“It’s been fifty five years for Asleep At The Wheel as a band, and fifty of them have been spent in Texas,” says the incomparable band’s founder and fearless leader, Ray Benson. “We are known worldwide for being a Texas band and playing Texas and Western Swing music, and it gives us great pride to carry this torch and responsibility.” To honor the five decade mark in the Lonestar State, the Wheel had no choice but to dedicate their upcoming 32nd album—yes, you read that correctly—to the adopted home that made all of their dreams come true.
Out on August 22nd via Bismeaux Records and Signature Sounds Recordings, the record dubbed Riding High In Texas is a ten-song collection of some of the best songs about the 28th state from a wide range of songwriters like Jimmie Rogers, Guy Clark, and Charlie Daniels—with some A-list collaborations with Lyle Lovett and Billy Strings, to boot. And for a band whose lineup is ever-changing—since 1970, the Wheel has had over one hundred members come through—Riding High In Texas is also an opportunity to introduce a new face in the band with fiddler and vocalist Ian Stewart joining Benson and company. Suggested to Benson by long-time Asleep At The Wheel band member, Danny Levin, Stewart fit right into the ensemble. “Danny’s word was enough for me,” says Benson. “He knows the gig as much as anyone.”
Today, Asleep At The Wheel shared the first single from Riding High In Texas, “Texas In My Soul.” Written by Ernest Tubb and popularized by Willie Nelson, “Texas In My Soul” was chosen for the project because it resonated with, in Benson’s words, “How we felt in 1974 when the band moved to Texas.” Ripe with everything that makes the Wheel the Wheel, “Texas In My Soul” is full of tTwin fiddles, steel guitar licks, and a crispy, clean piano solo, all underpinning Benson’s smooth delivery of the song’s classic lyrics: “It is there I know my place is. I see only smiling faces.”
Fans can stream or purchase “Texas In My Soul” today at this link and pre-order or pre-save Riding High In Texas ahead of its August release right here. Asleep At The Wheel will take the stage at The Heights Theater in Houston tomorrow night, June 13th. A full list of tour dates can be found below or at asleepatthewheel.com/tour.
Riding High In Texas Tracklist:
Riding High In Texas
Texas In My Soul
Long Tall Texan
Texas
Texas Cookin’
Lonesome Pine Special
T for Texas (Blue Yodel #1)
All My Exes (Live in Texas)
There’s Still a Lot of Love in San Antone
Beaumont Rag
Catch Asleep At The Wheel On Tour:
June
Friday, June 13 – Houston, TX – Heights Theater
Saturday, June 14 – Menard, TX – River Rat Fest
Thursday, June 19 – Oklahoma City, OK – Tower Theater
Friday, June 20 – Tulsa, OK – Cain’s Ballroom
Saturday, June 21 – Kansas City, MO – Knuckleheads Saloon
Tuesday, June 24 – St. Louis, MO – City Winery St. Louis
Thursday, June 26 – Fish Creek, WI – Door Community Auditorium
Friday, June 27 – Bayfield, WI – Big Top Chautauqua
Saturday, June 28 – Menomonie, WI – The Mabel Tainter
Sunday, June 29 – Chicago, IL – City Winery Chicago
July
Friday, July 4 – Austin, TX – Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic
Saturday, July 5 – Junction, TX – Texclipse Music Festival
Friday, July 25 – Waco, TX – Waco Hippodrome Theatre
Saturday, July 26 – Gun Barrel City, TX – Julyfest
August
Sunday, August 3 – Winston-Salem, NC – Ramkat
Tuesday, August 5 – Elkton, MD – Elkton Music Hall
Wednesday, August 6 – Sellersville, PA – Sellersville Theater
Thursday, August 7 – Vienna, VA – Filene Center (with Lyle Lovett)
Saturday, August 9 – Carthage, TX – Texas Country Music Hall of Fame
Wednesday, August 13 – Homer, NY – Center for the Arts of Homer
Thursday, August 14 – Norwalk, CT – District Music Hall
Friday, August 15 – Newton, NJ – Newton Theatre
Saturday, August 16 – Peekskill, NY – Paramount Hudson Valley
Sunday, August 17 – New York, NY – City Winery New York City
Tuesday, August 19 – Kent, OH – Kent Stage
Wednesday, August 20 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
Thursday, August 21 – Millvale, PA – Mr. Smalls Theatre
Wednesday, August 27 – Bar Harbor, ME – 1932 Criterion Theatre
Thursday, August 28 – Brownfield, ME – Stone Mountain Arts Center
Friday, August 29 – Charleston, RI – Rhythm & Roots Festival
Saturday, August 30 – Plymouth, MA – Spire Center
Sunday, August 31 – North Truro, MA – Payomet
September
Saturday, September 20 – Fredericksburg, TX – Luckenbach
October
Friday, October 3 – Austin, TX – Austin City Limits Music Festival
Sunday, October 5 – Miramar Beach, FL – Moon Crush “Avett Moon”
January
Sunday, January 1 – Saturday, January 11 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Sandy Beaches Cruise
March
Friday, March 20 – Wednesday, March 25 – Miami, FL – Outlaw Country Cruise
