My Favorite Mistakes

You can think of Esther Rose’s warm, hopeful country songs like points on a map. The New Orleans singer-songwriter takes pleasure in guiding you through colorful landmarks—especially those throughout her hometown—but she also makes time for smaller, quieter spots: say, the bar where a relationship turned sour, or the dreary high school where she and her sister begrudgingly drove each morning. Recorded direct-to-tape and accentuated with lap steel and fiddle, her songs pull you in like this; she wants you to see the scenery, learn the history, and feel at home before she sends you on your way. With her two solo records—2017’s This Time Last Night (Mashed Potato) and 2019’s You Made It This Far (Father/Daughter)—Esther Rose is at the beginning of her own journey. Her vibrant, homespun music has earned comparisons to Hank Williams and Rilo Kiley, and, over the past year, she has toured with acts such as Nick Lowe & Los Straitjackets, The Cactus Blossoms, and Charley Crockett. Carving new ground while drawing on the tradition of classic folk music, she uses tender stories to depict deeper cosmic truths. As she sings, she invites you to a world that feels familiar, magical, and entirely her own. On her new EP, My Favorite Mistakes, Rose and her band cover a selection of downer anthems close to her heart. Recorded live over three days, it includes songs written by Sheryl Crow, Nick Lowe, Roy Orbison, and, of course, Hank Williams. “When I was starting out on my guitar playing/songwriting path,” Rose says, “I would listen to Hank Williams on my headphones and walk for miles and miles across town and back. Hank is one of the best teachers I've had when it comes to writing simply and directly, with humor and sincerity.” Through these performances, Rose sings not only in tribute to her heroes but also in deep, intimate conversation with them, traveling their lonesome highways to find her own new destinations.

On this covers EP, the country singer digs into the roots in some of her favorite dark love songs, from Sheryl Crow to Nick Lowe to Hank Williams.