Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real didn’t originally plan on naming their second studio album after what ultimately became the title track, “Turn off the News (Build a Garden).” At first, they were ready to name the project after another one of its songs, “Civilized Hell.”
“”Civilized Hell” is a tribute to all the badass women in my life,” Nelson tells The Boot. “Which started with my mother, but it’s a tribute to every badas woman I’ve ever known, and I’ve tried to bring them all into the fold,
That’s why the group wanted to include so many inspiring female musical guests: Margo Price, Kesha, Sheryl Crow and many more make appearances on the record. The more he thought about it, however, the more Nelson realized that he wanted Turn Off the News‘ message of inclusion to be even broader.
“Then what we decided, ultimately, was that the concept [of “Civilized Hell”] was a sort of sub-concept in culture itself, and a more overarching theme is this: I’d rather just turn off the constant stimulation of devices and reach out to the people around me and connect in a real, human way,” he continues. “And I think that, man or woman, that is a universal theme and concept, so it ultimately felt like a more all-inclusive title for the album.”
“All-inclusive” is a good descriptor for the group’s new project, and the impressive list of featured artists doesn’t just include women: Neil Young, Willie Nelson and more also appear on Turn Off the News. Having the legends whom Lukas Nelson counts as “teachers” so directly involved in the project shaped how its was recorded, and even affected the decision to include two versions of its title track (one acoustic and one electric, though the singer points out that he mostly decided to record an electric version for greater radio appeal).
“But also, Neil and Sheryl both thought it would be better if we had a version that didn’t have ‘f–k’ in it,” Nelson adds with a laugh. “Sheryl wanted to show her kids the song, and she didn’t want to have to explain the word ‘f–k.’ And so it just made it a more accessible song in many ways, I think, and it’s fun. I love it. Sheryl sings incredibly.”
Still, the acoustic version — the original recording of the song — holds too special of a place in the band’s heart to relinquish it. “That’s Neil Young on the pump organ there,” Nelson relates. “That’s a really special version … and live, I gotta say, the acoustic version makes a heck of a lot more sense. People can hear every word. When I play it live, I mostly try and play the acoustic version.”
The stylistic leanings of Turn Off the News are about as sweeping and diverse as you might expect, given the range of artists who contributed to and inspired it. Nelson and Promise of the Real expand on their countrified rock ‘n’ roll roots on the project, taking cues from soaring pop anthems as easily as they do from the folksy protest albums of the ’60s.
Though the record has sociopolitical inflections a-plenty, Nelson doesn’t think of it as a traditional protest album. “It is and it isn’t. Because I’m not really asking anybody to do anything on this record,” he muses.
“Even in [the lyrics]: ‘Turn off the news and build a garden, just my neighborhood and me. Maybe I’ll turn off the news,” he adds, explaining that his worldview on the record is pretty localized to the immediate world around him, without a direct call to action on a global scale. However, some strains of worldwide impact still shine through, even if he tries to keep the project’s philosophy close to home.
“I realized that if everybody did that, the world would be a better place,” Nelson concludes. “If we all just shut off the machine and focused on the organic, it’d be great.”
He Wasn’t Only Onscreen in ‘A Star Is Born’
Sure, Nelson and Promise of the Real serve as the band that backs Bradley Cooper’s Jackson Maine in 2018’s A Star Is Born. But what you maybe didn’t know is that, beyond acting, Nelson both co-wrote with Cooper for the film and served as a vocal coach. As he puts it in an interview with Billboard, “I’m stepping back from my lead role and playing sideman to other artists, who were Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. Having that ability to be a lead, I think it’s also really important to know how to be in a band. The way I approach my songwriting, I think there’s a lot of me in [A Star Is Born]. These are songs that I’ve written about my own life, and in away they can be applied to any situation.”
Neil Young Played an Important Role in the Formation of Promise of the Real
Nelson and his band have backed Young for a while now, but his influence on them is deeper than that professional relationship; in fact, Nelson met his drummer, Anthony LoGerfo, at one of Young’s concerts, in California in 2008, just a couple of years before forming Promise of the Real. So, needless to say, Young has been a significant part of the band’s fabric since the very, very beginning.
‘A Star Is Born’ Isn’t the Only Soundtrack He Appears On
Interestingly, A Star Is Born wasn’t the first soundtrack on which Nelson and crew appeared: They close the soundtrack for 2017’s My Little Pony: The Movie (seriously!) with the aptly titled “Neighsayer.”
He and His Brother Are on One of Their Dad’s Albums
Lukas and his brother Micah join forces on their dad’s 2012 record Heroes. Other people who appear on that project? Snoop Dogg. Kris Kristofferson. Jamey Johnson. And even Merle Haggard.
He Was Born in Texas, But Raised Far Away From the Lone Star State
Yeah, Nelson was born in the great state of Texas (in Austin, to be specific), but he didn’t really grow up there. Instead, he was raised at his family’s home in Hawaii, but kind of went back and forth, because his mom thought it’d be good for him to get both experiences. And there’s no question that life in both Texas and Hawaii has influenced his songwriting and performances.
