Americana Legend John McEuen at Caffe Lena Aug. 9

SARATOGA SPRINGS — “It was time to bring back the art form of spoken word, where there’s a story with music behind it,” says country, bluegrass, and Americana legend John McEuen regarding his new album “The Newsman: A Man Of Record.”

The record, featuring 10 spoken word tracks and one instrumental piece, was released on Compass Records this week. On Aug. 9, McEuen performs live at Caffe Lena.  

The collection spans various literary themes from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s Civil War-era poem “Killed at the Ford” to Robert Service’s “The Cremation of Sam McGee” about a Yukon prospector. 

“The music does not have to reflect anything like a melody, so it’s supportive of the words,” says McEuen, who was born in California in 1945 and began his musical journey at 16 while working in a magic shop alongside Steve Martin, and later became co-founding member of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, orchestrated the groundbreaking “Will The Circle Be Unbroken” album, and to date counts more than three-dozen albums in which he featured prominently. 

“I chose some pieces that were not spoken words with music but made them so, and some pieces that were definite spoken words with music and tried to support them as well,” he says. 

For more information about the artist, visit johnmceuen.com. For tickets to the Caffe Lena show on Aug. 9, go to: caffelena.org.