Grammy-Award winning songwriter Rodney Crowell and New York Times best-selling author Mary Karr have announced a collaborative album, Kin, Songs By Mary Karr and Rodney Crowell, which is due June 5, 2012 on Vanguard Records. Joe Henry produced the album, and Norah Jones, Vince Gill, Lucinda Williams, Lee Ann Womack, Rosanne Cash, Chely Wright, Kris Kristofferson and Emmylou Harris all contribute vocals.
The collaboration began shortly after Crowellโs explicit mention of Karr (who penned the memoir The Liar’s Club) to the likes of Tom Waits and Aretha Franklin in his song โEarth Boundโ off of the 2003 album Fatesโ Right Hand. Crowell confessed, โI called out to her in the darkness because she was a bona fide poet I knew could write songs, and despite her professorโs pedigree, sheโd ridden a bike in a mosquito truckโs fog.โ
Upon meeting, the two quickly realized a strong connection between one another and decided to โsettle down and raise a record,โ as Crowell has simply put it.
“An outlaw pedigree isnโt always a disadvantage for a poet,โ says Karr. โThis recordโs about everybody.โ









