Early James releases new single ‘Rag Doll’ from forthcoming Dan Auerbach produced album
18th November 2024Early James “embraces jagged, moaning blues” (Rolling Stone) on new album Medium Raw, and today he drops the latest taste with new single “Rag Doll.” Medium Raw is out January 10th via Easy Eye Sound, produced by Dan Auerbach.
Instead of a typical studio setup, Auerbach felt the album needed to be recorded in an old house, like many of his favorite Arhoolie records. The house in question, known as “Honky Chateau,” was an old Nashville property owned by photographer and artist Buddy Jackson. Over 100 years old, the house has plaster on the walls, plastered ceilings, old wallpaper, big oak floors and a painting of Harry Dean Stanton on the wall.
Instead of the “Honky Chateau,” the Tim Hardiman-directed video for “Rag Doll” takes place at the Sloss Furnaces factory in Birmingham, AL, a national historic landmark. James is seen wandering around the labyrinth factory in black and white before finding his bandmates and flipping a switch to vivid color. “Rag Doll” gives listeners an audio peek into the way that Medium Raw lives up to its name. The album presents its brace of smart, playful, and often fiercely rocking original songs to intimate life with a stunningly vital sound that thrives on its lived-in real-world ambiance.
Beyond seven Early James originals — six previously unrecorded numbers and the fan favorite “Dig To China,” which dates back to his first EP — the new album includes songs co-written with Auerbach and top Nashville songwriter Pat McLaughlin (“I Got This Problem”); Sheryl Crow’s frequent collaborator Jeff Trott (“Nothing Surprises Me Anymore”); roots singer-songwriter Langhorne Slim (“Go Down Swinging”); Irish songwriter Mick Flannery (“Upside Down Umbrella”); and James’ former Birmingham roommate Ryan Sobb (“Unspeakable Thing”).The writing continues to display the hallmarks of James’ distinctive, one-of-a-kind style: whip-smart wordplay, upended clichés, humor both light and dark, and a deep intelligence that frequently reflects a literary sensibility.
