Songbird

Waylon Jennings was one of the first heroes of the outlaw country movement, famed for his swaggering attitude and edgy, rock-influenced music, which is curious when one considers how gentle his music could be. Waylon could sound fearsome when he wanted, and yet a large amount of his catalog was devoted to songs that were wistful meditations on love, lifes unexpected detours, and chasing ones dreams. In 2024, Waylons son Shooter Jennings began exploring his fathers archive of unreleased recording sessions, most from the late 70s, and pleased by the quality of what he expected to be rough demos, he set to work mixing the tapes and readying them for release. 2025s Songbird is the first in a projected series of three albums drawn from these archival sessions, and its a collection of ten songs that lean to Waylons thoughtful side, not kicking up much dust but finding him in fine voice and leading his longtime road band, the Waylors, with easygoing passion and superb feel. While Waylon was a fine songwriter when he chose to pick up his pen, plenty of his best songs were written by others, and nine of the ten tracks on Songbird are covers; whether or not that was Shooters intent, hes made Songbird into a splendid tribute to his fathers gifts as an interpretive vocalist. His rich baritone captures the emotional textures of Jesse Winchesters "Brand New Tennessee Waltz," Hank Williams, Jr.s "I Dont Have Any More Love Songs," and Fleetwood Macs "Songbird" with unaffected grace and heart, and the sole original, "The Cowboy (Small Texas Town)," which he co-wrote with Johnny Rodriguez, is a meditation on his outlaw image thats proud but not arrogant. The accompaniment by members of the Waylors is superb, the work of musicians who know very well what best serves their bandleader, and this material stands with Waylons best work of the era, short on frills but long on soul. In the tradition of vintage country albums, it clocks in at just over 30 minutes. Songbird doesnt tell us much new about Waylon Jennings, but it reaffirms that he was one of the strongest and most compelling country singers of his generation, and this is a welcome gift for fans who wish there was another fine 1970s Waylon Jennings album theyd never heard. ~ Mark Deming