On Teton Pass, crossing from Idaho to Wyoming, there's a sign that says "Yonder is Jackson Hole, Last of the Old West." I stole that imagery and title for this little collection of tunes because the west is rapidly changing, even in corners that you wouldn't expect. So here's a trio of upbeat folky Americana songs that likely deserve wider

On Teton Pass, crossing from Idaho to Wyoming, there's a sign that says "Yonder is Jackson Hole, Last of the Old West." I stole that imagery and title for this little collection of tunes because the west is rapidly changing, even in corners that you wouldn't expect. So here's a trio of upbeat folky Americana songs that likely deserve wider attention than I can get them on my own. If you're here and reading this, you are the best way for me to spread the word. Please share with all your friends (and enemies too) on your social media.

The song Mountain Town Blues is about the challenges of life in mountain towns, where there's a major housing crisis created by wealthy second home owners driving up the market and forcing the working class into neighboring communities, crazy expensive rent, or just making them move elsewhere. Because of my proximity to Jackson, Wyoming, I decided to hire as many local folks as I could to bring these songs to life. I recorded it in Teton County, the richest county in America to help reflect the issues facing our working class. Though the line is tongue in cheek, "we work hard so the rich don't have to" sums up the feeling of the less affluent locals quite well.

Colorado Contraband started with the title and became a song about a Fundamentalist LDS boy who brings weed from Colorado to Utah to sell to the gentiles. It's a silly story song, but it also reflects how cultures are clashing in southern Utah, and there's even a progressive music festival happening now in Colorado City, once the FLDS holdout of Warren Jeffs and his followers.

Where We Belong is about the joy of playing and listening to live music, dancing, and being with our friends after two years of relative isolation. My friends Rachel Baiman and George Jackson passed through my little town in Wyoming a year or so ago and played a show of old timey music that made me realize how much I missed such things and inspired the song.

Credits: Jason Tyler Burton - vocals, guitar, mandolin (colorado contraband) Aaron Davis - banjo, bg vocals Liam O'Neill - drums David Bundy - bass Hamilton Belk - pedal steel Ben Winship - mandolin (mt. town blues) Matt Herron - fiddle Michelle Humber - bg vocals Rachel Baiman - bg vocals

Produced, engineered, and mixed by Aaron Davis at Three Hearted Recording Studion, Hoback, WY Mastered by Anna Frick at AirShow, Boulder, CO Cover art by Ryan Stolp, Jackson, WY

EP release date: 3 June 2022