Today, Sturgill Simpson announced that he will release a new album titled The Ballad of Dood & Juanita, on Aug. 20. The album marks the first new and original material from Simpson since 2019’s Sound & Fury.

“I just wanted to write a story — not a collection of songs that tell a story, but an actual story, front to back,” Simpson said about the project. “A simple tale of either redemption or revenge.”

The album features Willie Nelson on the track titled “Juanita.” Along with Nelson, The Ballad of Dood & Juanita features many of the artists who played on Simpson’s Cuttin’ Grass, a bluegrass collection that was released in late 2020.

The singer-songwriter believes the album will be, “[a] rollercoaster ride through all the styles of traditional country and bluegrass and mountain music that [he connects to], including gospel and a cappella.”

A vinyl edition of The Ballad of Dood and Juanita will follow its digital release on Dec. 3.

Simpson is set to play five sold-out shows at Webster Hall in New York City in September – read more here.

You can read the recent Relix cover story on Simpson here.

The Ballad of Dood and Juanita:

01 Prologue
02 Ol’ Dood (Part I)
03 One in the Saddle, One on the Ground
04 Shamrock
05 Played Out
06 Sam
07 Juanita [ft. Willie Nelson]
08 Go in Peace
09 Epilogue
10 Ol’ Dood (Part II)