Article Contributed by New West Records
Published on 2026-08-06
Steve Earle and Los Lobos have released their first-ever collaboration, “Volver a Celaya,” through New West Records.
Earle originally wrote the song during intimate songwriting workshops he taught last spring at the Jalopy Theatre and School of Music in Red Hook, Brooklyn. He later met with Los Lobos in Richmond, Virginia, where Steve Berlin produced the studio session at Red Amp Studios.
“The character speaking to you in this song is based on guys that I worked with framing houses, right after I dropped out of high school in 1971,” Earle says.
He recalls first working with crews that kept conventional hours before joining Mexican crews that worked much longer days.
“These guys put in all the hours they could, brought the money home to their family on the westside—or back across the border to Mexico,” Earle says. “I didn’t mind working late because, as far as I knew, nothing cool happened ’til dark anyway.”
Earle says the song was also inspired by today’s national conversation surrounding immigration.
“These days, with the word ‘immigration’ on the tip of everyone’s tongue, I found myself wondering where Cruz, Armando, and Eusebio are today and what they would make of this mess, so I set to putting words in their mouths,” he says.
Once the song was finished, Earle knew exactly who he wanted to record it with.
“Los Lobos and I have been connected at our roots since the beginning of our careers,” he says. “We’ve shared stages at festivals and toured together as a package, but collaborating in the studio was a box unchecked—until now.”
Los Lobos’ Steve Berlin described the session as the latest chapter in a relationship spanning decades.
“We had an absolute blast working on this special song with him, as there are few songwriters extant who can say so much by simply painting the picture of life under the current regime,” Berlin says. “We look forward to future collaborations.”
“Volver a Celaya” is available now across streaming platforms. A limited-edition seven-inch vinyl single will be released October 16 through independent retailers and is available for pre-order through New West Records.
The single’s B-side is Earle’s “City of Immigrants,” originally released on his 2007 Grammy-winning album, Washington Square Serenade. The song remains a tribute to the immigrant experience and the generations of newcomers who continue to shape American identity.
Earle released a video for “City of Immigrants” in May, directed by actor and filmmaker Steve Buscemi.
Earle is currently on his Fifty-One Years of Songs and Stories tour, an extensive North American run that has included more than 70 dates across the United States and Canada. On August 29, he will begin a European tour with The Waterboys in Glasgow.
In October, Earle will return to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in San Francisco. The weekend will begin with “An Evening Honoring Steve Earle” at The Masonic on October 1, featuring Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Hot Tuna, Victoria Williams, Molly Tuttle, Buddy Miller, and others.
Los Lobos, meanwhile, continues its “Brotherhood Tour” with Los Lonely Boys and will also appear at the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion in September before launching the Latin Legends Cruise in May 2027.
About Steve Earle
Steve Earle is widely regarded as one of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters of his generation. A protégé of Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark, Earle developed into a master storyteller whose songs have been recorded by Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris, The Pretenders, and many others.
His 1986 debut album, Guitar Town, reached No. 1 on the country charts and remains an Americana landmark. His 1988 song “Copperhead Road” has since been named an official state song of Tennessee.
Earle has also released acclaimed albums including The Revolution Starts...Now, Washington Square Serenade, and TOWNES, earning consecutive Grammy Awards.
Beyond music, he has published the novel I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive and the short-story collection Doghouse Roses. He has appeared in HBO’s The Wire and Tremé, worked in theater, and hosts Hard Core Troubadour on SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country.
Earle was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020 and joined the Grand Ole Opry in 2025.
About Los Lobos
Over more than 50 years, Los Lobos has built one of the most enduring and influential catalogs in American roots music.
The band has released 17 studio albums, won four Grammy Awards, received a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and been inducted into both the California Hall of Fame and the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.
The group has also received the ALMA Ritchie Valens Pioneer Award, the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Performance, and honors from the National Endowment for the Arts and Hispanic Heritage Foundation.
Rooted in Mexican and Latin American traditions, Los Lobos has long transformed stories from the East Los Angeles barrio into songs of resilience, hope, and cultural pride.
Steve Earle Tour Dates
August 6 – Crested Butte, CO – Center for the Arts
August 7 – Colorado Springs, CO – Phil Long Music Hall
August 8 – Albuquerque, NM – KiMo Theatre
August 9 – Roswell, NM – The Liberty
August 11 – San Antonio, TX – Stable Hall
August 12 – Arlington, TX – Arlington Music Hall
August 14 – Tulsa, OK – Skyline Event Center at Osage Casino Hotel
August 15 – Salina, KS – Stiefel Theatre
August 16 – St. Louis, MO – The Sovereign
August 18 – Evanston, IL – Cahn Auditorium
August 19 – Cincinnati, OH – Ludlow Garage
August 20 – Marietta, OH – Peoples Bank Theatre
August 21 – Bethlehem, PA – Musikfest Café
August 22 – Amagansett, NY – Stephen Talkhouse
August 26 – Nashville, TN – Grand Ole Opry
August 28 – Leicestershire, England – The Long Road Festival
August 29 – Glasgow, Scotland – OVO Hydro*
August 30 – Stockton-on-Tees, England – Princess Alexandra Auditorium
September 1 – Brussels, Belgium – Ancienne Belgique*
September 3 – Valencia, Spain – Roig Arena*
September 5 – Dublin, Ireland – 3Arena*
September 7 – Oslo, Norway – Oslo Spektrum*
September 8 – Stockholm, Sweden – Filadelfia Convention Center*
September 10 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – AFAS Live*
September 11 – Antwerp, Belgium – OLT Rivierenhof*
September 12 – London, England – The O2*
October 1 – San Francisco, CA – The Masonic
October 2–4 – San Francisco, CA – Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
October 8 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Theatre
October 10 – Nashville, TN – Grand Ole Opry
October 15 – San Diego, CA – Gallagher Square at Petco Park
October 16 – Palm Springs, CA – Plaza Theatre
October 17 – Long Beach, CA – F&M Amphitheatre
October 23 – East Greenwich, RI – Greenwich Odeum
October 24 – Woodstock, NY – Bearsville Theater
November 6 – Sellersville, PA – Sellersville Theater
November 7 – State College, PA – State Theatre
November 28 – Nashville, TN – Grand Ole Opry
December 4–8 – Cancún, Mexico – Blackberry Smoke’s High Tide Getaway
*With The Waterboys
Los Lobos Tour Dates
August 7 – Saratoga, CA – The Mountain Winery
August 8 – Monterey, CA – Golden State Theatre
August 9 – Napa, CA – Uptown Theatre
August 12 – Everett, WA – Apex Everett
August 13 – Ridgefield, WA – ilani Casino Resort
August 14 – Jacksonville, OR – Britt Festival Pavilion
August 22 – Lahaina, HI – Hyatt Regency Maui
September 2 – Newton, NJ – Newton Theatre
September 3 – King of Prussia, PA – Concerts Under the Stars
September 4 – East Meadow, NY – Eisenhower Park
September 5 – North Stonington, CT – Jonathan Edwards Winery
September 11–13 – Bristol, TN – Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion
September 12 – Thomson, GA – Blind Willie McTell Music Festival
September 13 – Florence, SC – Francis Marion University Performing Arts Center
September 26 – Glenview, IL – Blocktoberfest
September 27–28 – Port Townsend, WA – McCurdy Pavilion
October 4 – Commerce, CA – Steve’s Steak & Seafood House
October 16 – Indio, CA – Fantasy Springs Resort Casino
October 17 – Winterhaven, CA – Quechan Casino Resort
October 23 – Albany, NY – Hart Theatre at The Egg
October 24 – Fairfield, CT – The Warehouse at FTC
October 25–26 – New York, NY – City Winery
November 13 – Cincinnati, OH – Memorial Hall OTR
November 14 – Wadsworth, OH – The Celestia Theater
November 15 – Three Oaks, MI – The Acorn
December 3 – St. Louis, MO – The Sheldon Concert Hall
December 4–5 – Kansas City, MO – Knuckleheads Saloon
December 6 – Bentonville, AR – The Momentary
February 27, 2027 – Parker, CO – PACE Center
February 28, 2027 – Boulder, CO – Boulder Theater
May 13–16, 2027 – Los Angeles, CA – Latin Legends Cruise
