Nashville Songwriter Luke Laird Previews Debut Album With Autobiographical ‘Music Row’

Luke Laird, the Nashville songwriting ace behind songs like the Grammy-winning “Space Cowboy” for Kacey Musgraves, Eric Church’s “Talladega,” and Miranda Lambert’s “Baggage Claim,” will release his debut album as a solo artist on September 18th. Appropriately titled Music Row, the LP features 10 songs, including the title track, premiering Wednesday.

“Music Row” is an autobiographical story-song, chock full of references to Nashville landmarks, from the affordable tourist motel the Fiddler’s Inn and historic Ernest Tubb’s Record Shop to the old homes on 16th Avenue and the venerable Bluebird Cafe. It was in that listening room that Laird had his epiphany. “Just like that I knew what I wanted to do with my life/I knew where I wanted to go,” sings the Pennsylvania native. The song deftly straddles the line between old Nashville and new, mixing weeping steel guitar with a computerized drum loop.

“Ever since my first trip to Nashville on a family vacation when I was in high school I’ve been in love with this town. I saw Tony Arata play at the Bluebird Cafe and I knew from that moment on I wanted to be a songwriter,” Laird says. “The song ‘Music Row’ is about the journey from Pennsylvania to Nashville and this album is filled with songs that are super personal to me that I hope others will connect with.”

Laird, who co-produced Musgraves’ first two albums, has co-written 24 Number One country singles and was a 2017 CMA Triple Play Award recipient. He recently became the host of a radio program on Apple Music, “Country Replay Radio,” part of the streaming service’s new focus on country music.

Here’s the track list:

1. “Music Row”
2. “Good Friends”
3. “Hangin’ Out”
4. “That’s Why I Don’t Drink Anymore”
5. “Why I Am Who I Am”
6. “Leaves on the Ground”
7. “Jake and Mack”
8. “One More Divorce”
9. “Branch On The Tree”
10. “Country Music Will Never Die”