“I took some of his chill vibe but tried to write something a bit more heartfelt”: Listen to Darlin’ Baby, the new, Jimmy Buffet-inspired single by The Sheepdogs

Canadian rock kings The Sheepdogs, who are celebrating their 20th year as a band, have released a new single. Darlin’ Baby is a lilting acoustic ballad with the sort of upbeat, sun-dappled harmonies on the chorus that are rather at odds with the overall sadness of the song. 

“I went through some tough life things and just disappeared for a while,” explains frontman Ewan Currie. “I went down to Miami and eventually found myself in the Florida Keys. It was a very strange trip. Here I was walking around paradise all by myself, feeling like shit, drinking lite beers and mescal and listening to 80s and 90s country: Alan Jackson, the hits of Brooks and Dunn and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, that kind of thing. Eventually I pulled up my socks and came back to Canada and started writing some songs. Darlin’ Baby was the first thing I wrote.

“Spiritually I think it has something in common with the Foundations’ Now That I’ve Found You which is peppy as hell, yet very sad when you really consider the lyrics. I was kind of envisioning, “the Eagles go to Margaritaville” when I sang the song. I had this fascination at the time with Jimmy Buffet, how he had this whole lifestyle based around chilling in paradise that he turned into a multi-million dollar empire. My joke was “I love everything about Jimmy Buffet but the music”. So I took some of his chill vibe but tried to write something a bit more heartfelt. I think it truly reflects my sad time in Paradise Alone.”  

“Here’s a first offering from a new Sheepdogs project which we will share with you in time for the UK/EU tour this autumn,” adds bassist Ryan Gullen. “Looking forward to you hearing more. While it may not come as a surprise that not much has changed stylistically, we have made some changes behind the scenes that we hope will usher in a bit of a new era for the band.”

The Sheepdogs’ European tour kicks off in Spain this November and includes six UK dates, culminating in a show at London’s Islington Assembly Hall on December 5. This week the band begin a series of festival dates in Canada before embarking on a lengthy US tour in September. Full dates below. 

The Sheepdogs: 2024 tour dates

Aug 02: Lévis Festivent, QC, Canada
Aug 04: Mani-Utenam Festival Innu Nikamu, QC, Canada
Aug 09: Rouyn-Noranda Festival Osisko en Lumière, QC, Canada
Aug 10: Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Festival de Montgolfieres, QC, Canada
Aug 14: Saskatoon Delta Bessborough Gardens, SK, Canada
Aug 16: Cold Lake Extreme MudFest, AL, Canada

Sep 13: East Aurora Borderland Festival, NY
Sep 14: Spring Green Shitty Barn, WI
Sep 15: Minnesota Fine Line, MN
Sep 17: Denver Bluebird Theatre, CO
Sep 18: Salt Lake City Urban Lounge, UT
Sep 20: Seattle Neumos, WA
Sep 21: Portland Wonder Ballroom, OR
Sep 23: San Francisco The Chapel, CA
Sep 25: Los Angeles Lodge Room, CA
Sep 26: San Diego Music Box, CA
Sep 27: Phoenix Crescent Ballroom, AZ
Sep 29: Austin 3TEN ACL Live, TX
Sep 30: Dallas Kessler Theater, TX
Oct 02: Indianapolis HI-FI, IN
Oct 03: Cleveland Beachland Ballroom, OH
Oct 04: Kitchener Oktoberfest Koolhaus, ON, Canada
Oct 06: Woodstock Levon Helm’s Studios, NY
Oct 07: Boston The Sinclair, MA
Oct 08: Hamden Space Ballroom, CT
Oct 10: New York Racket, NY
Oct 11: Ardmore Music Hall, PA
Oct 12: Washington Black Cat, D.C.
Oct 14: Atlanta Vinyl, GA
Oct 15: Nashville Basement East, TN
Oct 17: Chicago Metro, IL

Nov 09: Santiago de Compestela Outono Codax Festival, Spain
Nov 10: Madrid Mon, Spain
Nov 11: Barcelona La Nau, Spain
Nov 13: Munich Strom, Germany
Nov 14: Dresden Beatpol, Germany
Nov 15: Berlin Frannz, Germany
Nov 17: Hamburg Bahnhof Pauli, Germany
Nov 18: Aarhus Headquarters, Germany
Nov 20: Stockholm Debaser, Sweden
Nov 21: Oslo John Dee, Norway
Nov 22: Copenhagen Loppen, Denmark
Nov 24: Groningen De Oosterport, The Netherlands
Nov 25: Utrecht Tivoli Vredenburg, The Netherlands
Nov 26: Cologne Luxor, Germany
Nov 27: Paris Badaboum, France
Nov 29: Trecco Bay Planet Rockstock, UK
Nov 30: Bristol Strange Brew, UK
Dec 01: Manchester Band on the Wall, UK
Dec 02: Glasgow Oran Mor, UK
Dec 04: Leeds Brudenell Social Club, UK
Dec 05: London Islington Assembly Hall, UK

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Online Editor at Louder/Classic Rock magazine since 2014. 38 years in music industry, online for 25. Also bylines for: Metal Hammer, Prog Magazine, The Word Magazine, The Guardian, The New Statesman, Saga, Music365. Former Head of Music at Xfm Radio, A&R at Fiction Records, early blogger, ex-roadie, published author. Once appeared in a Cure video dressed as a cowboy, and thinks any situation can be improved by the introduction of cats. Favourite Serbian trumpeter: Dejan Petrović.