Article Contributed by Gratefulweb
Published on 2026-04-11
Cover art for Let's Go Dancing: Stopped a Freight Train with a Grain of Sand by Anna Jensen
Stopped a Freight Train with a Grain of Sand is the latest installment from the Let’s Go Dancing series—an epic (and still unfolding) 100-song living tribute to Drivin N Cryin singer/guitarist and celebrated songwriter / solo artist Kevn Kinney. Out on vinyl, CD & streaming May 1 from Tasty Goody Records, this new set sharpens its focus on the harder, faster and louder edges of Kinney’s songbook. If earlier chapters leaned into folk-born introspection, Stopped a Freight Train with a Grain of Sand roars, spotlighting the grit and voltage coursing beneath Kinney’s writing, whether delivered solo or at the helm of Drivin N Cryin.
Deer Tick sets the tone straight away with a rugged, heartfelt “Let’s Go Dancing,” leaning into the song’s weather-beaten melody with the kind of loose charm that keeps Kinney’s music evergreen. The Black Crowes barrel in with a swaggering take on “Acceleration,” giving the song a Stones-esque strut without losing any of the original’s Georgia-red-clay spirit. Things get heavier when The Crosses—featuring Dan Kubinski of Die Kreuzen—rip through “Powerhouse!” with serrated edges. Kevn and Dan have been slugging it out in the trenches side-by-side since Kevn fronted Milwaukee punk outfit The Prosecutors in the early ’80s. Butch Walker dazzles with his take on Drivin N Cryin’s ‘90s radio hit “Fly Me Courageous,” giving the song a punchy, melodic sheen. Normally a smooth serenader, Edwin McCain flips the script, bringing an unexpected metal-tinged ferocity to “Rush Hour,” while Atlanta garage-punk outfit Dinos Boys inject youthful danger into “Saddle on the Side of the Road,” powered by Kevn’s son Tyler Kinney on drums. Solo artist—and Guided By Voices guitarist—Bobby Bare Jr drifts through “Ridin on the Soul Road” with spectral charm.
The Ghost Wolves’ snarling “Back Against the Wall” stands out—its inclusion, along with Fang of Gore’s art-damaged spin through “Let Lenny B” (fronted by Ts Burnham, daughter of Gang of Four drummer Hugo Burnham), widens the album’s emotional gravity with a female perspective on Kinney’s songs. Drivin N Cryin bassist and co-founder Tim Nielsen and Hootie & the Blowfish guitarist Mark Bryan deliver a warm, lived-in take on “Can’t Promise You the World.” The track also features guitarist Laur Joamets (Drivin N Cryin, Sturgill Simpson) trading guitar lines with Bryan. Miles Nielsen and the Rusted Hearts light a slow-burning spark under another DNC classic, “Build a Fire,” with the added resonance of Miles being the son of Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen.
The album’s true exhale comes with Peter Stroud and Friends’ shimmering leads in “Underground Umbrella,” an instrumental swan song that doubles as the final recording by Hammond B-3 legend Ike Stubblefield (The Four Tops, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder). Here, the song lands like a sunset—quiet, glowing and perfect.
Kevn Kinney is most widely known as founder and frontman of Atlanta-based rock band Drivin N Cryin. A highly acclaimed singer, songwriter, musician, performer, visual artist and poet, he has recently been inducted into both the Wisconsin Music Hall of Fame and Georgia Music Hall of Fame for his impactful legacy of art.
Kinney has released multiple critically celebrated solo and band recordings during his career, and has also collaborated with R.E.M., The Who, Warren Haynes (Gov’t Mule, The Allman Brothers Band, The Dead, David Allan Coe) and Blues Traveler frontman John Popper, among others. Peter Buck of R.E.M. has produced and performed on several of Kevn’s albums—including his most recent solo album, Think About It—and continues to be involved in his career.
Kinney has continuously toured full-time with his band Drivin N Cryin while simultaneously carving out a niche for himself as a solo artist. From the festival stage to the smallest house concert, fans are always excited at the opportunity to see him up close and personal in a stripped-down acoustic setting.
Recent touring has included multiple dates with the Indigo Girls, Blackberry Smoke, and The Black Crowes.
Fall 2023 marked the first release from Let’s Go Dancing series, with previous installments including Said the Falling Rain to the Open Flame, Split a Mountain in Two with a Flake of Snow and Said the Firefly to the Hurricane. A massive all-star tribute to Kinney, the four-album series features 100 songs, including tracks from Jason Isbell, Violent Femmes, Shovels & Rope, The Black Crowes, Todd Snider, Old Crow Medicine Show, Puddles Pity Party, R.E.M.’s Peter Buck, Jamey Johnson, Elizabeth Cook, Drive-By Truckers’ Patterson Hood, The Whigs’ Parker Gispert and many more.
The Let’s Go Dancing Series was produced by Kinney’s wife, visual artist Anna Jensen, who has contributed cover art for each album in the series as well as individual paintings inspired by each of the 100 songs on the compilation. You can view & download her work for the series’ most recent installment Stopped a Freight Train with a Grain of Sand here.
