New songs, Don't Worry About Nothing & Bird Dog, out today
Two new singles from Night Owl Envies the Mourning Dove
Two songs from Night Owl Envies the Mourning Dove released today. Listen to “Don’t Worry About Nothing” and “Bird Dog” wherever you’d like. You can also order the LP or CD from my online store or Bandcamp and hear the whole album straightaway on your turn table or CD player. The digital and streaming release is October 2, but we ship the LP and CD orders as soon as they come in.
Caitlin Canty’s new record, Night Owl Envies the Mourning Dove is her fifth studio release and marks a return to her roots, a grittier and more electric Americana sound. Recorded live in the studio while nearly 8 months pregnant with her second child, the songs can be seen in the light of major shifts in Canty’s life, from pre-parenthood city life in Nashville to her present day filled to the brim with family and nature, living on top of a mountain in southern Vermont.
Night Owl Envies the Mourning Dove finds Canty in the producer chair and playing electric guitar for the first time. Co-produced alongside Sam Kassirer (Josh Ritter), the album was recorded live at Great North Sound Society in rural Maine over 4 days with Rich Hinman (guitars), Jeremy Moses Curtis (bass), Ray Rizzo (drums) and Kassirer (keys). Matt Lorenz (The Suitcase Junket) joins on backing vocals.
Thank you for all the excitement and orders when I announced the record last month! Some folks were a little confused or disappointed why they can’t just have the whole album digitally right now too. Personally, I like listening to a new record front to back for the first listen, on the turntable whenever possible. I like hearing the story in its sequence and experiencing the album as a whole. But I also realize it’s important to give a record I put my entire heart and wallet into some time to gin up streams and press before it’s everywhere for free (digitally and streaming). And honestly it is making me antsy living with boxes full of LPs and CDs waiting to find a new home! I couldn’t bear waiting til October! You’ve all taken a chunk out of the tower of cardboard, and I’ve just loved hearing feedback from you, and seeing photos of your turntables with my record on it! Here’s one of my favorites. THANK YOU!
And I’m so excited to finally offer a box set of vinyl. The years spent on this music are less ephemeral somehow when I can hold these 4 records in my hands.
I’m struggling to find space (in the din of my own real world / in the chaos of our world on fire) to holler about my songs and my shows, but I owe them a moment in the sun. And if I don't tell you about them, how can you find them?
“Don’t Worry About Nothing” is the song I hear about most often from people after a show, wondering what record it’s on. I wrote the song in one rainy afternoon on a lake in New Hampshire. I watched from my cabin as a rainstorm came rushing across the water and decided to stay put with this song that had just rolled in with the rain. The massive changes I’d just weathered were on my mind while writing - becoming a mother, the tornado that demolished our East Nashville neighborhood, and the pandemic upending all our lives. Obviously, there are real monsters to worry about. But I want to worry about what matters and not freak out about the little stuff. I feel the need to focus my powers and use my time with intention more than ever before. This song is written from my mom’s voice and her unshakably sunny perspective, even in the darkest of times. And I clearly could not have written it without becoming a mom myself.
These singles are my son Arthur’s two favorite songs of mine. He loves wailing along to “Bird Dog” and “Don’t Worry About Nothing” was sparked by his magnatile castle falling down, which to me reflected what was happening in the real world at the time. And I tracked the whole album while nearly 8 months pregnant with Jonah. Feels good to let these songs fly out of our little home and hopefully land in your world. Not to belabor the bird metaphors, but I’m seeing birds everywhere in the house today! Arthur has moved on from exclusively drawing rainbows and cars to birds this week. Here’s Turkey Vulture Envies the Bluebird. (Or maybe it’s a parrot?)
And there’s an owl in the knots of our barn door!
I’ve just added a handful of record release tour shows to the tour calendar, but stay tuned for many more. I can’t wait to take Night Owl out on the road with Joachim Cooder and Will Seeders. Midwest in November, West coast in January, East coast sprinkled throughout the year, since I’m a Vermonter again.
x
Caitlin
p.s. This incredible article in Fretboard Journal just came in as I was about to press send on this newsletter. A comprehensive, honest, sharply written piece about my music and the new record. Such a gift! Thank you, Eric Pooley for this beauty!
UPCOMING SHOWS
Jul 14 - Middlebury on the Green - Middlebury, VT
Aug 15 - Green Mountain Bluegrass and Roots - Manchester, VT
Nov 14 - G.A.R. Hall - Peninsula, OH
Nov 21 - Paramount Theatre - Rutland, VT
Jan 3 - Burnham Hall - Lincoln, VT