Lonesome Drifter

Last updated

Lonesome Drifter
Charley Crockett - Lonesome Drifter.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedMarch 14, 2025 (2025-03-14)
Studio Sunset Sound, Los Angeles
Genre Neotraditional country [1]
Length38:05
Label Island
Producer
Charley Crockett chronology
Visions of Dallas
(2024)
Lonesome Drifter
(2025)
Singles from Lonesome Drifter
  1. "Lonesome Drifter"
    Released: January 31, 2025

Lonesome Drifter is the fifteenth studio album by American country singer Charley Crockett. It was released on March 14, 2025, by Island Records. [2]

Contents

Background

Produced by Crockett and Shooter Jennings, and recorded in ten days at the Sunset Sound Studios in Los Angeles, [2] the album features twelve songs, including the title track, which was released as a single on January 31, 2025. [3] Influenced by the work of Bill Withers, [4] Lonesome Drifter is the debut album by Crockett on a major label. [5] Crockett revealed in an interview with Billboard , that the album is the first in a trilogy, stating "I just got the second one done, and I’ve got the theme and sketch of the third one done." [6]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Paste 7.5/10 [7]
Pitchfork 7.2/10 [8]

Los Angeles Times described the album as "a gorgeous set of soulful, lightly psychedelic country-blues tunes." [4] Dallas Times commented that "Crockett hasn’t changed a bit on Lonesome Drifter, with its no-frills blend of old-school Texas country-blues, a style he's been honing since his days busking in Deep Ellum." [9] Pitchfork rated the album 7.2 out of 10 and stated "Flush with doubt and humanity, Lonesome Drifter is a downbeat twist on the great Robert Earl Keen's liturgical formulation: The road goes on forever." [8] No Depression remarked that Lonesome Drifter "spotlights Crockett's consistency, as he spins out another set of deftly crafted songs." [10] Rolling Stone referred to it as a "slow-burning country-blues rocker that finds him telling the tale of a vagabond traveler, complete with a searing guitar solo." [11] Paste assigned it a rating of 7.5 out of 10, stating "Lonesome Drifter continues Crockett's white hot run of records that sound great and are remarkably even-keeled." [7]

Track listing

All music is composed by Charley Crockett and Shooter Jennings. [3]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Lonesome Drifter"Charley Crockett3:02
2."Game I Can't Win"Crockett3:21
3."Jamestown Ferry"Bobby Borchers and Mack Vickery3:26
4."Easy Money"Crockett3:02
5."Under Neon Lights"Crockett3:08
6."This Crazy Life"Crockett3:02
7."The Death of Bill Bailey"Crockett3:06
8."Never No More"Alan Block, Don Hect and Rita Ross3:34
9."Life of a Country Singer"Crockett, Shooter Jennings, Kyle Madrigal, Richard Lenz and Brotherton Jr.2:59
10."One Trick Pony"Crockett, Francis Farrell-McDaniel3:28
11."Night Rider"Crockett3:18
12."Amarillo by Morning"Paul Fraser, Terry Stafford2:39
Total length:38:05

Personnel

Musicians

  • Charley Crockett – lead vocals
  • Mario Valdez – drums
  • Jacob Marchese – bass
  • Dave Biller – electric guitar
  • Alexis Sanchez – second electric guitar
  • Rich Brotherton – acoustic guitar (all tracks), banjo (track 2)
  • Kullen Fox – piano, Wurlitzer, orchestral bells, trumpet
  • Kyle Madrigal – bass (tracks 6, 7), background vocals (11)
  • Anthony Farrell – organ (all tracks), baritone (track 10)
  • Stephen Barber – string arrangements (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Suzie Katayama – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Charlie Bisharat – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Mario De Leon – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Joel G. Deuroin – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Luke Maurer – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Grace Oh – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Joel Pargman – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Michele Kikuchi-Richards – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Charles Tyler – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Josefina Vergara – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Tamara Hatwan – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • John Zachary Dellinger – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Jacob Braun – strings (tracks 4, 6, 9, 12)
  • Jasper Randall – vocal arrangements (tracks 5, 7, 12)
  • Keri Larson – vocals (tracks 5, 7, 12)
  • Raya Yarbrough – vocals (tracks 5, 7, 12)
  • Sara Mann – vocals (tracks 5, 7, 12)
  • Windy Wagner – vocals (tracks 5, 7, 12)

Technical

Visuals

Charts

Chart performance for Lonesome Drifter
Chart (2025)Peak
position
Croatian International Albums (HDU) [12] 4
UK Americana Albums (OCC) [13] 19
UK Country Albums (OCC) [14] 8
US Billboard 200 [15] 128
US Top Country Albums ( Billboard ) [16] 25

References

  1. https://www.allmusic.com/album/lonesome-drifter-mw0004464804
  2. 1 2 Strauss, Matthew (January 28, 2025). "Charley Crockett Signs to Island and Announces New Album Lonesome Drifter". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 25, 2025.
  3. 1 2 Bradshaw, Robin (January 31, 2025). "Listen: Charley Crockett drops new single "Lonesome Drifter"". The Telegraph . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Wood, Mikael (March 13, 2025). "Is Charley Crockett country music's next big 40-year-old thing?". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  5. Sacher, Andrew (March 14, 2025). "Charley Crocket – Lonesome Drifter (Island)". BrooklynVegan . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  6. Nicholson, Jessica (March 13, 2025). "Charley Crockett on Signing With Island, Celebrating a Decade of Genre-Fusing Music With Lonesome Drifter: 'I Wanted to Maintain Ownership'". Billboard . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  7. 1 2 Salmon, Ben (March 14, 2025). "Charley Crockett Goes From DIY to the Big Time on Lonesome Drifter". Paste Magazine . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Nelson, Elizabeth (March 15, 2025). "Charley Crockett: Lonesome Drifter". Pitchfork . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  9. Christensen, Thor (March 19, 2025). "Charley Crockett's Lonesome Drifter calls back to his Deep Ellum busking days". Dallas News . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  10. Amen, John (March 14, 2025). "ALBUM REVIEW: Charley Crockett Returns to His Roots, Embraces Vintage Nashville Sound on Lonesome Drifter". No Depression . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  11. Bernstein, Jonathan (January 31, 2025). "Charley Crockett Wanders the American West in Cinematic Lonesome Drifter Video". Rolling Stone . Retrieved March 20, 2025.
  12. "Lista prodaje 12. tjedan 2025" [Sales list Week 12 2025] (in Croatian). HDU. March 17, 2025. Archived from the original on April 3, 2025. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  13. "Official Americana Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
  14. "Official Country Artists Albums Chart Top 20". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
  15. "Billboard 200: Week of March 29, 2025". Billboard . Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  16. "Top Country Albums: Week of March 29, 2025". Billboard . Retrieved March 26, 2025.