Jim James corrals other songwriters for Woody Guthrie-inspired album, New Multitudes

Nora Guthrie, son of legendary folk singer Woody, recently invited four singer-songwriters—Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Jay Farrar of Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo, Will Johnson of Centro-matic, and Anders Parker of Varnaline—to look at her father's old notebooks, napkins, and anything else with lyrics scribbled on them. Much of the writing drew from Guthrie's experiences in Los Angeles, a far-cry from the dust bowl ballads he's most famous for. The songwriters took those words and made an album, New Multitudes, which will be released Feb. 28. The album has 12 songs, but there's also a version with 24 tracks that features 12 additional tunes recorded only by Farrar and Parker.

The band will also be doing a brief tour in support of the record. Tour dates are below:

March 6 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA
March 7 – Music Box – Los Angeles, CA
March 9 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, OR
March 10 – Showbox – Seattle, WA
March 12 – The Birchmere – Alexandria, VA
March 13 – Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA
March 14 – Webster Hall – New York, NY
March 16 – Paradise – Boston, MA