Happy Monday, y’all.
Today for the Song of the Week, we have a new one from Lukas Nelson & POTR called “Lying.”
From their just-released Sticks & Stones album, it’s an absolutely gorgeous acoustic moment, unlike anything else on the tracklist, where he sings about missing his girl, what’s most important in his life, and how “losing love ain’t worth the songs I write.”
It’s one of the more introspective moments on the project, and I’m always partial to any sort of stripped-back arrangement of any song, and this was the perfect choice by producer Lukas, who stepped into the roll for the first time with this album.
He says there’s another version with the full band, but this acoustic rendition perfectly captured the way he was feeling when he wrote “Lying,” adding that it’s also a really nice moment and break in his otherwise pretty upbeat live show:
“We tried it other ways. There’s another version of that with the band. And it’s great, but it just doesn’t capture what I was feeling when I wrote it. I wrote it feeling exactly what I’m singing about.
I was sitting there on the foot of my bed, writing the song with my acoustic guitar, and I just couldn’t beat that version of it on the demo. So, I knew that the best way to do it, and the most emotional way to do it, would be to do it that way.
Frankly, it really gives a nice moment in the live show. If we played this whole record, from top to bottom, it would be a really nice dynamic. We’d have a lot of upbeat songs, and then we’d have a couple of moments where we quiet down.”
It’s certainly the most “country” sounding album Lukas and his band have put out so far too, in addition to being very unique, interesting, and well-done as a whole, and really has gotten better and better with every listen.
Lukas added that it’s also his dad, Willie Nelson’s, favorite so far, so I’d say if you get the Willie Nelson stamp of approval, whether he’s your dad or not, you’ve definitely done something right…
“I think this is my dad’s favorite so far, probably because it’s more country than any of the other ones I’ve done.
There’s a lot of humor on this record, which is more a part of me than the last records have had. I prefer to laugh at myself more than anything.”
Turn it up:
“Lying”
Lukas’ “Lying” is also featured on the Whiskey Riff New Music Friday Playlist, along with tons of other great new releases from this past week in country music.
Turn it up, tell your friends, and as always, make sure to subscribe to the official Whiskey Riff Channel for more great country music playlists.
