Theo Lawrence and Melissa Carper Announce New Duets Album
(Warner) Today, international singer-songwriter phenomenon Theo Lawrence and acclaimed roots music journeywoman Melissa Carper announce the release of their duets album, HAVIN' A TALK. Inspired by vintage Americana, pop and undeniable creative chemistry, the charmingly smart and playful set arrives February 6 via Warner Records.
To celebrate the announcement of the anticipated full-length album, the pair are sharing their latest single, "You're Forgiven, My Love," an affectionate back-and-forth written by Lawrence that evokes the lush dreaminess of the 1960s Nashville Sound. With scintillating piano keys, shimmering guitar, upright bass, brushed drums and that sweetly melancholic country fiddle, the tune is a winter warmer brimming with nostalgia. Carper and Lawrence lean into that feeling, depicting two lifelong lovers kindly letting go of past transgressions: "Things we said back when we were young / You and me have changed so much with time / You're the one I adore, the one I'm living for / And from now on, you're forgiven my love."
The new song follows Carper's heartfelt "The Way I Remember You," which introduced a wistful sincerity to the quick-witted and lighthearted brand of traditional songcraft from a bygone era.
Their partnership was officially launched with September's "All Fifty States," which found the two genially working through polemic desires - he wants to see the world, while she wants to save a little scratch and enjoy their adopted hometown of Austin, Texas. October brought "Dat Ain't Right," a tart slice of vintage western swing where Carper and Lawrence have the time of their lives trading bon mots about being done wrong in a he-sings, she-sings breakup song for the ages.
All of those songs and more wind up on HAVIN' A TALK, recorded at Nashville's Bomb Shelter with Andrija Tokic (Alabama Shakes, Langhorne Slim, Margo Price) alongside some of Lawrence and Carper's own band members and a murderer's row of seasoned session veterans including Chris Scruggs, Billy Contreras, and Matty Meyer. Strikingly warm and sometimes hilarious in their disagreement, Lawrence and Carper share an approach to tuneful and timeless music that has come to define their respective solo careers - and which now fuels a partnership that brings to mind Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, George Jones and Tammy Wynette, and, especially, Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty at their cheekiest.
The culmination of a truly global partnership of single-minded artists united in their devotion to classic American styles, HAVIN' A TALK plays off of the pair's wildly divergent backstories, establishing two very different paths and voices now brought together by their love for and devotion to traditional roots music.
Born and raised in Paris, Lawrence graduated from an early punk fervor to earn a reputation as one of France's most beloved stylists - a singular artist whose deep reverence for classic pop, soul, folk and country songcraft faithfully evoked an aesthetic straight from a golden era of crooners like Charlie Rich, Ray Price, and Twitty. In 2023, he moved to Texas to get closer to the source of the Americana he's loved so deeply.
Carper embodies that music and culture wholly. The Austin-by-way-of-Arkansas artist is known for exceptionally evocative vocals, razor-sharp lyrics, and prowess on the double bass. Nicknamed "Hill-Billie Holiday" by friend and collaborator Chris Scruggs, Carper has cemented her reputation as one of roots music's most authentic and compelling voices with her acclaimed releases like 2024's Borned in Ya.
Borned in Ya delivers on a decade of Carper's adroit sense of what makes country, country. Her 2021 set Daddy's Country Gold was produced by the 3x Grammy-nominated Dennis Crouch, and Ramblin' Soul made Rolling Stone's Best Country Albums of 2022. Born into a musical family, she immersed herself in a home record collection built around Lynn, Hank Williams Sr., Patsy Cline, Ray Charles, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, and more. All of these influences figure into the music she's made since, on her own and as a member of the roots supergroup Wonder Women of Country with Kelly Willis and Brennen Leigh.
For his part, Lawrence's music draws on an intoxicating mix of western swing, '60s pop, classic soul, and rockabilly swagger. A rarity not just in his native France but everywhere, his sound delivers the stuff of AM radio in the middle of the 20th century. Lawrence brings a palpable warmth to his work, from his self-released 2023 LP Cherie - recorded just outside of Austin with producer Billy Horton (Charley Crockett) and steel guitarist Dave Biller - to his 2024 indie release, Pickin' & Singin', an acoustic offering that further demonstrates his writing prowess and vocal charm. More recently, Lawrence's hipster/Bakersfield dust-up "California Poppy" has been generating a groundswell of love driven by word of mouth as people discover, share, and create around the song. Click HERE to view the music video.
Despite having just wrapped a tour with Seattle singer-songwriter Dean Johnson, and continuing his residency at Sagebrush in Austin, Lawrence is already at work on his debut solo music for Warner Records, coming soon. In the meantime, cozy up with him and Carper for "You're Forgiven, My Love."
Theo Lawrence & Melissa Carper, Havin' a Talk
1. "Good Luck to Ya"
2. "The Last to Know"
3. "All Fifty States"
4. "Dat Ain't Right"
5. "Supermarket Flowers"
6. "The Way I Remember You"
7. "Thank You, But No Thank You"
8. "You're Forgiven My Love"
9. "Second Look"
10. "Jealous Eyes"
11. "Joyous Time"
12. "What Are You Doing After This?"
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]