Rhett Miller Readies 10th Studio Album With New Single "Come As You Are"

This century, few Texans remain as prolific and as celebrated as Rhett Miller of the Old 97's. He’s not slowing down anytime soon. Today, Miller released “Come As You Are,” the first single from his tenth solo album, A lifetime of riding by night, which is set to be released on Oct. 10 via ATO Records.

“Come As You Are” is a mellow Americana ballad that features Miller trading harmonies with Turnpike Troubadours frontman Evan Felker. It’s paired with a somber retro music video, which concludes with Miller dancing alone in a seemingly abandoned honky tonk, visually setting the tone for an album of reflection and bittersweet melodies.
Felker receives a co-writing credit on the track, sharing a spot in the liner notes with songwriters like Jesse Valenzuela (on "All For You")  and Nicole Atkins (on "All Over Again"), plus former New Yorker editor Ben Greenman.

The 13 tracks on A lifetime of riding by night mark a slight sonic departure from 2022's Beatles-esque The Misfit and a return to the Americana melodies from his acclaimed debut, The Instigator, which turns 23 years old in September. Upon release, we're expecting the album's third song, "Ellie on the Wharf," and its eponymous "A Lifetime of Riding by Night," to become Texacoustic classics, matching a campfire folk quality with the lyrical emotion that's long defined Miller's solo output.

Each song is produced by Old 97s co-founder Murry Hammond, who Miller describes as a "mentor" throughout his career. Hammond produced Miller's Mythologies, a 1989 LP recorded when Miller was just 17.

"It's very much a love relationship when people work together the way that Murry and I have since I was a teenager recording my first demos," Miller says. "So many people who were once our contemporaries are gone now or haven't survived this business, but we're somehow still here and able to create something that feels new and vital and unexpected. I think that's an incredibly beautiful and special thing."

The album’s release will coincide with a solo release tour, which begins with one-off dates at Daryl’s House in New York and Texas Live! in Arlington, before setting off on a run of dates from October through mid-December. The tour stops in North Texas at the Granada Theater on Nov. 9, featuring Ben Kweller, Cody Canada and The O's, in a night that will benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. See the tracklist and tour dates below:

A lifetime of riding by night tracklist

1) "A Little Song (Prologue)"

2) "All For You"

3) "Ellie On The Wharf"

4) "Come As You Are"

5) "Be Mine"

6) "People Are Lifted"

7) "A Little Song (Interlude)"

8) "The Bells of St. Mike’s"

9) "All Over Again"

10) "Time Again"

11) "A Lifetime of Riding by Night"

12) "A Little Song"

13) "Brand New Heart"

Tour Dates

Aug. 24 – Amagansett, NY – The Stephen Talkhouse

Aug. 27 – Pawling, NY – Daryl’s House Club

Sep. 12 – Arlington, TX – Texas Live!

Oct. 2–4 – Halifax, NS, Canada – The Carleton

Oct. 9 – Worcester, MA – Off The Rails

Oct. 10 – Bar Harbor, ME – Criterion Theatre

Oct. 15 – Los Angeles, CA – Largo at the Coronet

Oct. 16 – Ramona, CA – Ramona Mainstage

Oct. 17 – Hermosa Beach, CA – Saint Rocke

Oct. 18 – Fontana, CA – Stage Red

Oct. 20 – San Francisco, CA – Cafe Du Nord

Oct. 21 – Santa Cruz, CA – Moe’s Alley

Oct. 23 – Eugene, OR – WOW Hall

Oct. 24 – Portland, OR – The Showdown

Oct. 25 – Seattle, WA – Clock-Out Lounge

Oct. 28 – New York, NY – Le Poisson Rouge

Nov. 8 – Fischer, TX – Devil’s Backbone Tavern

Nov. 9 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater

Nov. 12 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark

Nov. 13 – Cleveland, OH – Music Box Supper Club

Nov. 14 – Bloomington, IN – Buskirk-Chumley Theater

Nov. 15 – Covington, KY – Madison Theater

Nov. 16 – Bloomington, IL – The Castle Theatre

Nov. 20 – St. Paul, MN – Turf Club

Dec. 12 – Wayne, PA – 118 North

Dec. 13 – Washington, DC – The Hamilton

Dec. 14 – Charlottesville, VA – The Southern