I have to admit, I’ve always been a little bit iffy about duet projects, just because sometimes the artist who heads it up doesn’t always pick the best batch of singers for the specific songs they’re featured on.
However, longtime Nashville musician Charlie Worsham has put together one of the best groups of features I’ve ever heard for an EP.
If you’re not familiar with Charlie Worsham, you’ve no doubt heard some of the music he’s played on as a session musician, and one of the most all-around talented guys in Nashville.
Charlie released his debut album Rubberband way back in 2013, and had some success with singles like “Want Me Too” and “Could It Be.” And he’s released his own music here and there throughout the years. But he’s also one of the most in-demand musicians in Nashville, having played on records for artists like Eric Church, Lainey Wilson, Luke Combs, Kacey Musgraves, and many more.
And he’s currently on tour with Dierks Bentley as a member of his band. But if you’ve watched a country music awards show recently, chances are you’ve also seen Charlie onstage as a member of one of the bands during a performance.
Charlie’s a guy that everybody in Nashville knows and wants to play on their music. He’s one of the most talented – and respected – musicians in a city that’s full of talented and respected musicians.
But now he’s ready for the world to hear some more of his own music.
Worsham has released a couple of lead singles ahead of the project, including the likes of Luke Combs for “How I Learned To Pray,” and Kip Moore for “Kiss Like You Dance,” showing us all the serious potential this EP had.
And now, the rest of the new EP, titled Compadres, is out today.
The project consists of a handful of the best mainstream country music artists in the game, including the likes of Lainey Wilson on the Patty Loveless cover “Handful of Dust,” Elle King, Dierks Bentley, and of course, Luke Combs and Kip Moore.
Not only are these folks mainstream country powerhouses, but they sound incredible with each feature as well, as their voices coincide perfectly with the great vocals of Worsham himself.
Obviously it speaks to the respect that he’s earned in Nashville to have so many massive artists willing to join him on an album, and Whiskey Riff spoke with Charlie about having the opportunity to record a duets album with some of the biggest artists in country music:
“Respect is what moved me to town…and now I’m graduating to a different part of that journey of respect, where I’m the receiver of it…
Sometimes we don’t know for a long time what our impact is, but it has been a really sweet season where I’m kind of recognizing that I’ve got this sort of cosmic pat on the back and the people that I actually really respect, respect me too.”
And Charlie says that his work as a session musician has given him the opportunity to see and work with so many other talented artists in the studio that it’s helped him with his own music:
“The great thing about the studio is, whether it’s somebody like Don Henley, or I think about Luke Combs making his record ‘Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old,’ it is a place of extreme trust and extreme vulnerability, and I don’t take that lightly.
I’m thinking about with Lainey, with ‘Bell Bottom Country,’ a record I’m so proud to play on, just getting to stand 10 feet from her and watch her figure it out.
Because I’ve been in that seat too. It’s an interesting thing being someone who’s been on both sides of that.”
Well after all that time in the studio with other artists, it’s exciting that we’re finally getting to hear some of Charlie’s own music – and he brought in some of the biggest names in country to join him.
Give ’em a listen:
“Handful of Dust” feat. Lainey Wilson
“Kiss Like You Dance” feat. Kip Moore
“How I Learned To Pray” feat. Luke Combs
“Creekwater Clear” feat. Elle King
“Things I Can’t Control” feat. Dierks Bentley
