Allison Russell is a singer and songwriter originally from Montreal and now based in Nashville. She’s a Grammy-winner and an eight-time Grammy nominee. And she’s also won Canada’s Juno Award, an Americana award, and more. She starred in Hadestown on Broadway. She spent years in bands and collaborating with others before she released her first solo album in 2021. Her most recent album came out in 2026, and is called In The Hour of Chaos. But for this episode, Allison and I talked about the title track from her second album, The Returner, which came out in 2023. She recorded it with an all-female ensemble that included Wendy & Lisa of The Revolution. It was co-written with JT Nero, her husband, and Drew Lindsay, her brother-in-law, and the two of them also co-produced the song with Allison.

You can buy or stream “The Returner” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

in this episode:
Lisa Coleman – piano
Wendy Melvoin – bass
Megan Coleman – drums
Megan McCormick – electric guitar
Joy Clark – acoustic guitar
Elizabeth Pupo-Walker – percussion
Larissa Maestro – string arrangements, cello, vocal harmony
Chauntee Ross – violin, vocal harmony
Kerenza Peacock – violin
Monique Ross – cello, vocal harmony
Brandi Carlile
Joni Mitchell
Birds of Chicago
Chaplin Recording Studios

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