Album Features Songs Co-Written With Chris Stapleton, Miranda Lambert,
Ashley Monroe, Wanda Jackson and Guy Clark
Angaleena Presley follows her critically acclaimed 2015 debut, American Middle Class, with the 12-track Wrangled, April 21 on Mining Light/Thirty Tigers. Angaleena’s “ambitious and riveting” songwriting (Wall Street Journal) punches through each of the co-written tracks. Once again she took a lead chair at the studio’s board, co-producing with Oran Thornton (Eric Church, David Nail) and recording close to home at famed “Ronnie’s Place” in Nashville.
“Wrangled is an explicitly forthright journey through my experience in the business of Country Music. I tried to tackle uncomfortable realities like the discrimination against female artists at the height of Bro-Country, the high school mentality of Music Row and the pain that’s just beneath the surface of the road to stardom,” says Angaleena.
“Covered in elbow grease and sacrifice, I set out to shed the skin of my ‘dream’ Nashville by painting a musical picture of loss, surrender, resurrection, redemption, and connection with real people who make and support honest music.”
One of the album’s many highlights is “Cheer Up Little Darling” — which Angaleena co-wrote with her dear friend Guy Clark. This is the last song completed by Guy before his death and features Shawn Camp playing Guy’s No. 10 guitar, which was used to write the song with Guy, and Guy’s mandola, which he had been learning to play during the last year of his life.
Another spotlight track is “Dreams Don’t Come True,” written with Pistol Annie sisters, Miranda Lambert and Ashley Monroe.
“Only Blood” was written with fellow East Kentuckian, Chris Stapleton and features Morgane Stapleton’s unmistakable vocals, while “Good Girl Down” yielded unforgettable moments with the legendary Wanda Jackson.
This album echoes The New York Times’ description of Angaleena: “Ms. Presley has her identity locked tight.” And boldly reflects her signature “gutsy songwriting and potent narratives” (Associated Press) that make her artistry “remarkable” (NPR).
Angaleena will debut many of these new songs on the road, including during the Cayamo Cruise, Feb. 19-26, and will announce tour dates for the Spring and Summer in coming weeks.
The Wrangled track listing is below, with songwriters in parenthesis.