Van Zandt CD coming

"Sky Blue" is a collection of unreleased versions of songs and two new songs set for release by TVZ Records and Fat Possum Records on March 7, which would have been his 75th birthday.

The 11 songs were recorded in early 1973 with the late Bill Hedgepeth, a journalist, musician and a close friend of Van Zandt. The singer-songwriter was splitting his time between Texas, Colorado and a shack outside Franklin, Tennessee. Throughout his life, he would often return to Hedgepeth's home studio in Atlanta, later with family in tow, to record, re-work, and experiment with new songs as well as old favorites.

These versions of "Pancho & Lefty" and "Rex's Blues" show these songs as early drafts. The disc also includes two new songs that have never been heard before-"All I Need" and "Sky Blue"-as well as covers of songs by Richard Dobson and Tom Paxton. There is a smoky version of "Blue Ridge Mountain Blues" and an interpretation of "Hills of Roane County," an East Tennessee murder ballad from the 1880s that was popularized by Tony Rice.

The disc was conceived by Townes' surviving family-his wife and literary executor Jeanene, along with his children, J.T., Will, and Katie Bell.

The track list is:
1. All I Need
2. Rex's Blues
3. Hills of Roane County
4. Sky Blue
5. Forever For Always For Certain
6. Blue Ridge Mountain Blues (Smoky Version)
7. Pancho and Lefty
8. Snake Song
9. Silver Ships of Andilar
10. Dream Spider
11. The Last Thing On My Mind