Mention the name Robert Earl Keen, and several descriptive terms spring to mind – Texas singer-songwriter, career artist, brilliant storyteller, sardonic humourist, poet of the strange and familiar. And now with the release of his latest album, Happy Prisoner, there is what may seem a surprising addition to that list – bluegrass singer.

The record finds Keen re-teaming with producer Lloyd Maines. Helping it all fall together is Keen’s longtime ace band, consisting of guitarist Rich Brotherton, bassist Bill Whitbeck, drummer Tom Van Schaik and steel guitarist Marty Music, plus a star-studded cast of special guests, including Danny Barnes on banjo, Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins on fiddle and Lyle Lovett and Natalie Maines on vocals.

“I’ve had a lifelong love of bluegrass,” says Keen. “I’ve always had an affinity for music that I felt like you’d listen to in your living room. Music that felt real. My mom liked the old hillbilly music, and as a kid, I used to fall asleep listening to an 8-track tape of Jimmie Rodgers’ greatest hits. When I was in 9th grade, one of my first dates was taking a girl to a bluegrass festival. That sounds crazy for someone in Texas. But I was fascinated with that music, even though it wasn’t part of the gulf coast at all. When I started playing, my first guitar hero was Norman Blake. In college, I had a bluegrass band called the Front Porch Boys, went to fiddle contests, learned a jillion fiddle and old-timey songs. My whole education in music started with bluegrass.

Vinyl includes additional 5 tracks not available on CD or digitally*