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Jul 20, 2020 By Samantha Small Bill Callahan

Every Monday, Bill Callahan is releasing a new song from his forthcoming album Gold Record, out September 4 via Drag City. Today’s tune is the bluesy “Protest Song.” Listen to it below.

After a “hard day at work,” Callahan flicks on the TV to unwind. While watching late night he observes someone singing a “protest song.” But, the “songs are lies,” so Callahan picks up the pen and his guitar to write his own. “Step aside son,” he jokes, let the experts do their job.

Previously Callahan shared “35,” along with the first single from Gold Record, “Pigeons.” It humorously opened with Callahan declaring “Hello, I’m Johnny Cash.” Then he sang from the perspective of a limo driver who mainly works weddings, reflecting on marriage, as he looks back at the newlyweds in the back of the limo. “Pigeons” was one of our Songs of the Week. Then Callahan shared the album’s “Another Song,” which was a song about afternoon delight, playing hooky from work to make love to your partner.

Gold Record is the follow-up to 2019’s Shepherd in a Sheepskin Vest, released last June via Drag City. That was his first album in six years, since 2013’s Dream River, so Gold River represents a quick turnaround time for Callahan. Following Dream River Callahan got married and had a kid and after those big and happy life changes he had trouble tapping into his usual songwriting well. It seems like the songwriting is flowing more freely now.

While prepping to go on a long tour for Shepherd in a Sheepskin Vest and contemplating being away from his family for a long time, he pulled out some sketches from his notebooks and finished some of them. The basics of Gold Record were recorded live with Matt Kinsey on guitar and Jaime Zurverza on bass.

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