Aaron Watson Drops ‘Riding With Red’ + ‘Old Friend’ Ahead of Album Release [LISTEN]
Aaron Watson has unveiled two new tracks off his forthcoming album, Red Bandana, ahead of the project's June 21 release date. The first of the new songs, "Riding With Red" is an ode to a real-life personal hero, Texas cowboy and poet Red Steagall.
Watson counts Steagall as a personal friend and inspiration, and though the mid-tempo ballad may seem like a dedication to a fallen hero, Steagall is alive and well. The singer tells Parade that he wanted to write the track from a more reflective angle in order to remind his listeners to cherish their own living legends.
"My boys Jake and Jack love Red. They just gravitate toward him; he's a legend," Watson explains. "And in the song, you think that Red's passed away. But I wanted to write from that perspective so that people who have cowboys like that in their life will, after hearing that song, go hug them and know, 'I don't need to take that person for granted.'"
In addition to "Riding With Red," the singer also dropped the beachy and up-tempo "Old Friend," a rock-inflected summer tune that sends a message of living life without regrets. "So don't be starting fires unless you're getting cold / Mix it up with wine and music and a loved one to hold / I don't throw stones, don't want no one throwing 'em back / So save yourself the trouble and go cut the world some slack," he sings in the song's second verse.
Watson previously shared Red Bandana's lead single, "Kiss That Girl Goodbye," in January. Just a week after the new album comes out, he'll head out on the road for an extensive Summer 2019 Red Bandana Tour.
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