“It’s unlike anything I’ve ever done, but it still makes sense.”
...
That’s how nine-time Grammy winner Dan Auerbach describes his new album, Waiting On a Song,“It’s unlike anything I’ve ever done, but it still makes sense.”
That’s how nine-time Grammy winner Dan Auerbach describes his new album, Waiting On a Song, which will be released June 2 on his own Easy Eye Sound label.
Waiting On a Song is the followup to the Black Keys frontman’s 2009 solo debut, Keep It Hid. It’s also a love letter to Nashville; Auerbach recruited some of the town’s most respected players to write and record for the new project, including John Prine, Duane Eddy and Bobby Wood. Even Mark Knopfler contributes his own snaky, snarling guitar to “Shine On Me," which you can hear below.
Other standout tracks include the cinematic “King of a One Horse Town” and the upbeat but melancholy title track. The song's music video—which was directed by Bryan Schlam—reinforces that perspective by following a group of teens during the “best summer of their lives” before they head off to college.
I recently spoke with Auerbach about Waiting On a Song, songwriting, his gear and more.
When you experience Waiting On a Song as a whole, there are so many different styles and influences from the Sixties and Seventies that come across. Was that the intent?
A lot of what you’re hearing is the guys from those records that you remember listening to, like Bobby Wood, who plays Wurlitzer on this record, also played on hits by Elvis and Dusty Springfield. When you listen to this record you’re not being reminded of a certain style. You’re actually listening to the guy who created the style.
What’s your songwriting process like?
It all depends. Sometimes, you have a melody first or a lyric, and other times it can just be a title and you