Sturgill Simpson - A Sailor's Guide To Earth [180g Black Vinyl]

Sturgill Simpson's third studio album A Sailor's Guide to Earth arrived in April 2016 as both his major label debut and a deeply personal love letter to his infant son. Following his Grammy-nominated breakthrough Metamodern Sounds in Country Music, Simpson took full creative control as producer, replacing Dave Cobb to craft a startlingly diverse sonic landscape that transcends genre boundaries. Written beginning to end as fatherly advice drawn from Simpson's own experiences, including three years in the U.S. Navy where he rose from pollywog to shellback after crossing the equator, the album received universal critical acclaim with a Metacritic score of 86. The record debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 and topped the Country Albums chart with 55,000 first-week units. At the 59th Grammy Awards, A Sailor's Guide to Earth earned nominations for Album of the Year and won Best Country Album, cementing Simpson's status as one of country music's most fearless artists. Recorded live primarily at Nashville's The Butcher Shoppe with Grammy-winning engineer David Ferguson, the album features The Dap-Kings horn section and backing vocals, creating a sound that evokes late-1960s soul, funk, and classic country.

Lead single "Brace for Impact (Live a Little)" introduced Simpson's new direction with its throbbing bass line and fuzzy, funky guitars, departing dramatically from his earlier traditional country sound. The album's emotional centerpiece "Oh Sarah," dedicated to Simpson's wife, showcases tender vulnerability over sparse piano and strings. Simpson's startling reimagining of Nirvana's "In Bloom" transforms Kurt Cobain's gun-lust satire into a slow-building R&B ballad with Southern soul echoes and late-1950s horns, creating one of the most acclaimed Cobain covers ever recorded. "Keep It Between the Lines," which Simpson performed on Saturday Night Live in January 2017, opens with a military work song before evolving into a jazzy soul breakdown. Other standouts include "Sea Stories," a cautionary tale about a sailor's drug addiction inspired by John Prine's "Sam Stone," "Welcome to Earth (Pollywog)," and the blistering protest closer "Call to Arms," where Simpson addresses his son about America's military-industrial complex with raw urgency.

This limited edition Spread Your Ears Or Regret pressing on 180-gram audiophile black vinyl represents the pinnacle of analog reproduction. The heavyweight format preserves every nuance of the album's kaleidoscopic production, from ethereal string arrangements to intricate horn sections, lap steel guitars, and even Dougie Wilkinson's bagpipes. Engineer David Ferguson captured the live band performances with exceptional warmth, ensuring that Simpson's conversational vocal delivery and the rich instrumental textures translate with stunning clarity. This indie exclusive edition spans nine tracks across 39 minutes of genre-defying storytelling that critics praised as pro-troops but policy-critical, relentlessly honest yet deeply compassionate. With worldwide sales exceeding 217,900 copies and a 346% Spotify streaming increase following Simpson's Grammy win, this vinyl edition honors an album that Rolling Stone called a spectacular mic drop and NPR lauded as a masterclass in order and insubordination.

• Format: 180g Audiophile Black Vinyl LP
• Standout tracks: "Brace for Impact (Live a Little)," "In Bloom," "Keep It Between the Lines"
• Pressing details: Limited Edition, Indie Exclusive, SYEOR (Start Your Ear Off Right), engineered by David Ferguson at The Butcher Shoppe
• Genre/style: Americana, Country Soul, Southern Rock, Outlaw Country
• UPC: 081227806255

This audiophile pressing captures Simpson's genre-bending masterwork, where fatherhood and naval experience converge into one of the decade's most critically acclaimed albums.

* The Spotify track list may not exactly represent the tracks and audio of this LP edition.

Track List:

Side A:

1. Welcome To Earth (Pollywog)
2. Breakers Roar
3. Keep It Between The Lines
4. Sea Stories
5. In Bloom

Side B:

1. Brace For Impact (Live A Little)
2. All Around You
3. Oh Sarah
4. Call To Arms