Colter Wall’s name does, like folks are unearthing some big secret.
This is what Colter Wall’s dad, Brad Wall, said on this very site a while back,
I’m the aforementioned politician you reference. I’ve read SCM for a while now and very much enjoy it. I have not posted, however I thought I might have some perspective to offer on this notion that he ‘comes from money’. I can tell you most assuredly ..he does not. He grew up middle class in a 40 year old 1100 sq ft bungalow in a small prairie city/town. Simply put, politics does not equal big money. Colter worked part time in high school to put gas in his car (a rusting out 78 Chrysler New Yorker he had to pay for – which only really ran in the summer but had alot of room for a guitar and amp) and saved for college. When he dropped out of college he worked on a farm/ranch to support part time touring he was doing to start out. Moreover he has never claimed anything but these things as part of his past. From what I have heard of his interviews he has only ever told his story- torque-free…relatively short as it is at this point. Thought I should offer that clarificaiton. Thanks to all who follow this site for their support of artists like Tyler Childers and Colter.
https://savingcountrymusic.com/colter-wall-gets-boost-from-three-billboards-outside-ebbing-missouri-film/comment-page-1/#comment-918168
September 26, 2022 @ 6:53 am
Johnny Cash never shot anyone in Reno, so that makes him a scumbag fake liar loser pansy, too, right? And Merle Haggard was a pothead, so he was a liar for singing “we don’t smoke marijuana in Muskogee”, right? You’ve literally never heard of Brad Wall until someone on the internet pointed it out. Hmm, he must be king of Canada since he’s so famous…
You people think a low tier Canadian politician has the bank account of American criminal politicians? HAHA
September 28, 2022 @ 8:51 am
I hate to break it to you but this is the reality of the whole cowboy genre and all those fucking cowboy hats in country and western, It’s always been a prop. I guess Gene Autry spent some time working on his dad’s Ca. ranch in HS but Roy Rogers was from Ohio.
September 21, 2022 @ 10:40 pm
In addition to Mitchell’s point, I would say that Songs of the Plains is a very thematic, story-driven album.
I haven’t listened enough to Western Swing & Waltzes to stand up for it, but I really feel that Songs of the Plains was the perfect combination of story while being more true to his life and passions.
September 22, 2022 @ 10:34 am
I felt very similarly until I revisited Songs of Plains, initially it was my least favorite Colter album. But the more time I’ve spent listening the more I’ve come to realize it’s the perfect joint between early deep voice Colter stuff and the later more Western stuff. I think it might be his best written album and my personal favorite now. I think it’s true he’s maybe got less ambitious sonically, but every song he writes now just seems perfectly constructed.
September 21, 2022 @ 5:48 pm
Colter just seems like a nice guy.
Really like, Let’s All Help The Cowboys Sing The Blues.
Has a sitting around the campfire with several people, very relaxed feel to it
September 21, 2022 @ 7:52 pm
May i please drop this in here?
Cross my heart, not trying to take anything away from Colter.
Colter has a wonderful style.
Listened to this today, & thought it was pretty powerful.
Conrad’s, Old Lonesome Feeling.
https://youtu.be/pOziKkl0p1w
(hope not aggravating the tarnation out of Conrad)