Chris Murphy Music

NEW LP — SONGS FROM THE TREES — OUT JULY 3, 2026

1. SONGS FROM THE TREES (4:22)
2. CLEAN BREAK (3:10)
3. DO YOU EVER WONDER? (4:02)
4. BITTER TEA (3:48)
5. THE END OF CHARLIE LEE (4:36)*
6. 300 DAYS AT SEAS (3:30)
7. WHEN SHE’S AROUND (4:42)

*Suggested tracks: 1, 2
All tracks FCC clean

All music composed & written by Chris Murphy
Except: The End of Charlie Lee by Chris Murphy & Seth Lakeman

---------------------------
©2026 Teahouse Records

Produced by Seth Lakeman
Engineered & Mastered by Josiah J Manning at Momentum Studios, Plymouth, UK

-----------------

Photo by Edith Held

SEE FULL DISCOGRAPHY

ABOUT CHRIS

In another era, I would have played square dances, been a court musician, or a circus fiddler, and loved every minute of it,” says veteran LA violinist and songwriter Chris Murphy, whose spirited and haunting original music bends genres and even centuries with ease.

Murphy grew up in an Irish-Italian family near New York City, surrounded by the disparate sounds of his neighbors’ traditional music: Italian mandolin songs, pulsing Latin rhythms, and bracing Irish rounds. Eventually falling under the spell of late, great multi-instrumentalist David Lindley (Jackson Browne, Ry Cooder, Bob Dylan) Murphy went on to explore Turkish and Indian music at Bard College, and studied composition at Boston’s prestigious New England Conservatory of Music.

Since then, Murphy has hypnotized crowds in more than forty US states, done extensive tours of England, Belgium , and The Netherlands, and amassed a breathtakingly deep catalog of over 500 works. His over fifteen original albums—including 2023’s brilliant “The Road & the Stars”—boast A-list players from the Tom Waits band, Wilco, X, The Desert Rose Band, Elvis Costello, and the Buena Vista Social Club.

“To me, music is liquid,” Murphy explains thoughtfully. “I’ll twist and turn, and hammer and mold, and shape, cut, and paste the music to create a fresh experience for my audience at all costs.”

LISTEN TO SONGS FROM THE TREES

SONGS FROM THE TREES

CLEAN BREAK

PRESS / REVIEWS

“One of the best songwriters in popular music unjustly flying under the radar.”

NO DEPRESSION

“Haunting and enchanting. A talented and innovative player traveling on the edge."

DIRTY LINEN MAGAZINE

"Flushed with atmospheric ambience. A steady flow of everchanging tones and textures.”

GOLDMINE

Video Premiere: Chris Murphy “Songs From The Trees”

by Andrew Frolish - AmericanaUK

New music from internationally renowned violinist Chris Murphy transports us through time and space into a cinematic world of myth and mystery. Steeped in atmosphere and layered with musical tension and release, Songs From The Trees finds Murphy in typically expansive form; urgent and dramatic, the song’s timeless feel is enhanced by the endless landscape and big skies that form the backdrop to Murphy’s performance in the accompanying video. Featuring the producing talents of British folk star Seth Lakeman, Songs From The Trees benefits from rhythmic banjo as well as Murphy’s sweeping, resonant fiddle. Meanwhile, his vocal performance is almost spoken throughout the verses, creating a sense of intimacy despite the way the song swells and inhabits wide open spaces.

Murphy says of the recording process and of working with Seth Lakeman: “The composition, Songs From The Trees, keeps circling these themes I can’t seem to shake off: Desire, longing, hunger, searching, redemption… I am a hopeless wanderer, seeker, gambler, willing to risk it all for one more moment of magic, beauty, clarity. Ultimately, this will destroy me; this I know, but I surrender. I was blown away by Seth’s power and beauty as a folk musician. I thought his records were very compelling and well-written, channelling something at once ancient and modern. I love his approach to traditional melodies and themes, at the same time bringing something contemporary and relevant to the music. I was very inspired and impressed with Seth’s work in the studio as he brought a thoughtful, beautiful, and unique perspective to my music. His contributions on banjo, guitar, fiddle, and mandolin were the perfect complement and accent to my music. Our engineer, Josiah J. Manning, was also a significant contributor, combining state-of-the-art recording techniques with soulful musicianship and guitar playing. We became a powerhouse power trio for five days, conceptualising, tracking, recording, and mixing a song a day with minimal second thoughts and 100% emotion. Being in Dartmoor National Park with its epic landscape and ethereal beauty was also a big influence, the ideal setting to create and birth this batch of songs, owing a debt to the beauty and poetry of the United Kingdom and its people.”

Songs From The Trees is the title track from Murphy’s brand new album, which is due on 3rd July 2026 on Teahouse Records, coinciding with his latest performance as ‘artist at large’ at the Maverick Festival in the Suffolk countryside. A seasoned Maverick stalwart, Murphy is known for appearing on every stage with a range of different musicians over the weekend, his hypnotic violin providing a stunning accompaniment and transforming artists’ songs into unique, new versions that linger in the memories of the festival-faithful. Throughout July, Murphy will be playing venues across the UK – tickets available here – do take in a show if you can; this is where Murphy’s music truly comes to life, with looping phrases and rhythms giving surprising sonic texture to his storytelling.

The New York-born, Los Angeles-based Murphy describes his music as a “…live film score.” Indeed, he produces hypnotic soundscapes that act as soundtracks to the universal human emotions and experiences of love, loss, hope and redemption. Chris Murphy is also hugely prolific, having already released an album this year, Powers of Observation, under his Seven Crows moniker. Check out the new collection and let those songs flow.

https://americana-uk.com/video-premiere-chris-murphy-songs-from-the-trees