[Cover photo credit to Lauren Massie]
Singer/songwriter Nicki Bluhm has announced her eighth studio album, Rancho Deluxe, due out October 3, 2025. An album that shows Nashville’s collaborative spirit, Rancho Deluxe finds Bluhm “reflecting on well-earned lessons from nearly two decades in the music business.”
Along with the announcement, Bluhm has shared new single “Cumberland Banks.” Laced with banjo played by Mumford & Sons’ Matt Mennefee and dobro played by Greensky Bluegrass’ Anders Beck, it’s a nod to her new home down South inspired by her time touring with the Bluegrass group The Infamous Stringdusters.
Bluhm says on the new song:
Canoeing down the Cumberland River was a favorite pastime of ours, until the day we found ourselves huddled under a bridge fearing for our lives in the midst of a Tennessee thunderstorm. This song is that story told in the form of a late-night summertime John Hartford and Roger Miller pick-along.
Recorded as live takes over just five days, Rancho Deluxe takes its name from the Nashville home studio that Bluhm assembled with her co-writer, producer and partner Jesse Noah Wilson. Joined by musicians Kai Welch (Kacey Musgraves), Jess Nolan (Jenny Lewis) and Cameron Neal (Elle King, Shakey Graves), they pulled from a influences, including Folk-rock, Western psychedelia and ‘60s West Coast Soul music.
Bluhm comments:
This is a harvest record. It’s a collection of the fruits of my labor. I’ve taken all these life lessons and experiences, and I’ve learned from them. Jesse and I have an amazing arsenal of friends and family that we recruited to play on the record, and that interplay lends itself to a freedom in the studio. We were focused on catching the moment, being in the room together, and experiencing something communally.
Rancho Deluxe follows Bluhm’s 2023 Cher tribute album, The Beat Goes On, and her 2022 original LP Avondale Drive.
Bluhm is currently on the road this summer including a stop in San Francisco on July 31 for The Heart of Town, a special three-night concert series celebrating The Grateful Dead’s 60th anniversary. In September, Bluhm will be performing at AmericanaFest in Nashville.
Tour Dates:
July 11-12 – Nashville, TN @ Celebration of Summer Jam at Watkins Glen – Analog at Hutton Hotel
July 31 – San Francisco, CA @ The Heart of Town – Pier 48 in Mission Rock
August 14 – Park City, UT @ Park City Song Summit
August 17 – Truckee, UT @ Terrapin Roadshow at Truckee – Salty Gebhardt Amphitheater
September 10 – Nashville, TN @ AmericanaFest – The 5 Spot
September 12-14 – Jackson, WY @ Horseshoe Music Festival
