Todd Snider and his band Hard Working Americans don’t pull any punches in the live version of “Mission Accomplished,” a Southern-fried jam session with some blistering slide guitar that recalls the Allman Brothers and a laid-back, swinging beat that makes the tune’s serious message go down a little sweeter. The track was adapted from a song Snider wrote earlier in his career and takes on new significance in today’s tumultuous political climate.
“‘Mission Accomplished’ is a song our band adopted from an album I did a long time ago called Peace Queer,” Snider says. “It talks about how a person hasn’t flown till they land, and how fighting for peace is like screaming for quiet. Back in those days I thought our leader seemed over confident and dishonest, but these days this song goes to eleven.”
The song is part of the band’s forthcoming live album We’re All in This Together, a collection of performances recorded during their 2016 Rest in Chaos tour. Many of the songs were culled from one show in Birmingham, Alabama.
We’re All in This Together is out August 4 via Melvin/Thirty Tigers. Listen to “Mission Accomplished” and check out the band’s tour dates below.
July 21 Bloomington, IN @ The Bluebird
July 22 Chicago, IL @ The Great Lawn
Sept 21 Houston, TX @ Hobby Center *
Sept 22 Dallas, TX @ Music Hall at Fair Park *
Sept 23 Austin, TX @ The Moody Theatre *
Sept 24 Oklahoma City, OK @ The Tower City
Sept 26 Kansas City, MO @ Knuckleheads Saloon
Sept 27 St Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall
Sept 28 Bloomington, IL @ The Castle Theatre
Sept 29 Louisville, KY @ Headliner’s Music Hall
Sept 30 Gatlinburg, TN @ Sugarlands Mountain Fest
Oct 1 Raleigh, NC @ Lincoln Theatre
Oct 4 Ponte Vedra, FL @ Ponta Vedra Concert Hall
Oct 5 Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
Oct 6 Birmingham, AL @ TBA
Oct 7 Memphis, TN @ Festival in Memphis TBA
Nov 3 Portland, OR @ Keller Auditorium *
Nov 4 Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre *
Nov 9 San Diego, CA @ San Diego Civic Theatre *
Nov 10 Los Angeles, CA @ Orpheum Theatre *
Nov 17 Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater *
* supporting Tedeschi Trucks Band