Emmylou Harris will reissue her legendary live album Spyboy on November 7, 2025 through New West Records, bringing fresh light to one of the most adventurous chapters of her career. The expanded 19-track set arrives with five previously unreleased performances, new liner notes by Harris and longtime collaborator Buddy Miller, and updated artwork.
Originally released in 1998 on Eminent Records, Spyboy captured Harris at a turning point. Backed by the powerhouse trio of Buddy Miller (guitar/vocals), Brady Blade (drums/percussion/vocals), and Daryl Johnson (bass/djembe/percussion/vocals), Harris reinvented her past catalogue through the bold sonic lens she had discovered on her 1995 Daniel Lanois-produced masterpiece, Wrecking Ball.
The 2025 edition introduces five previously unheard recordings: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ “A Thing About You,” Bob Dylan’s “Every Grain of Sand,” Bill Monroe’s “Get Up John,” Lucinda Williams’ “Sweet Old World,” and Harris’ co-write with Kate & Anna McGarrigle, “All I Left Behind.” The first preview track, Spyboy’s rendition of Tom Petty’s “A Thing About You”.
By the time Harris formed Spyboy, she was already more than two decades into a career that had reshaped American music. Emerging in the early 1970s as the harmony partner to Gram Parsons in the Flying Burrito Brothers orbit, Harris carried the torch for his “cosmic American music” after his death in 1973. Her early solo records, starting with Pieces of the Sky (1975), bridged traditional country with rock influences, introducing new audiences to artists like Rodney Crowell and Townes Van Zandt while cementing her reputation as one of Nashville’s most distinctive voices.
Through the late 1970s and 1980s, Harris built a catalogue that was both critically adored and commercially successful. Albums like Luxury Liner (1977), Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town (1978), and Roses in the Snow (1980) showcased her range, from outlaw country to bluegrass purity. Along the way she earned multiple Grammys and became the standard-bearer for integrity in country music.
But it was 1995’s Wrecking Ball that shifted everything. Produced by Daniel Lanois, the record wrapped Harris’ crystalline voice in atmospheric textures more familiar to fans of U2 or Peter Gabriel than Nashville’s mainstream. Featuring songs by Neil Young, Gillian Welch, Steve Earle, and Lucinda Williams, Wrecking Ball was a revelation — and a challenge. As Harris later reflected: “It was such a sonic departure for me. I loved it, but I knew this was different. How was I going to play it live?”
The answer was Spyboy. Lanois initially joined her on guitar before Buddy Miller assumed the role, and with Johnson and Blade holding down rhythm, the band became a ferocious, shape-shifting unit. They toured the U.S. and Europe in 1996–97, tearing apart and reimagining Harris’ catalogue every night.
Capturing the Fire
Recognizing the chemistry, Miller began taping shows with racks of recording equipment, long before laptops made the process easy. Across some 25 concerts, they amassed hundreds of performances. Harris and Miller sifted through the tapes to create the definitive document of that era: Spyboy.
Sequenced as a journey through Harris’ past and present, the album reframed classics like “Love Hurts,” “Boulder to Birmingham,” and “Wheels” alongside Wrecking Ball standouts like “Where Will I Be” and “Deeper Well.” The interplay between Harris’ soaring vocals and the polyrhythmic power of Blade and Johnson pushed her artistry into uncharted territory.
“It was really something to be on that stage every night with that band and that energy,” Harris recalls in the new liner notes. “Spyboy is one of the great bands I’ve played with. They reinvigorated me as a singer and inspired me night after night with their energy and unique musicianship.”
For Harris, the album also signaled the arrival of a younger audience. “Because Wrecking Ball was such a different kind of record, it attracted a different kind of fan,” she says. “I might have lost some of my regular folk-oriented fans, but my true fans have always zigged with me when I’ve zigged.”
The 2025 edition of Spyboy arrives across digital platforms, compact disc, and clear color vinyl. Its expanded tracklist reasserts the live band’s eclectic vision — from Bill Monroe’s bluegrass standard “Get Up John” to the mournful poetry of Dylan’s “Every Grain of Sand.”
Miller notes the recordings remain as thrilling as they felt onstage: “I wanted proof that I was actually part of this thing, so I brought along the gear. What we ended up with was a document of possibility — the kind of record that stands outside of time.”
For Harris, now regarded as a towering figure of Americana, the reissue is both an archival project and a reminder of a moment of fearless reinvention. “For those who never experienced Spyboy in action, this album is the next best thing,” she says. “For me it’s a sweet and welcome trip down memory lane.”
With its fusion of country tradition, experimental edge, and live electricity, Spyboy remains one of the most vital recordings in Emmylou Harris’ extraordinary discography.
Spyboy (2025 Expanded Edition) Tracklisting
My Songbird (Jesse Winchester)
Where Will I Be
I Ain’t Living Long Like This (Rodney Crowell)
Love Hurts (Boudleaux Bryant)
Green Pastures
Deeper Well
Prayer In Open D
Calling My Children Home
Tulsa Queen
Wheels (The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Born To Run
Boulder To Birmingham
All My Tears (Julie Miller)
The Maker
A Thing About You (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers) *
All I Left Behind (Emmylou Harris, Kate & Anna McGarrigle) *
Every Grain Of Sand (Bob Dylan) * (Not on CD Version)
Get Up John (Bill Monroe) *
Sweet Old World (Lucinda Williams) *
* Previously Unreleased Bonus Tracks
Emmylou Harris Studio Album Discography
Solo Studio Albums:
Gliding Bird (1969)
Pieces of the Sky (1975)
Elite Hotel (1975)
Luxury Liner (1977)
Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town (1978)
Blue Kentucky Girl (1979)
Roses in the Snow (1980)
Evangeline (1981)
Cimarron (1981)
White Shoes (1983)
The Ballad of Sally Rose (1985)
Thirteen (1986)
Angel Band (1987)
Bluebird (1989)
Brand New Dance (1990)
Cowgirl’s Prayer (1993)
Wrecking Ball (1995)
Red Dirt Girl (2000)
Stumble into Grace (2003)
All I Intended to Be (2008)
Hard Bargain (2011)
Collaboration & Duo Albums:
Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions (with Linda Ronstadt, 1999)
With Linda Ronstadt & Dolly Parton: Trio (1987), Trio II (1999)
With Linda Ronstadt: Western Wall: The Tucson Sessions (1999)
Old Yellow Moon (with Rodney Crowell, 2013)
The Traveling Kind (with Rodney Crowell, 2015)
With Rodney Crowell: Old Yellow Moon (2013), The Traveling Kind (2015)
Notable Early Collaborations:
With Gram Parsons: GP (1973) and Grievous Angel (1974)
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