Huey Lewis and the News have returned with their first new song in over 10 years, “Her Love Is Killin’ Me,” a snappy rocker that will appear on the band’s forthcoming album, which is expected to arrive in 2020.
The track is delightfully reminiscent of Huey Lewis and the News’ Eighties heyday, with crisp drums and bass buoying organ, guitar and a punchy horn section. Lewis’ voice sits a little lower in his register, but he still packs his vocals with plenty of spirit as he sings, “My head hurts, my body aches/I quit drinking but I got the shakes/So sore, I can hardly walk/And I just mumble when I tr-try to talk.”
Huey Lewis and the News announced their return in January, revealing they’d struck a deal with BMG to record their first album of original songs since 2001’s Plan B. The news came a little less than a year after Lewis was forced to cancel a 40-date tour after experiencing sudden hearing loss (he was later diagnosed with Ménière’s disease). While the ailment has prevented Lewis from performing live, the band was still able to cut the new record at their own Troutfarm studio in Marin County, California.
“We were in no hurry with these songs,” Lewis said in a statement. “The more we road-tested them the tighter they got, and I think we ended up with some of our best work.”
Despite the long gap between albums, Huey Lewis and the News have remained fairly busy. Along with regular tours, they recorded a tribute album to Stax Records, Soulsville, which arrived in 2010, and they also handled the closing credits song to Seth Rogen and James Franco’s 2008 stoner comedy classic, Pineapple Express.