Jim White – “Silver Threads” (audio) (premiere)

Here’s to the holidays. Humankind tends to embrace the winter season as a time to get together and make new memories together. Some use it as a time to reminisce, not only on the good times, but the rockier moments, too.

Jim White does as such on the rocking “Silver Threads”. Featuring a driving instrumentation, some catchy “yeah, yeah, yeahs”, and a celebratory horn section, one would not be remiss to think of the Georgia singer-songwriter’s new jam as a joyous number at first. At the end of the day, too, it’s more encouraging than anything else, reminding listeners that even in the face of great loss, healing new beginnings can be made if only we take the time to learn our lessons and step forward on a fresh path in life with grace.

It’s also the first tune you will hear from off of his upcoming record,
Waffles, Triangles & Jesus. It’s set to be released on White‘s own imprint on 9 February 2018. Special guests will be making appearances on the album, as well, including Holly Golightly and Dead Rock West. For starters, the latter’s Cindy Wasserman offers her vocals to “Silver Threads”.

“I wrote ‘Silver Threads’ in the wake of a rough split with an amazing woman who I loved but knew I couldn’t stay with. We’d come to this rock and hard place moment and I saw no way to go on,” says White. “Being ‘the leaver’ in a relationship is a resolutely unfamiliar role for me, one that I’ve continued to struggle with long after her and me parted ways.”

He continues, “It just felt wrong that I’d never laid hands on a proper farewell, a way to convey to this beautiful soul the profound gratitude I felt toward her for our years together, for the countless miles we walked side by side through hell and high water. I tried to put my feelings into some coherent form but time and time again words simply failed me. Eventually I surrendered the struggle of expression to song form where, in short order, the backbone of ‘Silver Threads’ coalesced.”

“Set in a fictional train station it’s simultaneously a eulogy, a prayer and ultimately an exhortation for the both of us to aim for higher ground as we put the pieces of our lives back together.”

“Originally the music was turgid, morose, but the song was not having any of it. Notions of connectivity and hope overran the garden variety self-pitying romantic malaise typical to break-up songs. At that point it was clear I needed help breathing life into the track so I asked vocal spark plug Cindy Wasserman from Dead Rock West to represent the feminine side of this story—it’s only fair having a feminine counterpoint right? She jumped in heart and soul and all of a sudden that sad song turned into a romp. How did that happen? I don’t know, but I damn sure hope it informs on the arc of healing with me and that fine woman I wrote ‘Silver Threads’ for.”