‘Pretty Heart’ was one of the break-out singles of 2020, positioning Parker McCollum as a talent to watch. Today, he unleashes his major label debut album – Gold Chain Cowboy – a 10-song project produced by Jon Randall.
Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Parker McCollum today releases his major label debut album Gold Chain Cowboy July 30. Parker wrote all of the 10-song project, produced by Jon Randall, including his Platinum-selling No. 1 hit “Pretty Heart” and his latest song on country radio “To Be Loved By You.” The album positions Parker McCollum as a major talent capable of superstardom, infusing country and rock and straddling Texas and Nashville with ease in his signature gritty twang.The record expands on his outcast drifter ethos that was widely praised on the Hollywood Gold – EP, taking his sound a step further, showcasing his range and his ability to deliver with stunning consistency. It is little wonder, evidenced by this project, that McCollum has been named an ‘Artist to Watch’ by Rolling Stone, Billboard, SiriusXM, CMT, RIAA and more.
What McCollum is able to do with apparent ease is bear his soul, in a confessional way, without losing any semblance of grit or rock n’ roll effect in his lyricism and sound. Since arriving in Nashville, Parker has not only written on his own, but shares songwriting credits with Randall, Wade Bowen, Randy Rogers, Randy Montana, Rhett Akins, Miranda Lambert and Songwriter Hall of Famer Tony Lane.
McCollum hits his stride from the off, kicking off the record with the thrumming and pacy bass breakdown of a song – ‘Wait Outside’ – a sound rounded out on ‘Falling Apart’ which ratchets the pace of the record up a notch, a thrumming, considered track about the potential positive side of a break-up in saving the girl from himself. ‘It’s no secret, honey I’m a wreck, everything I touch becomes a mess...Maybe I just saved you from myself, when I left you in the dark.’ It is ‘Dallas’ though that is the earliest highlight on the record. McCollum begins to straddle genres in a way that is deeply compelling, bringing back a sound reminiscent of 00s Green Day on ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’ and infusing that feeling into a Texan country song. ‘If I don’t leave Dallas, well it hurts to know I’m not where you belong.’ Sonically, the track is a continuation of his smash hit ‘Pretty Heart,’ in which McCollum asks about what a breakup tells about him that puts the unique tone of his vocal at the forefront.This kind of emo-country feel is continued through on ‘To Be Loved By You’ – a song that yearns with every breath. ‘Why you always angry / Why you always quiet / Why do you sleep alone, when I know that you don’t like it?’ ‘What does a man have to do to be loved by you?‘ It’s a feeling that is brought back on later track ‘Rest Of My Life’ that offers a lingering and considered ballad with a gritty underbelly.
Although the record spans genres it is entrenched in country roots, so ‘Drinkin’ offers a production infused with lap steel that is a delight, ‘If he ever leaves you lonely / Don’t go finding somebody else.’ Thematically, the track is deeply entrenched in its country roots, where McCollum muses on the hardship of drinking by himself while tortured by a memory of a girl. Elsewhere, McCollum sonically brings back his country roots with fuller force. On ‘Heart Like Mine,’ McCollum looks back wistfully on a relationship he lost. It is the production on this track, rather than the lyricism that offer a magic touch – Keane meets Elvis Presley meets Hank Williams, masterfully done. Indeed, ‘Why Indiana’ offers a stinking beat as McCollum decries his heartbreak. The track has a distinctly honky tonk flavour that is compelling, lingering on his questions over why she left – a feel that is brought back in the final track on the record ‘Never Loved You At All.’
Parker McCollum has created something utterly unique on Gold Chain Cowboy that is delightfully compelling and entrancing – combining elements of different genres with ease in a way that is very refreshing, carving out a unique path in the genre and territory that feels uncharted as yet. Legions of fans will be following him down that uncharted road.
