Joan Shelley

Joan Shelley announces new album 'The Spur,' shares title track

The great Louisville folk singer Joan Shelley has announced a new album, The Spur, due June 24 via No Quarter (pre-order). The album was produced by James Elkington, who played several instruments on it, and it also features guest vocals from Bill Callahan and Meg Baird, as well as contributions from Joan’s husband Nathan Salsburg, Spencer Tweedy, and others. Joan recorded the album while she was pregnant with her first child, and she says, “Now I sing some of these songs to my daughter. Soothing her discomforts. Especially ‘completely,’ she likes to hear that one. How it goes from low to high.” In a statement, she added, “The Spur is the result of a period of opposite extremes: of intellectual hyper-connection and physical isolation. This album will forever be fused with the memory of our marriage, the birth of our child, and the intense joy despite the darkness.”

The first single is the title track, which is as warm, gorgeous, and timeless sounding as just about everything Joan releases. Listen and watch the video below.

Joan’s playing the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago on July 23 and more tour dates will be announced in the coming weeks.

Tracklist
1. Forever Blues
2. The Spur
3. Home
4. Amberlit Morning
5. Like The Thunder
6. When The Light Is Dying
7. Breath For The Boy
8. Fawn
9. Why Not Live Here
10. Bolt
11. Between Rock & Sky
12. Completely