The early days of the pandemic shut down stopped the promotion and lifeblood of so many projects, including John Anderson’s critically acclaimed 22nd studio album, Years.
But for the album’s producers Dan Auerbach and David “Fergie” Ferguson, the opportunities lost with Years gave them the impetus to pay homage to the neo-traditionalist country singer with Something Borrowed, Something New: A Tribute to John Anderson.
The 13-track set, which features Luke Combs, Eric Church, Brothers Osborne, Ashley McBryde, Del McCoury, Sturgill Simpson, the late John Prine and others putting their stamp on many of Anderson’s best-loved hits, would never have come about if Years, which came out in April 2020, hadn’t lost its momentum in the pandemic.
“We put the album out and people loved it,” Auerbach says. “The video for ‘Years’ had millions of views. And then COVID hit, and completely halted everything that we all worked on together. Fergie and I felt like the story never got told like it should have — so we started to assemble this tribute record, because we still felt like John had a story to tell still.”
For the collection, released Aug. 5 on Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound imprint, “we wanted it to be as broad as possible while still feeling cohesive as a whole,” says Auerbach, who is also one half of The Black Keys. “We wanted to pluck the best out of the mainstream, Americana and bluegrass, put them all together and just try to make a great album that John would be proud of.”
A Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, Anderson, 67, signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1977 and, in the two decades that followed, his distinctive baritone propelled such hits as “Wild & Blue,” “Money in the Bank,” “Straight Tequila Night” and his signature hit, “Swingin’,” which won the CMA’s single of the year award in 1983.
“The hardest thing in life is to be unique, be yourself and to be successful just being yourself — but it is the mark of true greatness, and John fully embodies that,” says Auerbach. “He is just this classic American voice, very singular. There’s nobody else just like that. He was given a gift — but he also worked his ass off, loves music, loves songwriting. The passion that he’s had his whole life just comes through in everything he does.”
There was no dearth of artists willing to help tell Anderson’s story by reinterpreting his hits. Combs serves up a potent version of “Seminole Wind.” Church covers “Mississippi Moon,” while Gillian Welch and David Rawlings deliver a tender take on “I Just Came Home to Count the Memories.” “Shoot Low Sheriff!” gets a playful rendering by Tyler Childers while McCoury lends his distinctive voice to “Would You Catch a Falling Star” with assistance from Sierra Hull. McBryde admirably revives “Straight Tequila Night.”
“To single out a favorite wouldn’t really be fair because there’s certain things about all of them that I really like,” Anderson tells Billboard of the project. “But John Prine and Del McCoury even showing up and doing something like this, it indeed is a great honor. But I’m a big fan of every artist on there.”
That feeling is mutual. “‘Seminole Wind’ is one of my favorite country songs of all time, and I was honored to put my take on it,” Combs says. “I hope it does justice in paying tribute to John Anderson and the incredible artist he is.”
“John Anderson isn’t just a brilliant songwriter,” Welch adds. “He’s also such an iconic singer that it makes it hard to imagine singing his songs. That’s why I’m so glad Dan Auerbach made this record, and that he asked me to sing this song, because I wouldn’t have had the guts to otherwise.”
Some artists chose the songs they were going to record and others sought direction from Ferguson and Auerbach. “Luke knew what he wanted, but for Eric Church we suggested ‘Mississippi Moon,’ and he really dug it. We suggested ‘I Just Came Home to Count The Memories’ to Dave and Gill. Fergie is the master at picking songs for people. He’s so good at it, always.”
The producers and Anderson hope the record will revive interest in Anderson’s diverse catalog. “These songs, even the ones I didn’t write — I was fortunate enough to make them my own,” says Anderson. “And I think a lot of what this record tells me is that great songs hold up through time.”
Unlike many tribute albums where artists record in different studios, each act came to Easy Eye Studio to record, which gives the album an overarching consistency. “It really helps glue all the songs together,” Auerbach says. “It was really lovingly curated, and we didn’t cut any corners. We just got beautiful performances out of everyone that came in.”
One of the most poignant moments is Prine’s evocative rendition of “1959.” One of Prine’s last recordings, the session took place in September 2019 before Prine died from Covid-19 on April 7, 2020. “That was Fergie’s suggestion [to record “1959”] and that was perfect for John. He came in and sang it so good. We had the band in there playing it with him and his buddy Pat McLaughlin singing harmony, who he’d been writing songs with for 35 years. It was a cool mix.”
Surprisingly, Anderson’s best-known song, “Swingin’,” is not included on the album. “We left a little meat on the bone should there be Part 2,” Auerbach says. “It’s very obvious it’s his biggest song and we didn’t have it on there. But it’s not because we don’t love it. We didn’t have the right performance — and this is not about just trying to get more and more and more. This is about trying to get the best of the best, giving really great performances. We really wanted to make a great record. It just wasn’t meant to be, it wasn’t like we didn’t want to cut it.”
Anderson is unfazed by the omission. “‘Swingin’ gets cut about every three or four years by somebody,” he says of the tune he co-wrote with Lionel Delmore, which has been covered by such artists as LeAnn Rimes, The Mavericks and Chris Young. “And I get to sing it every night. So I’m not going to let them forget about ‘Swingin.’”
Anderson’s influence was celebrated Aug. 6 at the Grand Ole Opry as Auerbach, Childers, Rawlings, Welch and Hull paid homage to the Apopka, Fla. native. “For the Opry to extend this kind of a gracious invite is very much an honor,” Anderson says with his signature self-effacing charm. “Through the years, I’ve loved the Grand Ole Opry. I used to listen to it every Saturday night. I ended up being friends with [Opry pioneers] like Ernest Tubb, Jimmy Dickens and Porter Wagoner and on and on.” Anderson performed “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’m Gonna Be a Diamond Some Day),” which Jamey Johnson sings on the tribute.
Anderson, who battled a non-malignant tumor in 2017-2018 that nearly cost him his hearing and his life, is now healthy and touring and writing songs for his next album. He’s humbled and appreciative of the longevity he’s enjoyed in the business. “I’ll be the first to say I don’t think I ever deserved any of this,” he says of his success. “Basically, all I’ve wanted to do is try to write some songs and get out there and sing them for the folks. And I’ve been real lucky to do that and especially do it pretty much my own way.”
SOMETHING BORROWED, SOMETHING NEW: A TRIBUTE TO JOHN ANDERSON TRACK LIST
1. “1959” performed by John Prine
2. “Years” performed by Sierra Ferrell
3. “Wild and Blue” performed by Brent Cobb
4. “Low Dog Blues” performed by Nathaniel Rateliff
5. “Mississippi Moon” performed by Eric Church
6. “I Just Came Home to Count the Memories” performed by Gillian Welch & David Rawlings
7. “Shoot Low Sheriff!” performed by Tyler Childers
8. “Seminole Wind” performed by Luke Combs
9. “When It Comes to You” performed by Sturgill Simpson
10. “You Can’t Judge a Book (By the Cover)” performed by Brothers Osborne
11. “Would You Catch a Falling Star” performed by Del McCoury feat. Sierra Hull
12. “Straight Tequila Night” performed by Ashley McBryde
13. “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’m Gonna Be a Diamond Some Day)” performed by Jamey Johnson
