Exclusive: Here's the track listing and cover art for the third Wilco/Billy Bragg Mermaid album

By Josh Modell | February 29, 2012 | 4:00pm

Aux Features Music

Remember those heady days of 1998, when British agit-folkie Billy Bragg was more famous than scrappy alt-country band Wilco? (That was true, right?) The two entities collaborated on a project that set rediscovered Woody Guthrie lyrics—which he had never recorded—to new music created by Bragg and Wilco. The resulting albums, Mermaid Avenue volumes one and two, were quite excellent, and "California Stars" even makes its way into Wilco sets still. Bragg recently leaked the news of Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions, a box set that includes both previously released albums as well as a third volume, featuring 17 previously unreleased tracks. (The box will also contain the documentary Man In The Sand, featuring some tense moments between Bragg and Jeff Tweedy.) No word yet on whether the third volume will be available outside of the box set, but they'd be crazy not to, right? If you preorder this monster, you'll get a print of Guthrie's original lyrics for "Hoodoo Voodoo." Anyway, we've got the scoop on both the box set art and the track list, but no word on how many songs Tweedy sings versus how many Bragg sings. The set will be available on Record Store Day, April 21. UPDATE: You will be able to buy volume three digitally, separate from the box set. And the songwriting/lead vocals appear fairly evenly split between Bragg and Tweedy, with a couple by Corey Harris. (Not Corey Harris from Mother 13, a different Corey Harris.)

Bugeye Jim