Artist:     The Long Ryders

Album:     Psychedelic Country Soul

Label:     Omnivore Recordings

Release Date:     2.15.19

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Kicking down the doors with the spirited opener “Greenville” and its jangly hooks, The Long Ryders announce their long-awaited return with Psychedelic Country Soul, their first album in over 30 years. Cooled by breezy harmonies and tuned into the Beach Boys’ fair-haired pop frequencies, it’s a star-spangled, roots-rock rodeo of crisp, polished twang from the urban cowboys, who settled into Los Angeles’ 1980s Paisley Underground of ’60s psychedelia worshippers and never left.

Cashing in a favor from a friend, The Long Ryders used Dr. Dre’s Los Angeles studio to record Psychedelic Country Soul with stunning clarity and warmth, the title neatly encapsulating the band’s ethos. Long ago, they predicted the rise of alternative-country, blazing a trail that stretched from the folky country-rock of The Byrds, Gram Parsons and Buffalo Springfield and back to The Beatles before stampeding through punk’s West Coast wasteland and passing the torch to the likes of the Old ’97s, Son Volt and Whiskeytown, among others.

Simply rehashing the past wouldn’t cut it for The Long Ryders, however, in their triumphant comeback. All the vintage elements that caused such a stir to begin with are here, but there’s something unmistakably modern and timely about the engaging and immaculately clean Psychedelic Country Soul. Ostensibly the fifth Long Ryder, Ed Stasium produced the album and added colorful touches of organs, harmonium and other instrumental odds and ends, as Psychedelic Country Soul emerges flush with timeless, big-hearted songwriting, vibrant rock ‘n roll, rustic Americana and countrified pop flourishes.

With its sparkling gleam, “The Sound” is a bright, upbeat charmer that’s as rousing and tight as “Greenville,” while the smooth “Molly Somebody” is audio black velvet and “Gonna Make It Real” breathes in the sweet, fresh air of The Jayhawks. The mid-tempo drawl and spit-shined chrome of “All Aboard” is as cranky as anything by Cracker or The Bottle Rockets. Aggressive riffs shake up “What the Eagle Sees” with garage-rock, maximum R&B energy. And before exiting with an expansive, trippy title track, Psychedelic Country Soul gently prods Tom Petty’s “Walls” to quicken its pace and dawdles and mourns over the wistful traditional country ballad “California State Line” with sweeping eloquence.

As taut as ever, while staking an even bigger tent to welcome more diverse instrumentation and influences, multi-instrumentalists Sid Griffin and Stephen McCarthy, bassist Greg Sowders and drummer/percussionist Tom Stevens seamlessly fit the pieces together on Psychedelic Country Soul. Aside from exquisite guitar interplay and a rhythm section that really hums, there’s a taste of pretty pedal steel from Hoyt Axton and Everly Brothers sideman Dave Perlman, and drawn-out violin from The Coal Porters’ Kerenza Peacock. Lovely backing vocals from The Bangles’ Vicki and Debbi Peterson and wafts of mandolin and harmonica only add to the richness of these proceedings. Long may you run, Long Ryders.

—Peter Lindblad