Chris Stapleton, ‘Traveller’ [Listen]

No one is going to challenge the quality of Chris Stapleton’s songwriting. “Traveller,” the lead single from an upcoming album of the same name, is heavy, but not weighted down.

The song speaks to the listener beyond the lyrics. He never says it, but something is clearly tormenting the main character as he wanders his earth. Why else would he choose to do so alone?

“My heartbeat’s rhythm is a lonesome sound / Just like the rubber turning on the ground / Always lost and nowhere bound,” he sings at the second verse. Steel guitar cries weave from speaker to speaker as the song’s easy shuffle pushes the beat past mile marker after mile marker.

“I’m just a traveller on this earth / Sure as my heart’s behind the pocket of my shirt / I’ll just keep rolling till I’m in the dirt / ‘Cause I’m a traveller, oh, I’m a traveller,” Stapleton sings at each chorus.

He wrote the song himself, but had help from country greats like Waylon Jennings and Kenny Rogers. It’s Waylon’s shuffle that he recalls, and the first verse is unmistakably Rogers, although he departs quickly after that.

“When I’m gone / Somebody else will have to feel this wrong / Somebody else will have to sing this song / Somebody else will have to sing along,” he calls out at the bridge.

Stapleton’s Traveller album will hit stores and digital retailers on May 5. Expect it to be one critics love, even if radio airplay for the lead single is hard to come by.

Why Fans Will Love It: Great vocals and sharp songwriting make this traditional country song easy to embrace.

Key Lyrics: "‘Cause every turn reveals some other road / And I’m a traveller, oh, I’m a traveller"

Did You Know?: The title track from Stapleton's upcoming album was inspired by a trip out west to pick up a 1979 Jeep Cherokee.

Listen to Chris Stapleton, "Traveller"