A new take on Charles Wesley Godwin’s fan-favorite song.
Today, the soundtrack was released for Netflix’s new original film, Heartland, which stars Jessica Chastain as well as Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland and Carter Faith.
It features tons of Nashville’s best, including Carly Pearce, Margo Price and Channing Wilson on different songs, a well as with production from Tofer Brown, Kristian Bush, David Ferguson, Stewart Lerman, Frank Lidell and Eric Masse, alongside songs written by Jessi Alexander, Trannie Anderson, Charles Wesley Godwin, George Jones, Hillary Lindsey, Roger Miller, Don Schlitz, Alysa Vanderheym, Hailey Whitters and more.
The film was released today, and it’s a look at the seedier side of Nashville, and Chastain plays a country music star that’s both flawed and very aware of the darker side of Music City. He’s not listed in the cast, but it also appears that Tracy Lawrence will make an appearance… you can see him in the beginning of the trailer.
The film-noir style take on a Nashville story follows a country star named Misty Jones that’s been away from the spotlight for two decades. Many of the scenes were shot on location in Music City, which will undoubtedly help bring a feeling of authenticity to the story written and directed by Shana Feste.
Heartland is described as the following:
“Former country legend, Misty Jones, comes out of seclusion to investigate the disappearance of her missing niece, a rising country musician, and must grapple with her own past and Nashville’s seedy underbelly. Her search uncovers a murky side of Nashville where no one, including Misty, is who they seem.”
With Jessica Chastain at the helm, you know the film is in good hands. You might remember that it was Chastain who played Tammy Wynette in the critically acclaimed miniseries George and Tammy. The actress was even nominated for an Emmy for that performance, and she told People that undoubtedly helped her prepare for this latest role:
“Coming to Misty with Tammy somewhere in my DNA was enormously helpful. I could draw from that understanding of what superstardom does to a person, but also the innocence that can somehow survive alongside it.
Misty has lived this enormous public life, and I wanted you to feel that history without her ever having to explain it. Thankfully, Tammy had already sent me to country-music graduate school.”
And considering the writer and director of the film, Shana Feste, had already dropped into the country music world once before with the 2010 film Country Strong, there seems to be a real familiarity with the Nashville scene.
Chastain previously sang her own songs for the aforementioned George and Tammy miniseries, and she does it again here, and I was certainly intrigued when I heard she would be doing a solo rendition of CWG’s “Family Ties,” the title track to his incredible 2023 album.
If you’re a fan of Godwin’s, you know that this is one of the most personal and heartfelt songs he’s ever penned, a longtime fan-favorite that paints a portrait of his Appalachian heritage, family history, and life on the road.
He says he was “honored” when he got the call that they wanted to use the song for this movie:
I was honored when I got the call from Randy Poster about using ‘Family Ties’ in the film. He’s been a fan of my music for a while, and we actually got the chance to sit down for dinner before my New York show last year and talk about the soundtrack.
Jessica’s an incredible talent and has acted in some of my favorite films, so getting to hear her take on one of my songs was really cool.”
Director Shana Feste recently told ComingSoon that the song helped them “tell so many stories”:
“We knew each song had to tell a story, and I think especially with ‘Family Ties,’ ‘Family Ties’ helped us tell so many stories. When you listen to ‘Family Ties’ and you see the fans already doing a sing-along to her lyrics, you know, okay, she had an established career, she was someone, she had a following, she had hits on the radio.”
Godwin also shared some footage from when they first recorded his signature song:
Chastain is a pretty solid singer, especially considering she’s an actress by trade, and it’s cool to see them pulling some great country music to use in this film.
The film is out on Netflix today, and if this cover has the CWG stamp of approval, that works for me… check it out:
“Family Ties”
The CWG original:
You can watch the full trailer for Heartland here:
HEARTLAND Tracklist:
1. “Heartland” performed by Jessica Chastain feat. Jennifer Nettles
2. “Heartbreak Country” performed by Ross Lynch
3. “Still the Sparrow Sings” performed by Carter Faith
4. “You’re Gonna Burn For That” performed by Jennifer Nettles
5. “Family Ties” performed by Jessica Chastain
6. “Ready & Waiting” performed by Carly Pearce
7. “Tall Tall Trees” performed by Channing Wilson
8. “The Night We Met” performed by Jace Jacobs and Charlie Heart
9. “Too Late For Coffee, Too Early for Beer” performed by John Hawkes and Margo Price
10. “A-11” performed by Eddy Dunlap
11. “Die With A Secret” performed by Charlie Heart
12. “Shut Up & Ride” performed by Heart Sisters
13. “Honeycomb” performed by Carter Faith feat. Trannie Anderson
14. “Texas Land” performed by David “Fergie” Ferguson
15. “Shouldn’t Have Called” performed by Jessica Chastain and John Hawkes
