Jenny Lewis has shared her new song “Wasted Youth,” the third single from the singer’s upcoming On the Line. Like the LP’s previous singles, Lewis taps into the classic Seventies singer-songwriter sound on “Wasted Youth,” a catchy rumination that echoes her own difficult childhood.
“Why are you lying?/The bourbon’s gone/Mercury hasn’t been in retrograde for that long, oh no/Stop your hiding and drop that bomb/Do you remember when I used to sing you this little song,” Lewis sings. “I wasted my youth on a poppy/Just for fun.
On the track, Lewis is backed by an all-star collection of musicians that include bassist Don War, drummer Jim Keltner and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ Benmont Tench, who contributes Mellotron and the Vox Continental organ on the single.
“Wasted Youth” follows previous singles “Red Bull & Hennessy” and “Heads Will Roll,” which featured Ringo Starr. “He was cool — he just showed up one day with a smoothie and did double-drums with Jim [Keltner] on two songs,” Lewis told Rolling Stone of the Beatle legend’s cameo.
On the Line, written in the aftermath of Lewis’ breakup from a 12-year relationship and the death of her estranged mother, arrives March 22nd.