Troubadour prince Peter Case is set to release his new album Let Us Now Praise Sleepy John on August 7th on new label Yep Roc Records.

After 30-plus years as one of America's most enduring and treasured songwriters, Peter Case has made his most direct and affecting work to date. Case's first album of original material since 2002, Let Us Now Praise Sleepy John is naked and aching, calling to mind the best of the one-man-and-a-guitar ethos that has acted as the backbone of American songwriting since the early 20th century.

Case began his career as a teenage street musician in L.A. during the heyday of punk before forming the seminal power pop bands The Plimsouls and The Nerves. Going on to work with legends like T-Bone Burnett, Ry Cooder and David Hidalgo, Case has been honored with a three-disc tribute album by legends like Victoria Williams and Dave Alvin. Despite the accolades from his peers, Case is still focusing on making quality new music.

"This is the album that my fans have been asking me to make for a long time and the record I've wanted to make for longer than that," says Case. "I've always wanted to make a true solo record in the tradition of the ones I love, from Jimmie Rodgers' Never No Mo Blues and Robert Johnson's 29 songs to Woody Guthrie's Dust Bowl Ballads and Dylan's first four albums, on through Bert Jansch's and Nick Drake's solo recordings," he says. "Sleepy John Estes's Broke and Hungry has been an inspiration to me ever since I started playing."

Despite the fact that Let Us Now Praise Sleepy John is certainly centered around Case's voice, guitar and everyman lyrical themes, Peter saw fit to bring along a few friends that fell in line with his inspiration and vision for the album. English folk-rock legend Richard Thompson accompanies Case on "Every 24 Hours," Carlos Guitarlos lends his skills to "Underneath the Stars," Norm Hamlett (Merle Haggard's The Strangers) plays guitar on "That Soul Twist" and Chicana singer Lisa Flores contributes vocals on "Somebrightmorninblues."

The release of the album follows the release of part one of Case's 4-part memoir As Far As You Can Get Without A Passport. The books follow Case along the road from teenage busking to American songwriting royalty.

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