On new single “It’s The Little Things,” Charles Wesley Godwinhas written an ode to the simple joys in life. The first sip of coffee in the morning. Taking the extra second to hold the door for someone. Driving around town listening to the radio. Even a quick smile and wave. The types of things so often overlooked in our busy modern lives, but little moments that can make folks’ lives just a little bit better. The melody and lyrics came to Godwin one morning in the shower, and he fine-tuned it into the three-minute and fifty-second earworm that is a centerpiece of his latest project, the stunning, seven-song Lonely Mountain Town EP, out February 28. Lonely Mountain Town vinyl pre-order starts today.
In the 17 months since the release of his breakout album Family Ties, whose standout single “All Again” is officially Gold, Godwin’s career has been on a decidedly upward trajectory. Appearances on Colbert, Kimmel, CBS “Saturday Sessions,” and even ESPN’s Sportscenter. Festival debuts at Bonnaroo and Stagecoach. Opening stadium shows for Luke Combs while the crowds at his own sold-out headline shows swell into the thousands. Instead of dwelling on any chatter that accompanied such a revered release, he did what he always has done: Godwin simply kept on writing. The result of such dutiful persistence was one of Godwin’s most prolific years yet: the musician estimates he wrote nearly 30 songs in 2024 and, in the process, most excitingly arrived at Lonely Mountain Town.
It’s a quieter, more contemplative affair than Family Ties, to be sure. But it also contains some of the most thrilling songs of Godwin’s career to date. “It was really cathartic for me,” he says of re-teaming with his longtime producer, guitarist and bandmate, Al Torrence, at Torrence’s Music Garden Studios in New Brighton, Penn., to complete a handful of moving and at times melancholy cuts that ring with surefire sincerity and truth. Godwin notably recorded his vocals separately for the first time in his career in order to give them even more life and resonance.
Written principally on the road, Lonely Mountain Town is at its heart a collection of snapshots and quiet moments in life. The sort of poetic musings that find Godwin raking through situations with a fine-tooth comb and peeling back the layers on the most delicate situations thrown our way. “These are character songs,” Godwin explains. “Most of them aren’t about my life. They’re just little pieces that I’ve taken from traveling.”
Following the success of Family Ties, and the incredible reception he’s seen accompanying it – particularly when on the road playing to sold-out audiences – he’s never felt more invigorated to stay true to his creative muse. “It’s a good feeling to know that,” he says of having such artistic independence. “It gives you major confidence going forward.”
Such unobstructed creativity allowed Godwin to work on the EP with musicians he’d long admired. Working with labelmate ERNEST on “Dead to Rights” taught Godwin how sometimes the best songs can be written without painstakingly obsessing over the smallest detail. “I saw that maybe it isn’t the worst thing in the world to sit down and try to write a song in 10 minutes and see how it turns out rather than toiling over a line for a week,” he admits. And then there is the truly magnificent cover of Jason Molina’s “Hammer Down,” which paired Godwin with one of his musical heroes, Scott Avett. Godwin became fast friends with Avett after touring alongside the Avett Brothers as co-openers on Luke Combs’ 2024 Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old stadium tour. Most nights onstage, they’d duet on “Hammer Down.” It was a no-brainer then to enlist his new friend to record the song with him for Lonely Mountain Town.
“It meant a lot to me, and I think it turned out really cool too,” Godwin says proudly of recording with Avett. “It brought new life to a song that a lot of people probably haven’t been exposed to.”
Now, as he heads back out on the road this winter and spring with his longtime band the Allegheny High, playing a slew of sold-out shows across the country while also releasing Lonely Mountain Town, Godwin is thrilled with where things stand. To him, success moving forward is about continuing to do things his way.
“I just want to continue writing like I have been and continue to record when I can and to keep producing and making music,” he says without hesitation. “Because that’s what makes me happy.” He smiles and adds, “If I keep doing that, then I think everything else will work out just fine.”
Lonely Mountain Town track list
1. Lonely Mountain Town (Charles Wesley Godwin)
2. It’s The Little Things (Charles Wesley Godwin)
3. Dead To Rights feat. ERNEST (Charles Wesley Godwin, Ernest Keith Smith, Chandler Paul Walters)
4. It’s Her Move (Charles Wesley Godwin, Wyatt Flores, Aaron Raitiere)
5. Then I’m Gone (Charles Wesley Godwin)
6. She Don’t Love Me Anymore (Charles Wesley Godwin, Zach McCord)
7. Hammer Down feat. Scott Avett (Jason Molina)
Charles Wesley Godwin 2025 Tour Dates
Feb 7 – Louisville, Ky. – Louisville Palace Theatre – SOLD OUT
Feb 8 – Columbus, Ohio – KEMBA Live! – SOLD OUT
Feb 13 – Sioux Falls, S.D. – The Alliance – SOLD OUT
Feb 14 – Minneapolis, Minn. – Uptown Theater – SOLD OUT
Feb 15 – Minneapolis, Minn. – Uptown Theater – SOLD OUT
Mar 13 – Portland, Maine – State Theatre
Mar 14 – Providence, R.I. – Strand Ballroom
Mar 15 – Albany, N.Y. – Palace Theatre
Mar 21 – London, ON – London Music Hall – SOLD OUT
Mar 22 – Ottawa, ON – Bronson Theatre – SOLD OUT
Mar 23 – Ottawa, ON – Bronson Theatre – SOLD OUT
Mar 25 – Athens, Ohio – Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium
Apr 3 – Boise, Idaho – Idaho Central Arena
Apr 4 – Jackson, Wyo. – Rendezvous Music Festival
Apr 8 – Stateline, Nev. – Tahoe Blue Event Center*
Apr 10 – San Francisco, Calif. – Bill Graham Civic Auditorium*
Apr 11 – Santa Barbara, Calif. – Santa Barbra Bowl*
Apr 12 – Los Angeles, Calif. – Greek Theatre*
Jul 11 – Milwaukee, Wis. – Harley Davidson Homecoming
Jul 12 – Chicago, Ill. – Windy City Smokeout
Jul 25 – Alpharetta, Ga. – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre^
Jul 26 – Charlotte, N.C. – PNC Music Pavilion^
Jul 27 – Raleigh, N.C. – Coastal Credit Union Music Park^
Aug 15 – Montreal, Calif. – Lasso Montréal
* supporting The Avett Brothers
^ Outlaw Music Festival dates with Willie Nelson & Family, Bob Dylan, Turnpike Troubadours and Willow Avalon
