News

A host of TSD’s favorite artists have all announced new albums in recent days, culminating in today’s announcement from Paul McCartney.  We thought we’d round up a few of these upcoming titles in today’s Short Takes!

May 29 will see the release of Paul McCartney’s first studio album since 2020’s McCartney III.  Macca previewed The Boys of Dungeon Lane with the new single “Days We Left Behind.”  The intimate ballad was described by its composer in the press release as “very much a memory song for me. The album title, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, comes from a lyric in this track. I was thinking just that, about the days I left behind and I do often wonder if I’m just writing about the past but then I think how can you write about anything else? It’s just a lot of memories of Liverpool. It involves a bit in the middle about John and Forthlin Road which is the street I used to live in. Dungeon Lane is near there. I used to live in a place called Speke which is quite working class. We didn’t have much at all but it didn’t matter because all the people were great and you didn’t notice you didn’t have much.”

The Boys of Dungeon Lane, like McCartney III and its two predecessors, was recorded almost entirely by the artist.  Andrew Watt, whose credits include the most recent albums from Elton John and The Rolling Stones, is in the producer’s chair.  The album promises “Wings-style rock, Beatles-style harmonies, McCartney-style grooves, understated intimacy, melody driven storytelling, character songs – the common thread being Paul.”  It’s due on CD, LP, and digital formats May 29 from Capitol/MPL.

Barry Manilow has been taking stock of his life and legacy in light of a recent Stage I lung cancer diagnosis. “You just don’t even think about [how fragile life is],” the superstar singer-songwriter told People for its April 6 cover story.  “And suddenly, you have lung cancer. But I’m still here. I’m not all here; there’s part of me that isn’t here — they took out a part of me, and now I’ve got to figure out, ‘What do I do?’”  Happily, the surgery was successful, and Manilow is recuperating before he plans to resume touring.  When he does return to the stage, it will be in support of What a Time, due June 5 on the Stiletto label.  It’s his first album of primarily original music since 2011’s 15 Minutes.

Like McCartney’s album, What a Time takes on a reflective tone characterized by its first single, a cover of Peter Allen and Dean Pitchford’s “Once Before I Go” overseen by Manilow’s longtime collaborator, Clive Davis.  The dramatic ballad (which has reached the Adult Contemporary top ten, giving Manilow a hit in a sixth decade) has been joined by “Sun Shine,” an original song penned by Manilow and U.K. pop star Gary Barlow (Take That) which premiered on Barlow’s (presciently-titled) 2020 album Music Played by Humans. “Sun Shine” has a quintessential Manilow bounce accompanying its earworm melody, calling to mind “Daybreak” crossed with “Can’t Smile Without You.”  Barry’s other collaborators on the album include songwriters Adrienne Anderson, Enoch Anderson, and John Bettis; and producers Babyface, Dave Cobb, and Michael Lloyd.  Manilow pal and veteran background vocalist Muffy Hendrix (with whom he memorably duetted on “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing” on 1985’s Manilow) joins him on “When Somebody Says Goodbye.”  At least three bonus tracks will appear on various editions of the album including “Reunited” with Melanie Taylor on the CD from Manilow’s official shop; “Party to the Top” on the official shop vinyl and Amazon-exclusive vinyl; and “Cry for Coney Island” on the Amazon-exclusive CD.  Look for all formats on June 5.

One of music’s most prolific artists is hardly close to slowing down.  Willie Nelson is back on May 29 with what’s being billed as his 156th (!) studio album.  Dream Chaser, arriving from Legacy Recordings in all of the expected formats, precedes the soon-to-be-93-year old legend’s latest go-round headlining the Outlaw Music Festival this summer.  Dream Chaser features new tunes co-written with frequent collaborators Buddy Cannon and Mickey Raphael as well as “I Can’t Read Your Mind,” on which Nelson and Cannon share credit with none other than Bob Dylan.  (Though he joined the last two Outlaw Festivals, Dylan won’t be performing on this summer’s jaunt.)  Though Dylan and Nelson have sung together before, including on the 1993 duet “Heartland,” this marks their first co-composition.

Last in our quartet is Peter Frampton.  On May 15, the British-born blues-rock great releases Carry the Light, a new LP crafted with his son, Julian Frampton.  Carry the Light marks Frampton’s first album of original rock songs since 2010’s Thank You, Mr. Churchill and welcomes a host of guests including Graham Nash, Sheryl Crow, Tom Morello, H.E.R., Benmont Tench, and saxophonist Bill Evans.  The new single “Buried Treasure” is a salute to the late Tom Petty and named for his SiriusXM program of the same name, and features Tench on his imitable keyboard flourishes.

Carry The Light arrives in a variety of formats, including CD, 180-gram yellow vinyl, and digitally in stereo, hi-res audio, and Dolby Atmos mixes. A limited-edition vinyl edition, which will feature a premium cover treatment and be numbered, will be available exclusively via Peter Frampton’s official store, uDiscover Music, and Sound of Vinyl.

You’ll find track listings and pre-order links for all four titles below!

Paul McCartney, The Boys of Dungeon Lane (MPL/Capitol, 2026)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Paul McCartney Store
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Paul McCartney Store

1. As You Lie There
2. Lost Horizon
3. Days We Left Behind
4. Ripples in a Pond
5. Mountain Top
6. Down South
7. We Two
8. Come Inside
9. Never Know
10. Home to Us
11. Life Can Be Hard
12. First Star of the Night
13. Salesman Saint
14. Momma Gets By

Barry Manilow, What a Time (Stiletto, 2026)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / ShopManilow.com
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / ShopManilow.com

1. “Once Before I Go” (Peter Allen/Dean Pitchford)
2. “What a Time” (Barry Manilow/John Bettis)
3. “Sun Shine” (Gary Barlow/Barry Manilow)
4. “Another Life” (2026) (Andrew Hill/Preston Sturges)
5. “Touched by an Angel” (Barry Manilow/Bruce Sussman)
6. “The Chosen One” (Barry Manilow)
7. “One More Chance” (Barry Manilow/Bruce Sussman)
8. “Nobody Knows My Song” (Barry Manilow/Enoch Anderson)
9. “When Somebody Says Goodbye” (Duet with Sharon “Muffy” Hendrix) (Barry Manilow/Lisa Sennett)
10. “Don’t Trouble the Water” (Barry Manilow/Enoch Anderson)
11. “Look at Me Now” (Featuring Dave Koz) (Barry Manilow/John Bettis)
12. “Nobody Told Me” (Barry Manilow, John Bettis)
13. “Coming of Age” (Barry Manilow/Adrienne Anderson)

Bonus Tracks

14. “Reunited” (with Melanie Taylor) (Manilow-Exclusive CD Only)
15. “Party to the Top” (Manilow-Exclusive and Amazon-Exclusive Vinyl Only)
16. “Cry for Coney Island” (Amazon-Exclusive CD Only)

Willie Nelson, Dream Chaser (Legacy, 2026)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

1. Dream Chaser (Written by Buddy Cannon, Bobby Tomberlin & Willie Nelson)
2. Fly Away (Written by Buddy Cannon & Bobby Whitlock)
3. We’d Make A Good Movie (Written by Willie Nelson, Buddy Cannon & Bobby Tomberlin)
4. I Can’t Read Your Mind (Written by Willie Nelson, Buddy Cannon & Bob Dylan)
5. Whiskey Wants Me To (Written by Buddy Cannon & Bobby Tomberlin)
6. Wonder What I’m Gonna Do (Written by Willie Nelson & Buddy Cannon)
7. After All (Written by Willie Nelson & Buddy Cannon)
8. Love Overdue (Written by Mickey Raphael, Donald W. Poythress & Anna Lisa Graham)
9. I Don’t Think I’ve Cried Today (Written by Buddy Cannon, Bobby Tomberlin & Willie Nelson)
10. Developing My Pictures (Written by Earl Montgomery)

Peter Frampton, Carry the Light (UMe, 2026)

CD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Peter Frampton Store
LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Peter Frampton Store

1. Carry the Light
2. Buried Treasure (feat. Benmont Tench)
3. I’m Sorry Elle (feat. Graham Nash)
4. Breaking The Mold (feat. Sheryl Crow)
5. I Can’t Let It Be
6. Lions At The Gate (feat. Tom Morello)
7. Islamorada (feat. H.E.R.)
8. Can You Take Me There (feat. Bill Evans)
9. Tinderbox (feat. Bill Evans)
10. At The End of The Day