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Out today, Almost Proud features Del’s longtime band and appearances by Vince Gill, Josh Shilling, and more
February 18, 2022 - Nashville, TN - Instead of taking up golf, gardening, baking, or the such during his COVID-demanded downtime, bluegrass’s elder statesman Del McCoury dove headlong back into his teenage years, combing through hours and hours of music, searching for the songs. Demo after demo crossed the discerning ears that flank McCoury’s signature silver pompadour. He listened intently. He listened for songs that excited him. What he ended up gravitating toward was an album’s worth of blue-collar, workingman’s songs—a subgenre that Del himself aligns tightly with, seeing himself as a working man who chose music as his vocation all those years ago. Backed by his world-renowned Del McCoury Band—his sons Ronnie (mandolin) and Rob (banjo), as well as long time band members Alan Bartram (bass) and Jason Carter (fiddle)—as well as a multitude of righteous guests, Del took his findings to the studio to set them in sonic stone. The resulting Almost Proud was released today via McCoury Music, to the delight of Del’s dedicated and diverse fanbase. To stream or purchase Almost Proud, please visit this link.
Almost Proud In The News:
Del joined host Tommy Tomlinson on NPR’s Southbound podcast to talk about his new album and his beginnings in rough-and-tumble clubs.
Billboard spoke with Del about his new album and his beloved music festival, Del Fest.
Park City NPR affiliate KPCW caught up with Del ahead of Del McCoury Band’s 3-night run at the mountain town’s nearly century-old Egyptian Theatre.
Relix premiered album track “Once Again,” including Del’s thoughts and delight on including Josh Shilling’s piano playing in their McCoury brand of music.
Garden & Gun premiered Almost Proud and talked to Del about how his passion for creating music is still burning strong.
More About Almost Proud: Almost Proud is packed with songs from a wide variety of writers—well known and obscure—and includes a few performances from old friends. There are new songs like the aforementioned “Running Wild” and “Almost Proud,” a song written by his good friends Eric Gibson and Mike Barber that was cut just hours after it was written. McCoury tapped into his long friendship with Vince Gill to find the right high country vocal for “Honky Tonk Nights” and chose a little-known song from a recent Kris Kristofferson album called “Love Don't Live Here Anymore” to tell a story of married couples who've become perfect strangers. With “Once Again,” McCoury collaborated again with Josh Shilling, who joined him on piano.
Just like his live performances, McCoury started Almost Proud with his regular point of view: “If I’m not interested, how can I expect the audience to be?” This collection of songs kept 83-year-old McCoury engaged during the pandemic and it’s part of a body of work that ended up being nearly 30 songs—so it's likely to see a volume 2 in the very near future. At the end of the day, Del may be almost proud of what he's accomplished, but he's always proud of the music he records.
Almost Proud Tracklist:
Almost Proud Love Don’t Live Here Anymore Rainbow of My Dream My Little Darlin’ Running Wild Brown Paper Bag Honky Tonk Nights Once Again Sid Hatfield’s The Misery You’ve Earned Workin’ Man’s Wage Other Shore
Catch Del McCoury Band On Tour: Mar. 5 - Pelham, TN - The Caverns Mar. 13 - Immokalee, FL - Southland Bluegrass & Wilderness Festival Mar. 18-19 - Columbus, OH - Duck Creek in the City 2022 Mar. 25 - Newberry, SC - Newberry Opera House Mar. 26 - Brooksville, FL - Spring Bluegrass Festival 2022 May 26-29 - Cumberland, MD - DelFest 2022 June 23 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
For a full list of tour dates and ticket information, please visit delmccouryband.com/tour.
