Don Henley: Cass County | Album Review

With characteristic modesty, Don Henley recently observed that he didn’t know how his new album (his first solo work in 15 years) would be received – “because the musical landscape now is so different.

You know, the bar is pretty low.” Perhaps, but the veteran Eagles drummer and signature voice, who turned 68 last summer, backs up his bravado with an outstanding selection of new and old (mainly) country songs that both touch on his life and that have touched his life.

Produced and written with Heartbreakers drummer Stan Lynch over five years, Cass County is named after Henley's native Texas county. It is personal, but also laced with grit and craft. And, being a seasoned pro, Henley leaves little to chance.

There are A-listers (Miranda Lambert, Mick Jagger, Dolly Parton), but it is the songs and performances that make this a very good album indeed.