Carolyn Wonderland – Thruth Is
Carolyn Wonderland – Thruth Is
Format: CD – Vinyl LP – Digital
Label: Alligator Records
Release: 2025
Release date: May 16, 2025
Alligator Records will release ‘Truth Is,’ the ear-opening new album from Texas’ award-winning, guitar-slinging, straight-from-the-soul singing Carolyn Wonderland
She’s known for her formidable songwriting as much as for her singing and playing, and with ‘Truth Is,’ she delivers a timeless album for these times. Truth Is will be available on CD, maroon vinyl LP and at all major streaming services.
‘Truth Is’ was produced by legendary guitarist and songwriter Dave Alvin (producer of Wonderland’s Alligator debut, ‘Tempting Fate’), who also co-wrote four songs, three of which he plays on. Wonderland says of Alvin, “I’ve never had my ass handed to me so thoughtfully in the studio. I came in with songs and Dave took the arrangements I wasn’t married to and put on his “Mad Rearranger” hat to get to the heart of the songs, always looking for and finding something that tells the story better. Dave is amazing. He has an incredible literary mind and is one of the best guitar bashers I’ve ever met.”
The roof-raising first song from the album, Sooner Or Later, premieres on all digital service providers. “Sometimes a melody just comes creeping out of the instrument,” Wonderland says of the song’s inception. “Maybe that’s why you gotta spend time listening to what your instrument wants to say instead of shoehorning your will on it, I suppose. The slight melancholy of the lonesome lap steel led me to the lyrics. Hard to say who’s the protagonist when you’re trying to walk in everyone’s shoes, but I felt a longing for connection with these neighbors and adversaries. Can we change when we find we are wrong? Can we make peace with the ghosts of our pasts? I guess we’ll find out sooner or later.”
On ‘Truth Is,’ Wonderland, with her vividly detailed, instantly memorable songs, reflects on the world with honesty and righteous conviction. Wonderland’s bold and insightful songs tell common-sense truths that, in her words, “need to be told.” They are driven by her sometimes savage and other times gently melodic guitar fingerpicking, along with her full-throated yet still vulnerable vocals. As for the album’s brutally honest subject matter, Wonderland says, “There’s always hope and we’re still here for each other, but at some point, you have to sing about the elephant in the room.”
Along with bassist Naj Conklin and drummer Giovanni “Nooch” Carnuccio, Wonderland is joined on ‘Truth Is’ by guests including Alligator labelmate Marcia Ball and friends Shelley King, Ruthie Foster, Cindy Cashdollar (“the Girl Gang,” says Wonderland), Red Young, Bukka Allen, Kevin Lance, Henri Herbert and Stuart Sullivan. The album was recorded and mixed by Sullivan at Wire Recording in Austin, Texas.
With her dynamic guitar playing, sublime songwriting, and pure Texas vocals, Wonderland has more than earned her reputation as a fiercely independent artist. She has been performing professionally since the age of 15 and has been on the road her entire career. She’s played with icons from Townes Van Zandt to Levon Helm, from Buddy Guy to Hubert Sumlin, from Bob Dylan to John Mayall (as the first female guitar in the iconic Blues Breakers), all while writing her own story.
Website: https://carolynwonderland.com/
Tracks:
01. Sooner Or Later
02. I Ain’t Going Back
03. Truth Is
04. Let’s Play A Game
05. Whistlin’ Past The Graveyard Again
06. It Should Take
07. Wishful Thinking
08. Orange Juice Blues
09. Tattoos As His Talisman
10. Flowers In Bloom
11. Deepest Ocean Blue
12. Blues For Gene
Carolyn Wonderland Electric Guitar, Lap Steel, Vocals, Whistling
Naj Conklin Electric and Upright Bass
Giovanni “Nooch” Carnuccio Drums, Percussion (2,3,6,7)
with
Shelley King: Harmony Vocals (2,3,4,5,6,7,8,10,11), Acoustic Guitar (4,5,7,8,9,11), ”Pop” (10)
Dave Alvin: Electric Guitar (1,8,9,12)
Red Young: B3 Organ (1,2,3,4,8,10,11), Piano (5,10,11)
Bukka Allen: Piano (1,7), B3 Organ (7,9)
Kevin Lance: Percussion (1,11)
Ruthie Foster: Vocals (2,3)
Marcia Ball: Vocals (2,3,8), Piano (8)
Cindy Cashdollar: Lap Steel Guitar (5,8)
Henri Herbert: Piano (6,12)
Stuart Sullivan: Percussion (7)