Keith Urban has revealed details of flow state, his thirteenth studio album, due for release on 12 June 2026 through Hit Red and MCA Nashville. The Australian born country star has taken an unexpected direction for the project, assembling an album largely comprised of reinterpretations of classic yacht rock songs, alongside one newly written track, ‘We Go Back’, featuring Michael McDonald.
by Paul Cashmere
The album marks a notable moment in Urban’s career. While he has frequently incorporated cover songs into concerts and occasionally recorded them throughout his catalogue, flow state is the first album-length project built primarily around material originally recorded by other artists.
Urban first flagged the concept earlier this year during the Country Radio Seminar in Nashville, where he revealed he had been working on what he described as a yacht rock record. At the time he said, “It’s the first time I’ve done an album of covers. There is one original on the record. It’s a thematic record… yacht rock songs.”
His explanation reflected the broader intent behind the project. Urban said he was inspired by the original spirit of yacht rock, describing it as music created as “an antidote to stress” and designed to uplift listeners.
Recorded at The Sound in Nashville, formerly known as The Tracking Room, the project reportedly began without any plans for commercial release. Urban initially recorded a handful of songs for enjoyment before the sessions expanded into a complete album.
The tracklist draws heavily from the late 1970s and early 1980s era commonly associated with yacht rock. Opening track ‘Steal Away’ was originally a 1980 hit for Robbie Dupree. ‘Baby Come Back’ first appeared in 1977 as the signature song for Player. ‘Magnet And Steel’, featuring Little Big Town, revisits Walter Egan’s 1978 hit, while ‘Just The Two Of Us’ reinterprets the Grammy-winning 1981 classic by Grover Washington Jr and Bill Withers.
Other selections include Stephen Bishop’s ‘On And On’, Little River Band’s ‘Help Is On Its Way’, Ambrosia’s ‘How Much I Feel’, Seals & Crofts’ ‘Summer Breeze’, Gino Vannelli’s ‘I Just Wanna Stop’ and Bread’s ‘Guitar Man’, which features guest guitarist John Mayer.
The lone original composition, ‘We Go Back’, sits at the centre of the record and pairs Urban with Michael McDonald, one of the defining voices of the yacht rock era through his work with The Doobie Brothers and as a solo artist.
For Urban, recording an album of covers is a departure, but not an unfamiliar exercise. Throughout his career he has regularly reinterpreted songs outside the country genre, often using them as opportunities to showcase his guitar playing and musical influences.
One of his earliest and most recognised covers was ‘Jeans On’, originally recorded by Scottish singer-songwriter David Dundas in 1976. Urban’s version appeared on his breakthrough 2002 album Golden Road and introduced many country listeners to the song.
His live performances have frequently ventured even further afield. During the global One World: Together At Home broadcast he delivered an acoustic version of Steve Winwood’s ‘Higher Love’. He has also performed New Radicals’ ‘You Get What You Give’, Keane’s ‘Somewhere Only We Know’, Taylor Swift’s ‘Lover’ and Bee Gees classic ‘To Love Somebody’.
More recently Urban attracted attention for a live rendition of Chappell Roan’s ‘Pink Pony Club’, while his performances of ‘Better Man’ have carried a unique connection. Although the song became a hit for Little Big Town, Urban has regularly performed it in concert after co-writing the track before it was recorded by the group.
The release of flow state arrives during a period when heritage pop and soft rock catalogues continue to find new audiences through streaming platforms and social media. Yacht rock, once viewed as a niche descriptor, has evolved into a commercially recognised format, with artists across multiple genres revisiting songs from the era.
Whether long-time country fans embrace the stylistic shift remains to be seen. However, Urban’s track record of crossing musical boundaries suggests the project is less about nostalgia and more about exploring songs that have shaped his own listening habits.
With flow state arriving on 12 June in digital and CD formats, followed by a vinyl edition on 10 July in the United States, the album offers a different perspective on Urban’s influences while highlighting the songwriting catalogue that helped define an era of American radio.
Flow State Tracklisting
Steal Away
Baby Come Back
Magnet And Steel (featuring Little Big Town)
Just The Two Of Us
On And On
We Go Back (featuring Michael McDonald)
Help Is On Its Way
How Much I Feel
Summer Breeze
I Just Wanna Stop
Guitar Man (featuring John Mayer)
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