#ITSAMUSTLISTEN - AARON LEWIS RELEASES "FRAYED AT BOTH ENDS" - A STRIPPED DOWN TAKE ON CLASSIC MID-CAREER HAGGARD/COE COUNTRY

Performance of “Everybody Talks To God” on

'Fox & Friends' Jan. 31

Having had two #1 Billboard Country Album debuts with Town Line and Sinner, Aaron Lewis has quietly made an impact on country music without flexing to let everyone know what a big deal he was. With a decade invested in a genre that’s seen him record with Willie Nelson, George Jones, Charlie Daniels, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Mickey Raphael, the Cox Family, and Dan Tyminski and producer Buddy Cannon, the 15-million selling front man of Staind doubled down on "Frayed at Both Ends".

Starker, more acoustic and with the focus on what The Los Angeles Times cited as “his mournful baritone,” Frayed is a meditation on shrinking opportunities, mistakes made, consequences of our actions and squaring up to it all with the dignity it takes to be a full-grown man. Drawing on the tattered reality and stoicism of Merle Haggard, the yearning of David Allan Coe’s "Darlin’ Darlin" era, the ragged fringe of Johnny Paycheck, Lewis collaborated with many of the songwriters who’ve become his friends over the last dozen years for the first time.

“Over the years, you hang out and one thing leads to another, and you’re writing songs,” the deep voiced songwriter explains. “When you’ve got Chris Wallin, Dan Tyminski, Ira Dean, Matt McGinn, Jeffrey Steele or David Lee Murphy sitting there talking, songs just tend to fall out. And when you realize what you've got, you just keep going. These are all men who know country music’s depths, so for all of us, we got to write songs you don’t hear every day.”

That same truth applies to the recording. While co-producing with musical collaborator Ben Kitterman and Ira Dean, they drew on the wealth of top-flight musicians who’ve become core to reflecting the tavern country sound Lewis’ heard on his grandfather’s George Jones, Waylon Jennings and Haggard 8-tracks. Guitarists Tom Bukovac, Biff Watson and Seth Taylor, dobroist Kitterman, acoustic slide and baritone guitar from Sturgill Simpson veteran Laur Joamets, keyboard player Jim Moose Brown, and acoustic guitar/mandolin from Tyminski were the core band.

“The beauty of country music is that often less is more,” Lewis says. “These songs did the work, all we needed to do was support them. These players are so gifted, they can say more in a few notes than a lot of people... It was a privilege seeing them bring these stories and feelings to life.”

With the post-Dust Bowl country of the reap-what-you-sow “Get What You Get,” the broken “Pull Me Under,” the minor keyed double entendre road life lament “Life Between Bars,” the dobro-heavy acceptance lullaby “Kill Me Like You Love Me,” high lonesome memory that can’t be outrun “Waiting There For Me” and the hopeful closer “Someone,” Lewis built on the starkness of “Am I The Only One,” his #1 Billboard Hot Country Songs debut – only the ninth such debut since the chart’s debut in 1958 – of frustration voiced and manifested.

To celebrate Frayed’s release, Lewis returns to Fox & Friends on Jan. 31. With a performance of “Everybody Talks To God” taped at an intimate concert for the troops at Kentucky’s Fort Campbell, Lewis will talk about the new album, his commitment to country music and his stripped down Frayed at Both Ends, The Acoustic Tour.

Mixed by Chris Lord-Algae, the 5-time Grammy-winning engineer made the warmth of the playing and depth in the room undeniable. For fans of Lewis’ haunted, brass tacks kind of country music, this is the essence of what he’s been chasing since arriving in Nashville to make music that honors the roots of his raising. Having invested in the community, the community has become an outgrowth of that love for the splinters and reckonings that once made country such a good place to drown one’s sorrows and figure out how to move on from the wreckage one creates.

Stream / download Frayed at Both Ends here.

DAVID LEE MURPHY AND KENNY CHESNEY WIN MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR FOR "EVERYTHING'S GONNA BE ALRIGHT"

Murphy’s 1st Nom & Win; Chesney’s 3rd Musical Event Award

 When Kenny Chesney decided to make what became No Zip Code with David Lee Murphy, he believed in the singularity of Murphy's voice as an artist and as a writer. When Murphy asked Chesney to sing on “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright,” a song about finding grace in the eye of the storm, he was honored to sing with his good friend.

“Sometimes you hear songs, and they just feel good,” says Chesney. “And occasionally one of the ones that feels so good says something that people are needing to hear. That’s how I felt about ‘Everything’s Gonna Be Alright’ the moment I heard it. Being able to be part of David Lee’s song was just awesome.”

And this morning – on “Good Morning America” – Murphy’s first No. 1 this decade was named the Country Music Association’s Musical Event of the Year. One of two pre-telecast awards, it started the CMA day off on a good note.

“David Lee is so singular, I’d hear his demos and think, ‘People need to hear this voice, and his perspective,’” Chesney says. “I couldn’t be happier to see him win his first CMA Award. We’ve sung this song all over America this year, and I’ve seen the way stadiums full of people respond. Every night when he’d walk out, they’d cheer – and when the chorus came along, it was something they wanted to sing with us.”

“The crowd sings along from the very first line with their hands in the air,” Murphy says. “What’s been heartwarming for me are the personal stories from people whose lives have been affected by this song. That’s what it’s all about.”

For Murphy, Musical Event of the Year was his first CMA nomination. It is now also his first CMA Award.

“My heartfelt thanks to everyone who made this possible,” Murphy responds, “especially my great friend Kenny Chesney. Love you, brother!”

DAVID LEE MURPHY IS "ALRIGHT" AT 50 STATIONS - #1 MOST ADDED TRACK FEATURES GOOD PAL KENNY CHESNEY

It’s been a long time since David Lee Murphy went to country radio, but that doesn’t seem to be slowing down the man Kenny Chesney calls “the Original Hillbilly Rock Star.” With “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” arriving at country radio, the man known for the No. 1s “Party Crowd” and “Dust on the Bottle” scores the week’s No. 1 Most Added Song.

“It’s crazy, but it’s awesome,” says Murphy. “We all believed in this song. Heck, Kenny came in and sang on it with me – because it felt so good. When we listened to the playback, we thought we had something. Hearing we had 50 stations, it lets you know people do hear what you hear.”

“When David Lee sent me the song,” Chesney offers with a laugh, “it was such a great groove, it hooked me immediately. But what it says – and how it said it – is one of those sentiments for the times. We can all benefit from slowing down and trying to break the momentum, trust the universe and let go of what’s got a hold of us.”

Evidently, country radio shares the sentiment. Fifty radio stations across America took the lead, adding “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” to their playlists – and making the gently churning song that features both Murphy and Chesney the most added record in the nation this week.

“It feels good,” the songwriter from Southern Illinois says. “To know my music is hitting that kind of place in people’s hearts… That’s the reason I write these songs: to make people feel something about their life. So the response is everything I could hope for, and I am so grateful to the Reviver Records team for believing, and to country radio for letting this music be heard. That’s how the dots get connected.”

Working a groove that shuffles, a pre-chorus that ambles and just enough reggae lift in the chorus, “Alright” suggests the solace of seeking balance to get through what life hands you. With crushing news cycles, an ever-quickening tech universe and increasing workloads, “Alright” is a classic exhale from the man who’s penned hits for Chesney, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Thompson Square, Gary Allen and many others.

“You watch the news, it’s rough,” Murphy says. “You can get caught in that, or step back and trust life. Sometimes, a deep breath changes everything.”

Capturing the rush of being alive, the hardcore work ethic of country fans and a desire that quickens the pulse, Murphy’s No Zip Code, co-produced by Chesney, Buddy Cannon (Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss, Merle Haggard) and Murphy, is coming soon. And this duet is the first taste, marking a big return to country radio. With 50 stations so far, “Everything Is Gonna Be Alright” is alright, indeed.

DAVID LEE MURPHY SIGNS WITH REVIVER ENTERTAINMENT GROUP

Kenny Chesney and Buddy Cannon Produced NO ZIP CODE Will Mark 1st Release

David Lee Murphy Signs with Reviver Records 

Top L to R: David Ross (Founder/President/CEO, Reviver Records) and Gator Michaels (Executive VP, Reviver Records)

Bottom L to R: David Lee Murphy and Kenny Chesney

Platinum-selling country artist and prolific songwriter David Lee Murphy returns to recording with Reviver Entertainment Group. The man who defined country’s freewheeling spirit with the #1 “Dust on the Bottle” and Most Played Song of 1995 “Party Crowd” will release No Zip Code on Reviver Records.

Produced by 8-time Entertainer of the Year Kenny Chesney and Buddy Cannon, No Zip Code features Murphy’s sweeping post modern country: a little bit redneck, a little bit romantic, a little bit real life. Having written hits for many of today’s biggest stars, Murphy now sings his own songs.

No Zip Code will be his fifth studio album and the first album on Reviver Records for Murphy who, in a addition to his own career as a recording artist, has written more than 50 cuts, including chart-toppers for Jason Aldean (“Big Green Tractor,” “The Only Way I Know”), Blake Shelton (“The More I Drink”), Gary Allan (“A Feelin’ Like That”), Jake Owens (“Anywhere With You”), Eli Young Band (“Always the Love Songs”), Thompson Square (the Grammy-nominated “Are You Gonna Kiss Me (Or Not)") and Chesney (“Livin’ In Fast Forward,” “Pirate Flag”). In addition, he’s penned significant album cuts for Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Brooks & Dunn, Brad Paisley, Montgomery Gentry, Reba McEntire, and Keith Urban.

“I didn’t think I’d ever get out here and do this again,” Murphy says. “You focus on writing, and that’s its own kind of great. But Kenny and I got to talking, and it seemed like something worth doing. Then when we got in the studio, it felt so good, every day was more exciting than the one before.”

“David Lee is the original – and the last of – the hillbilly rock stars,” Chesney, the man The Los Angeles Times calls “The People’s Superstar,” says of Murphy. “His groove, the way he lays into a melody is so smooth, yet he uses the words for shaping the rhythm. He knows the life, and he bottles it up in song. Making this record showed us what country music can be in the 21st century.”

For Cannon and Chesney, No Zip Code is a labor of love: both for the artist and the music. Cannon, who’s recently produced projects for Alison Krauss, Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard, Jamey Johnson, George Jones and Chesney’s last thirteen releases, has co-written classic songs for Vern Gosdin, Alabama, Mel Tillis, Reba McEntire and George Strait, including the 2007 Academy of Country Music Song of the Year “Give It Away.”

“We are thrilled to welcome David Lee Murphy to Reviver,” says CEO David Ross. “His songs, his style and this record are incredible. We can’t wait to get to work.”