Hear John Prine’s Ambling New Song ‘Knockin’ on Your Screen Door’
John Prine offers another sneak peek into his first solo album of all-new material since 2005 with the release of the track “Knockin’ on Your Screen Door.” Co-written with Pat McLaughlin, whose credits include cuts by Alan Jackson, Trisha Yearwood, Gary Allan any many others, the tune is prime Prine, an uptempo folk song with a downbeat message from the perspective of a lonely, destitute man whose only possession is a George Jones 8-track tape. Prine and McLaughlin also co-wrote “Summer’s End,” from the new project.
Like the rest of Prine’s upcoming LP, The Tree of Forgiveness, “Knockin’ on Your Screen Door” was produced by Dave Cobb (Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson, Chris Stapleton) at RCA’s famed Studio A – hence the presence of RCA’s familiar logo mascot, Nipper, in the lyric video for “Screen Door.”
Other co-writers on the new album include Roger Cook, Prine’s co-author on the 1998 George Strait chart-topper “I Just Want to Dance With You,” the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, Keith Sykes and Phil Spector. Brandi Carlile, Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires make guest appearances on the LP. The Tree of Forgiveness is available for pre-order and will be released on April 13th. Prine will be on tour beginning next month.