Vagabon by Tonje Thilesen, Barnett by Bill Kelly


Vagabon and Courtney Barnett have teamed up for a folk-tinged, atmospheric cover of “Reason to Believe.” The frequently covered track was originally by Tom Hardin, but the version Barnett and Vagabon draw on for their cover is Karen Dalton’s. An accompanying video comes along with the track’s release.

“I recently discovered the Karen Dalton version of ‘Reason To Believe’ for the first time,” said Vagabon’s Lætitia Tamko (quote via Brooklyn Vegan). “I became obsessed and so a few days after discovering it, I was encouraged to record a cover of it in my garage. The decision to have Courtney sing it with me came after we performed it together live at the Palace Theatre in Los Angeles on Valentine’s Day 2020, a month before lockdown. It was fresh in our brains then so not long after the show, [Barnett] came over and we recorded her parts. Oliver Hill plays slide guitar on it.”

“I’m a huge fan of Vagabon and Karen Dalton so this was a dream,” said Barnett (also via BV). “They both have a voice that absolutely knocks the wind out of me. I really admire Lætitia and am constantly inspired by her songwriting, production, and our sporadic FaceTime chats.”

Barnett and Vagabon toured together in 2018. Vagabon also recently announced a virtual show, set for Jan. 29 at 9 p.m. ET. Purchase tickets here.

Watch the new video below!