It was a breakneck sporadic affair...the recording of TJ McFarland's newest full-length rant Apolitical Blues. Produced by TJ and Will Kimbrough (Daddy, Rodney Crowell, Todd Snider) and tracked in two sessions at EMI's basement Studio in Nashville, the aim from the start was one of urgency and turmoil... "I met with Will at Ru Sans, a sushi joint in Nashville for some preproduction talk and I told him I wanted a band on this record that could make these songs sound like a drunk pawn shop...he replied with a couple names and mentioned he'd bring in some of his old gear...the day we recorded the studio was filled with old Gibsons, Les Pauls, Harmonys, Silvertones, wine and whiskey...only thing missing was a few old guns and some antique wedding rings." -TJ McFarland 8 of the 10 tunes (all written by McFarland) were backed by a diverse group including Kimbrough on guitar and backing vocals, Smith Curry (Kid Rock) on lap/pedal steel and dobro, Billy Mercer (Ryan Adams) on bass and Paul Griffith (John Prine, Todd Snider) on drums, with additional harmonies sung by Bonnie Whitmore and Amanda Williams. The players recorded live, and on most occasions tracks were approved within the first couple takes in an effort to capture the organic soul of records like the Rolling Stone's "Exile on Main Street" or Bob Dylan's "Bringing it All Back Home". On one occasion, the albums opener "Lucinda's Wine", the first run through of the tune was ultimately deemed the master track for the record. The album concludes with 2 songs in the same vein as McFarland's last release Howlin' Wild. "Almost Like Leavin' Home" with McFarland on guitar and harmonica and the albums closer "Red Wine Blues" a rewrite of the folk traditional standard "Cocaine Blues" played along with Smith Curry on dobro. TJ is currently on the road performing songs from the new record as well as writing and recording the next one(s).