Hayes Carll

Born in Houston, Texas, on January 9, 1976, Hayes Carll is a songwriter, composer, guitarist and performer renowned for his fine songwriting, which blends alternative country, folk roots, country rock and Americana. He began writing songs as a teenager and studied at Hendrix College in Arkansas, before performing in Texas bars. Settling in Austin, he signed with the Compadre label and recorded his debut album Flowers & Liquor (2002), which met with critical acclaim. For his follow-up, Little Rock (2004), he created his own label, Highway 87 Records. It was his first independent album to reach number one on Billboard's Americana chart. His Beat Generation poetry and sense of humor shine through on his third album, Trouble in Mind (2008), four tracks of which illustrate the film Country Strong. She Left Me for Jesus" wins Song of the Year at the American Honors & Awards. 2011 sees the release of KMAG YOYO & Other American Stories, a more rock-oriented album that is gaining a solid critical reputation. His collaboration with the Lost Highway label (Universal) came to an end after these two releases, and Hayes Carll divorced his wife and went on tour. In 2015, his track "Chances Are", covered by Lee Ann Womack, was nominated for a Grammy Award. The following year sees the release of the album Lovers and Leavers, produced by Joe Henry. The singer then signs with the Dualtone label for his sixth album What It Is (2019), produced by Alison Moorer and Brad Jones. In 2020, Alone Together Session includes new readings of songs from his repertoire, two of which are duets with Ray Wylie Hubbard and Allison Moore. Multi-instrumentalist Darrell Scott accompanies him on a series of guitars, bass and accordion. In 2021, You Get It All reached number 14 on the American folk charts. It was followed four years later by We're Only Human.