After Chris Stapleton became 2015’s breakout country star thanks to his debut album Traveller, fans were eagerly anticipating the singer-songwriter’s follow-up project. The good news: The wait is over.
In February of 2017, Stapleton announced that he would be releasing his sophomore album in the spring, in conjunction with an impressive five-month tour. Then, in April, he doubled down: Two new projects were coming in 2017. Scroll down to learn everything known so far about Stapleton’s new albums, From A Room: Volumes 1 and 2.
The Titles
Stapleton’s two new 2017 releases are titled From A Room: Volume 1 and From A Room: Volume 2. The songs on both projects were recorded in historic RCA Studio A — hence the albums’ titles.
The Release Dates
Stapleton’s From A Room: Volume 1 was released on May 5. Volume 2 is due out on Dec. 1, Stapleton revealed during a Oct. 13 show at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
The Record Labels
Stapleton is signed to Mercury Nashville.
The Album Covers
Mercury Records Nashville
The album cover for Stapleton’s From A Room: Volume 1 features a sketch of Stapleton, drawn in a burgundy color and positioned on a pink-ish background. Readers can see what it looks like above.
Stapleton’s From A Room: Volume 2 album cover is the same as Volume 1‘s, but with the coloring reversed. Both covers feature his name underneath the sketch.
The Producers
Well-known producer Dave Cobb is RCA Studio A’s producer-in-residence, so he produced both From A Room: Volume 1 and From A Room: Volume 2.
“We camped out in here …,” Stapleton says, “and had a lot of fun recording things.”
Stapleton has worked with Cobb previously: His debut disc, Traveller, was produced by Stapleton and Cobb, and Stapleton and his wife Morgane also teamed up with Cobb for Cobb’s 2015 concept album Southern Family.
The Singles
On May 5, Stapleton officially announced “Either Way” as From A Room: Volume 1‘s first single. Stapleton wrote the song along with Tim James and Kendell Marvel; it originally appeared on Lee Ann Womack‘s Call Me Crazy record.
In July, Stapleton released “Broken Halos” as the second single from From A Room: Volume 1.
A country single from Volume 2 has yet to be released, but Stapleton has shipped “Midnight Train to Memphis” to AAA, rock, non-commercial and Americana radio. Written by Stapleton and his former SteelDrivers‘ bandmate Mike Henderson, “Midnight Train to Memphis” is a song that SteelDrivers fans will likely be familiar with: The band’s version of the song appears on 2008’s The SteelDrivers, released via Rounder Records.
The Songs
From A Room: Volume 1 contains nine songs. Stapleton co-wrote eight of them, with writers such as Kendall Marvel, Craig Wiseman, Shawn Camp and Mike Henderson. Those songs include “Broken Halos,” which Stapleton had performed live a few times before releasing the project, and “Second One to Know,” which he shared during the 2017 ACM Awards.
The non-Stapleton-penned song on From A Room: Volume 1 is “Last Thing I Needed, First Thing This Morning.” The tune was written by Gary P. Nunn and Donna Sioux Farar and originally made popular by Willie Nelson: Nelson released the song in 1982 as the third single from his Always on My Mind album, and it hit No. 2 on Billboard‘s country charts.
On From A Room, Volume 2, which is also nine songs long, fans will find “Tryin’ to Untangle My Mind,” a song that Stapleton has been performing live in concert recently, as well as Stapleton’s version of Kevin Welch’s “Millionaire” and Pops Staples’ “Friendship.” The album’s other seven songs were penned or co-penned by Stapleton.
A complete track listing for both From A Room: Volume 1 and From A Room: Volume 2 is available below.
Chris Stapleton, From A Room, Volume 1 Track Listing:
1. “Broken Halos” (Chris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
2. “Last Thing I Needed, First Thing This Morning” (Gary P. Nunn, Donna Sioux Farar)
3. “Second One to Know” (Chris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
4. “Up to No Good Livin’” (Chris Stapleton and Casey Beathard)
5. “Either Way” (Chris Stapleton, Tim James, Kendall Marvel)
6. “I Was Wrong” (Chris Stapleton, Craig Wiseman)
7. “Without Your Love” (CHris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
8. “These Stems” (Chris Stapleton, Jimmy Stewart, Shawn Camp)
9. “Death Row” (Chris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
Chris Stapleton, From A Room: Volume 2 Track Listing:
1. “Millionaire” (Kevin Welch)
2. “Hard Livin’” (Chris Stapleton, Kendell Marvel)
3. “Scarecrow in the Garden” (Chris Stapleton, Brice Long, Matt Fleener)
4. “Nobody’s Lonely Tonight” (Chris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
5. “Tryin’ to Untangle My Mind” (Chris Stapleton, Jaron Boyer, Kendell Marvel)
6. “A Simple Song” (Chris Stapleton, Darrell Hayes)
7. “Midnight Train to Memphis” (Chris Stapleton, Mike Henderson)
8. “Drunkard’s Prayer” (Chris Stapleton, Jameson Clark)
9. “Friendship” (Homer Banks, Lester Snell)
The Tour
In addition to his new albums, Stapleton also hit the road in 2017, on his All-American Road Show Tour. The All-American Road Show Tour featured the Brothers Osborne, Lucie Silvas, Brent Cobb, Anderson East and Margo Price at different shows throughout the trek.
Chris Stapleton’s Best Live Shots
Unforgettable Chris Stapleton Moments
This Article Was Originally Posted at www.TheBoot.com
