Three-time GRAMMY nominated, multi-platinum selling artist Joe Nichols today announced that his 11th career studio album, Honky Tonks and Country Songs, will be released on Friday, October 25.
The official pre-save/pre-add for Nichols’ Honky Tonks and Country Songs will be live on Thursday, September 6, across all digital streaming and retail partners.
Produced by Mickey Jack Cones (Jason Aldean, Thomas Rhett) and Derek George (Randy Houser), the album highlights Nichols’ steadfast commitment to country music that has made him one of Nashville’s most honest and versatile voices, regarded for his warm and distinctly country tone by everyone from Dolly Parton to Post Malone — he’s sung with both. On Nichols’ new album, Honky Tonks and Country Songs, the No. 1 chart-topper continues to connect country’s traditional past with its diverse present over 11 radio-ready tracks.
Among the album’s highlights is, “Doin’ Life with You,” the second track from Nichols’ upcoming album and set for release next Friday, September 6.
Sung through the lens of being a father and a husband, “Doin’ Life with You” is a heartfelt love song for the ages, a vow to one’s partner that you’ll be by their side through thick and thin and wouldn’t want it any other way.
“Doin’ Life with You” follows the recently released and critically lauded, “Bottle It Up,” of which legendary music critic Robert Oermann declared, “This good humored, twanging tempo tune is one more reason to applaud our enduring favorite.”
Additional highlights include the powerful ballad “Better Than You,” an emotional duet featuring label mate Annie Bosko alongside Nichols. Channeling the moment two lovers realize that no other love can compare to what they have found in each other’s arms, the smoldering track also reminds us that love at first sight can stop you in your tracks, changing the trajectory of your life.
“Hard Fires” features a guest appearance from ACM-nominated group Runaway June’s lead vocalist, Stevie Woodward. The mid-tempo track explores the conflicting emotions of returning to an old flame who might be wrong for you but always feels so right.
Recently noted as “one of country music’s most steadfast neo-traditional torchbearers” (Billboard), his second album for Quartz Hill Records, Honky Tonks and Country Songs, pays homage to Nichols’ early days as a country artist.
“I’ve been in a lot of honky tonks,” Nichols says. “They’re the only places I could play for a long time, and you learn a lot about being an entertainer there, because people come wanting to hear a good song and have a good time. Country songs speak not just to those people, but to all people.”
“My job is to make people feel good. And sometimes that means with fun and happy songs, and other times with sad and sorrowful truths. But the goal is always to make them feel good,” he continues. “This album is meant to do exactly that. Everyone can find a good time in a honky tonk and a country song.”
Honky Tonks and Country Songs – Official Track Listing
1. Honky Tonks and Country Songs – (Tyler Hubbard/Matt Jenkins/Travis Wood/Casey Brown)
2. Bottle It Up – (Josh Kear/Dan Isbell/Paul Sikes)
3. People Still Doin’ That – (Justin Lantz/Clint Daniels)
4. Helpless in a Honky Tonk – (Jared Keim/Ryan Beaver/Neil Medley/Dan Alley)
5. Country Boy Can Survive – (Hank Williams Jr)
6. Hard Fires (featuring Stevie Woodward) – (Michael Carter/Adam Craig/Matt Rogers)
7. Doin’ Life with You – (Jimmy Yeary)
8. Y’all Do – (Jake Mitchell/Michael Hardy/Mike Walker)
9. On and On – (Jason Sellers Terri Jo Box/Dan Smalley)
10. Better Than You (Joe Nichols & Annie Bosko) – (Derek George/John Pierce)
11. Amazing Ways – (Dan Isbell/Jordan Minton/Jonathan Smith)
Nichols heads back out on the road this weekend, headlining amphitheaters in El Dorado, AR (8/31), Camdenton, MO (9/1), Parker, CO (9/5) as well as the Downtown Rocks Concert Series in Las Vegas (9/7). For a full list of Joe Nichols tour dates and more information, visit www.joenichols.com