Loudon Wainwright III Shares A Cappella “It,” Next Preview of New Album Lifetime Achievement (StorySound / August 19) 

Watch Video for “It” Filmed in One Take ft. Wainwright’s Longtime Collaborator Chaim Tannenbaum HERE

July 26, 2022 - Loudon Wainwright III has released “It,” an a cappella song from his soon-to-be released new album Lifetime Achievement (August 19 / StorySound Records).  Says Wainwright, “I wasn’t completely sure what this song was all about when I wrote it. But then the virus came along. It’s hard not to feel a bit prescient.”

The dense lyrics - dark and jarring - unfurl over a melody that was inspired by a sea shanty.  Wainwright went into the studio just recently and filmed the video for “It,” in a single take on a shared mic, joined by his longtime friend and collaborator Chaim Tannenbaum (who sings on the album version of “It” as well).  “It’s a sphinx it’s a jinx, It’s a total stranger, You’re in grave danger, The danger is it,” they sing.  

Watch “It” here:  https://youtu.be/Ne2HEknaKtM

His first album of original songs since 2014’s Haven’t Got The Blues Yet, Lifetime Achievement finds LWIII in a state of deep reflection at age 75, over a set of 15 insightful and incisive songs, some new and some old. 

Wainwright recently released the album’s title track and accompanying music video.  It finds him recounting his accomplishments but realizing that: “All these honors don’t add up to all that much, it’s true, that the biggest surprise, the great surprise, is I managed to win you.” In June he also released “Town & Country” along with the album announcement. The single finds Wainwright returning to New York City after an extended stay in the country, framing the “city vs. country” debate in his own inimitable style.

After thirty albums, a Grammy, many film and TV credits, and songs recorded by such artists as Johnny Cash, Mose Allison, Bonnie Raitt and his son Rufus, Wainwright is perhaps our foremost six-string analyst and tragicomedian. And with Lifetime Achievement his “unmatched wit and wisdom” (NPR) has never been on sharper display. In the past few years, Wainwright has also published a widely celebrated memoir, Liner Notes, as well as Years in the Making - a 2-CD audiobiography of rarities, oddities, and never-before-released recordings made throughout his tremendous 50-year career.  

Pre-save Lifetime Achievement here: https://ffm.to/lifetimeachievement

Track list:

1. I Been
2. One Wish
3. It Takes 2
4. Fam Vac
5. Hell
6. Little Piece of Me
7. No Man’s Land
8. Back in Your Town
9. Town & Country
10. Island
11. It
12. Hat
13. Lifetime Achievement
14. How Old Is 75
15. Fun & Free

Tour dates:

Tuesday, August 30 - City Winery, New York, NY

Thursday, September 1 - City Winery, Philadelphia, PA

Wednesday, September 7 - Pocklington Arts Centre, York, UK

Thursday, September 8 - The Trades Club, Hebden Bridge, UK

Friday, September 9 - Sage Gateshead, Gateshead, UK

Sunday, September 11 - Liberty Hall Theatre, Dublin, Ireland

Monday, September 12 - Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, UK 

Wednesday, September 14 - St George’s Bristol, Bristol, UK

Thursday, September 15 - Birmingham Town Hall, Birmingham, UK

Saturday, September 17 - Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, UK

Sunday, September 18 - Southbank Center, London, UK

Monday, September 19 - The Stables, Milton Keynes, UK

Wednesday, September 21 - De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-On-Sea, UK

Thursday, September 22 - The Sub Rooms, Stroud, UK

Tuesday, October 4 - Alberta Rose Theatre, Portland, OR

Wednesday, October 5 - Triple Door, Seattle, WA

Friday, October 7 - Freight & Salvage, Berkeley, CA

Saturday, October 8 - State Theatre, Auburn, CA

Sunday, October 9 - HopMonk Tavern, Novato, CA

Wednesday, October 26 - Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center, Old Saybrook, CT

Saturday, November 5 - Kelly-Strayhorn Theater, Pittsburgh, PA

Sunday, December 4 - Berklee Performance Center, Boston, MA 

Friday, February 3 - The Soraya, Northridge, CA

Saturday, February 4 - The Soraya, Northridge, CA

Sunday, February 5 - McCallum Theatre for the Performing Arts, Palm Desert, CA

Sunday, March 19 - Fostek Hall at Jefferson Center, Roanoke, VA

Friday, March 31 - Eddie’s Attic, Decatur, GA

Saturday, April 1 - Tryon Fine Arts Center, Tryon, NC

Wednesday, April 19 - Dakota, Minneapolis, MN

Thursday, April 20 - Stoughton Opera House, Stoughton, WI

Wednesday, May 10 - Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, OH

Thursday, May 11 - Marathon Center for the Performing Arts, Findlay, OH

Friday, May 12 - The Ark, Ann Arbor, MI 

Saturday, May 13 - Listening Room, Grand Rapids, MI