Iris DeMent to Release 'My Life' 30th Anniversary Edition

In celebration of its 30th anniversary, Yep Roc Records will release the 30th anniversary reissue of acclaimed singer-songwriter Iris DeMent's My Life. Set for October 18 release and available for pre-order, the album features enduring classics such as "No Time to Cry" and "Easy's Gettin' Harder Every Day.”

Featuring newly remastered audio by Mike Westbrook of MW Audio (Nick Lowe, Watchhouse), the 10-track album will be available on CD and LP and marks the first wide release of the out-of-print album. Originally released in 1994, My Life quickly became a cornerstone of contemporary folk music, showcasing DeMent's exceptional songwriting and heartfelt vocal performances and cemented her legacy as one of the nation’s greatest living songwriters. 

Dedicated to her father, Patrick Shaw DeMent, who died in 1992, the album illustrates DeMent’s razorsharp songwriting on originals like “Sweet Is the Melody,” “No Time to Cry” and the title track. The songs “are jewels of universal longing” (Chicago Tribune) and “it is nearly impossible to exaggerate the beauty of these recordings.” (AllMusic). 

Recorded at The Cowboy Arms Hotel & Recording Spa, Nashville, TN, and produced by Jim Rooney, the album features DeMent on vocals/acoustic guitar. She was joined in the studio by a cast of all-star musicians, including Mark Howard (acoustic guitar); Stuart Duncan (fiddle, mandolin); Pete Wasner (piano); Charles Cochran (piano); Al Perkins (Dobro); Al Bennet (acoustic guitar); Phil Parlapiano (accordion); Roy Husky, Jr (upright bass), Kenny Malone (percussion); Pat McInerney (drums); John Catchings (cello); and Cowboy Jack Clement (acoustic guitar) on “Sweet Is the Melody” and “Childhood Memories.” With harmony vocals by Linda and Robin Williams on “The Shores of Jordan” and Robin Williams and Joy White on “Childhood Memories.”

My Life Tracklisting: 

1. Sweet Is the Melody 

2. You’ve Done Nothing Wrong 

3. Calling for You

4. Childhood Memories

5. No Time to Cry 

6. Troublesome Waters

7. Mom and Dad’s Waltz

8. Easy’s Gettin Harder Every Day 

9. The Shores of Jordan

10. My Life

To post a comment, you must register and login.