Husband and wife duos are not uncommon in bluegrass, though hardly the norm. We all know Darin & Brooke Aldridge and Kenny & Amanda Smith, but can you think of many others. Sierra Hull and Justin Moses often tour together, and Donna Ulisse and Rick Stanley perform in the same band, but they don’t co-bill or even share last names, so do they count?
We have a track premiere today from Julie and Dan Krolow, who go by Julie & Dan, to add to that list. This couple from Wisconsin have been touring and recording together since 2016, but the two began singing in tandem shortly after they were married. At first they offered their original songs primarily to friends for their weddings, until requests began to pile up of people asking for recordings. So they cut a pair of all-Gospel projects, Songs of Sorrow, Songs of Hope and Thy Holy Water, which have received millions of streams, and a new album releasing April 22 called Hymns – Some of Old, Some of New.
This newest record includes 21 tracks, nine Gospel favorites, and 12 written by Dan. Julie and Dan are the featured vocalists, with guest harmonies coming from heavy hitters like Dolly Parton, Rhonda Vincent, Ashley Lewis, and their daughter, Kiara Jolene.
Today’s premiere is a new version of a Dolly Parton classic, with Miss Dolly singing with Julie and Dan, which Dan says makes this recording for them.
“The generosity of Dolly Parton adding her beautiful harmonies to her 1975 hit, The Seeker, has been a dream come true. We could never have imagined that Julie and I would actually have the Queen of country music join us on one of our singles. We can’t thank her enough.
Dolly took this song to a whole new level! The musicianship of the track is ‘killer’ thanks to Dan Hochhalter (mandolin, fiddle, and banjo), Josh Matheny (dobro), Barry Bales (bass), and Marty Cheyka (rhythm guitar). We love the bluegrass twist we put on Dolly’s song and couldn’t be happier and more excited about how the song turned out.”
Have a listen.
The full Hymns – Some of Old, Some of New album from Julie & Dan will be available on Friday, April 22 from popular download and streaming services. If you would like to support the Krolows directly, digital downloads for this and all their other recordings can be purchased on Bandcamp.
