The Turnpike Troubadors are back. The Oklahoma based group was on an indefinite hiatus since 2019, and many wondered what would happen to them until their announcement of their first show in three years.
The band announced they will be headlining a show at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colo. on May 14, 2022. Shovels & Rope and Reckless Kelly will perform as support. Tickets for the event will go on sale Friday (Dec. 3).
They shared more about the reunion and additional tour dates in a recent Rolling Stone interview, and also added that a new album is on the way. During Turnpike Troubadours’ three year hiatus, frontman Evan Felker became sober, remarried his wife, Staci, and welcomed their first child together, a girl named Evangelina Hartford Felker.
“I found sobriety and recovery, and that was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. I’m coming up on two years, completely sober and out of recovery. And a few days after that will be my daughter’s first birthday, so it’s all a big one,” Felker stated to Rolling Stone. “I’ve learned so much about how my life was not well-rounded. I mean I knew that. I knew that it was just one thing. It started out just being music, and then eventually it was just drinking, and that was it for me.”
Turnpike Troubadours started in Stillwater, Oklahoma and later relocated to Tahlequah in 2007. For over a decade, they released five studio albums and went on multiple tours, gaining local and national attention. The band’s last studio album A Long Way From Your Heart earned the No. 1 spot on the folk and indie charts and the No. 3 spot on the country charts.
As Turnpike Troubadours enter a new chapter in their career, they are taking a new approach to touring. They plan to shift away from the intensive touring that often comes as a part of the Red Dirt scene and focus on balancing life on the road with plenty of time at home with family.
The announcement comes a week after fans noticed that the band’s official website had been replaced with an image of their trademark logo with the words “Coming Soon” added beneath. All previous posts shared to the official Turnpike Troubadours Instagram account were also deleted.
On Nov. 30, the band’s website was relaunched to coincide with the Red Rocks concert date and reunion announcement. It makes for a happy holiday season for Turnpike Troubadour fans, both new and old, who have been waiting for some news about the group’s future.
