VIA PRESS RELEASE | Gary Stewart’s quavering vibrato and heart-tugging, cry-in-your-beer songs like the Top 10 country hits “Drinkin’ Thing,” “Out of Hand,” and the chart-topping “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinkin’ Doubles),” earned him a lasting place in country music history as The King of the Honky-Tonks. More than two decades after his passing, Stewart’s fans, new and old, can discover an untold chapter of his incredible story on One Track Mind, a collection of rare and previously unreleased recordings from Delmore Recording Society, to be released July 17.
One Track Mind finds Stewart toward the beginning of his career as a songwriter—newly arrived in Nashville from Fort Pierce, Florida, signing first with Cedarwood and then Forrest Hills publishing. These recordings—songwriting demos, an informal home tape, even a lone acetate—have been preserved from archival sources by producer Mark Linn and Stewart’s close friend Tommy Schwartz. Working primarily with early songwriting partner Bill Eldridge, several tunes heard on this collection would be recorded by luminaries of the genre, including Del Reeves (“One Track Mind”), Cal Smith (“You Can’t Housebreak a Tomcat”), Jack Greene (“There’s a Whole Lot About a Woman (A Man Don’t Know)”), and Nat Stuckey (“The Snuff Queen”). But no one sang these songs quite like Gary Stewart.
Those who know Stewart through his most famous recordings—namely, a near-decade run as a recording artist for RCA Victor in the ‘70s and ‘80s—will find unique and revealing detours on One Track Mind. The version of “The Snuff Queen” heard here, different from the one released as a single by Kapp in 1970, offers just Stewart’s voice and guitar, digging into a dark country-blues groove. “Beautiful River” Is a gorgeous, unfinished ballad recorded in the trailer he shared with Mary Lou, his beloved wife of more than 40 years; it features fingerpicked guitar and a soft, drifting whistle throughout.
The vinyl album’s closing track “Williamson County,” written with Mary Lou and Rick Durrett, is unlike anything Stewart recorded before or since: a ghostly murder ballad, with the singer’s voice stretched into an anguished howl that must be heard to be believed. It’s a stunning departure from the polished version recorded for 1975’s Out of Hand, Gary’s first LP for the RCA Victor label.
One Track Mind will be pressed on 140-gram, “Okeechobee purple” vinyl at Clampdown Record Pressing in Vancouver, BC, Canada. CD and streaming versions of the album will include four bonus tracks: the publishing demo “Morbid the Great,” and three head-turning country versions of hit singles from the Motown songbook.
Stewart recorded demo versions of the Four Tops’ “Baby I Need Your Loving” and “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch)” and Stevie Wonder’s “Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday” at the behest of the legendary label’s Jobete publishing arm in 1970, earning $30 for his attempt to entice other country artists to cut their own versions. (“Baby I Need Your Loving” and “Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday” were released by Delmore as a Record Store Day limited edition 7″ single in 2018.)
Taken together, the recordings heard on One Track Mind showcase the roots of Stewart, a musician born well outside the realm of Nashville’s Music Row who nonetheless would become one of the singular voices of the country genre in the 1970s. The Motown demos attracted the ear of producer Roy Dea, who helped Stewart sign to RCA Records. Their first collaboration together, Out of Hand, was a sensation, reaching No. 6 on Billboard’s country albums chart and yielding three hit BIllboard country singles: “Drinkin’ Thing” (No. 10), “Out of Hand” (No. 4), and “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinkin’ Doubles)” (No. 1).
Dea would produce Stewart’s next four albums for the label, and Stewart—despite a wild artistic streak that defied easy categorization—would place another 10 songs in the Top 40 of the country singles chart, including “Your Place or Mine,” “You’re Not the Woman You Used to Be,” and “Whiskey Trip.” Stewart was rightly praised in his lifetime for a musical authenticity—from the character of his songs to the timbre of his unmistakable voice—that enchanted critics and artists alike.
“Gary Stewart’s special attraction is the energetic diversity he displays when given a beer and a stage,” Time wrote of him in 1976. “The delivery…is as seasoned as the inside of an old spittoon, but heartfelt.” In an interview with Playboy, Bob Dylan cited Stewart as an artist he currently enjoyed; years later, the Pulitzer Prize winner made a stop in Florida to meet Stewart, singling out his song “Ten Years of This” as a recording he listened to repeatedly. Producer Dea said it best when he marveled, “You get hooked on Stewart…he’s like a damn drug.”
Last month, in April 2026, a definitive biography, Gary Stewart: I Am From the Honky-Tonks, was published from writer Jimmy McDonough (author of the New York Times bestseller Shakey: Neil Young’s Biography); it featured interviews with Gary, his wife Mary Lou, and country stars from Willie Nelson to Tanya Tucker.
