Posthumous Release From Mark Otis Selby Launches Moraine Music's Naked Sessions

Before the full-blown production, the multi-track recording for the big stage sound and lights, an artist sits in a room with nothing but a new song, an instrument and a deep desire to express something true - laying down the song as it comes out, no worries about perfection; honest, raw...naked. This is where the real magic often happens - and is frequently never heard again.

Conceived with those moments in mind, Dianna Maher of Moraine Music has launched the Naked Sessions, a collection of live, stripped-down performances by compelling artists playing their favorite songs in the most raw and basic form.

The debut audio release, slated for April 6, is a 12-track posthumous collection from Mark Otis Selby. Featuring tracks recorded live in the studio as guitar vocals, included here are the Dixie Chicks first Number One and a Grammy Award-winning single "There's Your Trouble," and two memorable hits, "Blue on Black," co-written with Kenny Wayne Shepherd, the track spent 17 weeks at #1 and was Billboard's Mainstream Rock Song of the Year. "Mark helped me learn how to express myself, says Kenny Wayne Shepherd, "be creative, and have a voice through music."

The album is now available for pre-order with two instant gratification tracks, "Rise Up" and "Don't You Throw That Mojo On Me.

"There is a magic in the simplest version of a song where every word and note are heard...and with Mark Selby, he always played his new songs with captivating passion," says Dianna Maher. "Many of the versions heard on this LP are the original guitar vocals Mark recorded the day he wrote the song, including "Rise Up," where you hear Mark & Kenny Wayne enjoying the moment. Mark was not able to do the filmed portion of The Naked Sessions, but he did approve the collection spanning 20 years of live recordings as well as his last recording, 'Rye & Angostora'."

Also featured are many compelling songs written with his wife Tia Sillers, including "Back Door To My Heart," the opening track. "I'd written many songs with my A #1 favorite co-writer, better half and spouse, Tia, notes Selby. "We see eye to eye on so many of these things music wise, life wise, love wise, art wise. If there was anyone I ever needed to let in the back door to my heart, it was her."

As a songwriter, Selby's songs have been recorded by a wide array of artists, including Kenny Wayne Shepherd, the Dixie Chicks, Wynonna, Little Big Town, Trisha Yearwood, Johnny Reid, Jo Dee Messina, Lee Roy Parnell, and Keb' Mo'.

Hailed by Blues Revue as "an electrifying performer," the Nashville-based recording artist, songwriter, session player and producer released albums with Vanguard and ZYX Records. Born and raised in Oklahoma, Selby spent his youth harvesting wheat and playing in bands throughout the Great Plains. Selby was inducted into the Kansas Music Hall of Fame in 2016.

The upcoming Naked Sessions TV show will offer 30-minute episodes of live performances mixed with interview and documentary footage about the artists. Debut episodes are slated for 2019, and will include Chuck Mead, the co-founder of BR549 and musical director of Million Dollar Quartet; Australian guitar virtuoso Joe Robinson; genre-twisting sister band, SHEL; Steven McKellar, from the South African rock band, Civil Twilight.

Mark Otis Selby

Track List:

1. Backdoor To My Heart

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers

2. Don't You Throw That Mojo On Me

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers, Kenny Wayne Shepherd

3. Scheme Of Things

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers

4. There's Your Trouble

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers

5. Tumbleweeds

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers, Rick Brantley

6. Rise Up (feat. Kenny Wayne Shepherd)

- Mark Selby, Tia Sillers, Kenny Wayne Shepherd

7. Lucinda Sing

-Mark Selby

8. Blue On Black

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers, Kenny Wayne Shepherd

9. What Am I Doin'

-Mark Selby

10. Rye and Angostura

-Mark Selby, Tia Sillers

11. More Storms Comin'

-Mark Selby

12. Just Around The Corner

-Mark Selby

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