The Mavis Staples Birthday Party last year with Mavis (left), Jackson Browne, and Margo Price. It was a great night!

I write to music when I write most of the time, which is how these playlists get made. There’s usually one song, though, that becomes THE song for a book. For Wreck Your Heart, “You’re Not Alone” by Mavis Staples became that song. Not country, you’re crying! Exactly. There’s more than country in Wreck Your Heart, and “You’re Not Alone” is just a perfect song. I’m partial to this live recording with Jeff Tweedy playing guitar. Watch for the moment she almost jumps in too early. I love that moment between them.

Happy New Year to you all! You are not alone.