Flatland Cavalry Share New Song 'Gone' Ahead Of Red Rocks Show
Acclaimed country-roots six-piece Flatland Cavalry returns with their soul-searching new single "Gone." Accompanied by a lyric video, "Gone" marks the Texas-bred band's first release since signing with the newly relaunched Lost Highway Records.
One of their first releases since 2024's Flatland Forever (a critically lauded compilation featuring some of their most beloved songs to date), "Gone" ushers in a bold new era for Flatland Cavalry: Cleto Cordero (vocals, acoustic guitar), Jason Albers (drums, percussion), Jonathan Saenz (bass), Reid Dillon (electric guitar), Wesley Hall (fiddle), and Adam Gallegos (piano, organ, keys, mandolin, banjo). Arriving just ahead of their headline show at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre next Monday (October 20), "Gone" finds the band looking back on their decade-plus journey of nonstop touring.
"Since our last show of the tour is at Red Rocks, it felt right to utilize the moment by tipping our hats to where all we've been, and to tee up what's to come next - I could just imagine singing that line 'Chased them clouds in Colorado' and all the folks cheering along," says Cordero. "We recorded a batch of songs earlier this year, and 'Gone' was the first because it was closest to my heart as we transitioned from being gone for a month to being straight into the studio. I feel like a piece of you gets woven into the mix, and when I listen to the recording of that song, I feel the soul of a man that's been away for the last 10 years."
Produced by Dwight Baker, "Gone" arrives as a riveting piece of storytelling from a band hailed by Rolling Stone as "one of the most dynamic presences in country music." In a shining example of Flatland Cavalry's signature "Easy on the ears, heavy on the heart" sound, the midtempo tune unfolds in wistful fiddle melodies and warm guitar tones as Cordero begins to spin a gritty but quietly triumphant portrait of a life lived on the road ("Well, I got drunk with buds in Dublin/I've been sober in October/Wandered through the darkness/Stuck around to greet the dawn"). At its heart-stirring chorus, "Gone" inhabits a tender intensity as Flatland Cavalry speaks to the emotional toll of endless vagabonding ("Living out an outlaw cowboy song/It's a heavy price to pay/I'll make light of it someday/With a tale to tell for each one/I've been gone").
Co-written by Cordero, Ryan Beaver (Luke Bryan, Parker McCollum), and Aaron Eshuis (Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts), "Gone" takes on a potent energy at the second verse, threading its confessional self-reflection with a bit of quick-witted poetry ("In my mind I'm just a drifter/A traveler, a visitor/Turning over miles, turning pages, turning stones/Spurring late-night conversation/Otherworldly observations/By the time I make some sense of it/I'll be moving on"). After tearing through an entrancing instrumental section graced with Dillon's fiery guitar work, Flatland Cavalry builds to a piano-led bridge that brings the story to a powerful crescendo: "And when they call my number/To the Gatherin' of Goners/I'll wear my rambler's smile with honor/And waltz into the Great Beyond."
Last month, Flatland Cavalry released "Midland After Midnight," a timelessly romantic track featured on Landman - Songs From and Inspired by the Paramount+ Original Series (Volume I). The official soundtrack to the hit series (a modern tale of fortune-seeking amongst roughnecks and billionaires in the world of oil, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Ali Larter, Michael Pe-a, Jon Hamm, and Demi Moore), the compilation also includes songs by Parker McCollum, Ella Langley, Red Clay Strays, George Strait ft. Chris Stapleton, and more.
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