Turnpike Troubadours reflect on their best-laid plans in their determined new single, “Chipping Mill.”
Released on Friday (June 23), the song acts as an honest reflection and admission of mistakes made and pain caused, even when your intentions were pure. The polished production emphasizes the band’s tight, methodical instrumentation and captivating lyricism that has earned them a dedicated following since their founding in 2005.
“It’s about how on an atomic level we are all part of a constant in regards to the mass and energy of our existence,” songwriter and bassist RC Edwards says of the track. “But in a metaphysical sense, we can create and leave behind more energy and love than we started with, or in some cases less. But hopefully the former, of course. Oh yeah, and deer hunting, too.”
“Chipping Mill” is the second single from the band’s upcoming album, A Cat in the Rain, set for release on Aug. 25 via Bossier City Records and Thirty Tigers. Produced by Shooter Jennings, the record marks the Red Dirt outfit’s first release since 2017’s A Long Way From Your Heart.
Many fans were unsure if another Turnpike Troubadours album would ever come to fruition. The band announced they were going on an “indefinite hiatus” in 2019, which led frontman Evan Felker to find “sobriety and recovery,” which he told Rolling Stone “was the greatest thing that ever happened to me.”
Since announcing their reunion in November 2021, the Oklahoma-based talents have returned to the road, performing multiple sold out shows across the U.S. In July, they’ll kick off a lengthy stretch of headlining dates scheduled through the end of the year, including three nights at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.
See the Most Played Country Song from the Year You Were Born
Who had the most played country song during the year you were born? This list is a fascinating time capsule of prevalent trends from every decade in American history. Scroll through to find your birth year and then click to listen. Some of these songs have been lost through the years, many of them for good reason!