Terry Klein - Hill Country Folk Music (2025)

Terry Klein's fifth studio album, Hill Country Folk Music, is a heartfelt reflection on the themes of aging, memory, and ecology, in which Klein approaches his "middle" life phase and existential doom with humor and irony. The album begins and ends with the song "Try" / "Try Again," urging action in the face of stasis. The cleverly wrought lyrics, with a wry outlook on life, touch upon topics such as suicide ("If You Go"), aging and pain, and the loss of hope in modern society ("Hopelessness Is Going Around"), where Klein's father, a former hero, was squeezed out of business. Despite the bleak sentiments, Klein finds solace in nature and uses humor to assuage the hurt. Songs commenting on social interactions, such as "I Used to Be Cool," "The Job Interview Song," and "A Quiet Place to Be," add comedy by exposing the hollowness of social clichés. Musically, the album is defined as "Texas music," blending folk and country. It is primarily acoustic with touches of electric guitar, was recorded in Nashville, and produced by Thomm Jutz with a host of guest musicians playing instruments like the mandolin, pedal steel, fiddle, and dobro.

Terry Klein - vocals, acoustic guitar
Thomm Jutz - acoustic and electric guitars, harmony vocals
Lynn Williams - drums
Tim Marks - bass
Mike Compton - mandolin (tracks 1 & 7)
Scotty Sanders - pedal steel guitar (tracks 8-10)
Justin Moses - fiddle and dobro (tracks 5, 7 & 11)
Finn Goodwin-Bain - piano and organ (tracks 3, 8-10)



Tracklist:
1-1 Terry Klein - Try [3:38]
1-2 Terry Klein - I Used to Be Cool [3:38]
1-3 Terry Klein - If You Go [3:05]
1-4 Terry Klein - Hopelessness Is Going Around [3:47]
1-5 Terry Klein - My Next Birthday [3:57]
1-6 Terry Klein - The Job Interview Song [3:31]
1-7 Terry Klein - The Dirty Third [3:24]
1-8 Terry Klein - Musconetcong River [3:39]
1-9 Terry Klein - Yellow Butterfly [4:03]
1-10 Terry Klein - A Quiet Place to Sit [4:52]
1-11 Terry Klein - Try Again [3:58]