Bill Callahan – Lonely City
Bill Callahan spent decades avoiding writing a song about a city. He’s always focused on people, on the spirit within, and concrete and steel felt like a dead end. But “Lonely City” finally cracks that resistance open, treating New York like a friend you catch up with after time away. The track moves at Callahan’s signature unhurried pace, carefully constructed but loose enough to feel spontaneous.
His touring band backs him here: Matt Kinsey on guitar, Jim White on drums, Dustin Laurenzi on tenor saxophone. Jerry David DeCicca adds tambourine while Eve Searls handles backing vocals. Callahan recorded most of the album’s basic tracks as duos with White, a process inspired by DeCicca’s approach. The setup allowed room for improvisation, which Callahan calls the thing that keeps him motivated. He’s clear about wanting mistakes to become strengths, pushing toward something human rather than perfect.
“Lonely City” sits on “My Days of 58”, Callahan’s eighth album and first since 2022’s “YTI⅃AƎЯ”. The full-length drops February 27, 2026 via Drag City and features contributions from Richard Bowden on fiddle, Pat Thrasher on piano, Chris Vreeland on bass, Mike St. Clair on trombone, and Bill McCullough on pedal steel. Street photographer Daniel Arnold directed the video using 15 years of his New York photos, marking the first time his work has appeared in a music video. The images match Callahan’s personification of the city, acknowledging how you get mad at parking tickets and love a good meal, treating a place like a relationship.
Tracklist:
- Why Do Men Sing
- The Man I’m Supposed To Be
- Pathol O.G.
- Stepping Out For Air
- Lonely City
- Empathy
- West Texas
- Computer
- Lake Winnebago
- Highway Born
- And Dream Land
- The World is Still
