Chuck Prophet Confronts Layoffs, Gentrification + More With His "Best Shirt On"

Today, Chuck Prophet shares "Best Shirt On,” the album opener from the San Francisco musician's forthcoming record The Land That Time Forgot - now to be released August 21 on all formats by Yep Roc Records.

Prophet’s “Best Shirt On” reflects on the current state of events surrounding COVID-19. Specifically he draws on experiences with his father, who lost his job during a recession when Prophet was a kid. Instead of falling into despair, his father got up every morning, dressed in his three-piece suit, ate breakfast at 6 AM, and read the classified ads and looked for work. It’s a memory Prophet now recalls as a lesson. “Even in the worst of times, you got to keep showing up,” he says. “For yourself and others. Sure I have days where I’m roaming the apartment in a robe until 2 PM. But I try not to let myself go.”

In that spirit, “Best Shirt On” kicks off Prophet’s album on a note of optimism, following a protagonist who fights "falling straight down into nothing" by combing his hair, putting his on his slickest fit, and making the most of the uncertain times. Employing what he describes as "Beach Boys summer love chord changes," Prophet delivers a tender ode to doing (and looking) your best even in moments of doubt. Listen to “Best Shirt On” via American Songwriter: https://americansongwriter.com/chuck-prophet-best-shirt-on-new-music/

Prophet has described The Land That Time Forgot as a "21st Century Exorcism" from Silicon Valley to the White House, originally inspired by the never-ending gentrification he's witnessed in his hometown. While the Bay Area stalwart has recorded "over a dozen solo albums that just keep getting better" (NPR Music) in the region, the sessions for The Land That Time Forgot took place in Upstate New York after Prophet found himself priced out of his regular haunts. With fresh distance, he explores the hope, despair and melancholy wonder of his native San Francisco like never before.

Pre-order The Land That Time Forgot here: https://ffm.to/landtimeforgot

Prophet previously released the driving “Marathon,” which channels the deceivingly joyous dance-a-thons of the Great Depression, and the album’s closing call-to-arms “Get Off the Stage.” Most of the record’s dozen songs were co-written by Prophet and klipschutz, his longtime collaborator, and produced with Kenny Siegal (Langhorne Slim, Amanda Palmer, The New Pornographers).