Red Velvet Media ®

In his three and a half decades as a recording artist, Willie Nile has earned a reputation as both a fiercely committed rock ’n’ roller and a singularly insightful songwriter. It’s Nile’s introspective side that fuels If I Was A River, a deeply compelling ten-song collection that diverges from his usual sound, while affirming the remarkable melodic and lyrical skills that have long endeared the artist to his passionately loyal fan base.Working with Grammy-winning producer Stewart Lerman (Boardwalk Empire, Antony and the Johnsons, Loudon Wainwright III, Dar Williams) Nile recorded the material in an appropriately spare environment that helped to capture the songs’ intimacy and immediacy. He also employed the same Steinway Grand piano that he'd played 34 years earlier on the evening of the death of John Lennon, while both Lennon and Nile were recording at Manhattan’s Record Plant. When Nile was working on If I Was A River, the legendary piano was residing at Hobo Sound in Weehawken, NJ, where he recorded the ne