The Pines team up with Dave Simonett and Erik Koskinen to cover ‘The Highwayman’

David Huckfelt and Benson Ramsey of the Pines with Dave Simonett of Trampled by Turtles and Erik Koskinen (Photo by Benya Krueger)

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Who says Americana artists can’t hop aboard the ’80s revival train that’s been chugging through indie music this year? Today the Pines have shared a brand new track, “The Highwayman,” which revives an old Jimmy Webb tune that won a Grammy back in 1985.

The recording that tore up the charts in the mid-’80s was sung by country supergroup the Highwaymen, which featured Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and Kris Kristofferson. For their version, the Pines recruited Dave Simonett of Trampled by Turtles and Erik Koskinen to help them flesh out the four-part melody. The musicians paid homage to the track by including some of those cheesy ’80s flourishes—note the atmospheric synth whirs beneath the guitars—but also padded it with some of the Pines’ signature brooding and gorgeous textures.

Listen to the original version of the song here, and grab an mp3 of the Pines’ take on their website.

The Pines play Caravan du Nord in Detroit Lakes this weekend and hold down a two-night stand at the Cedar Cultural Center on November 22 and 23. Simonett opens the show on the 22nd, so it seems like there’s a good chance the band might play the song live at one or both of their Minneapolis shows.