A Passing Train- A Compilation

Throughout his extensive and diverse career, Stephen Doster, an inductee into the Texas Music Legends Hall of Fame, will release his seventh record, A Passing Train-A Compilation, on Atticus Records on Friday, September 6, 2024. This double disc release will feature 24 songs and a 24-page booklet showcasing 44 years of Doster’s songwriting and recording history from 1980 to 2024. The album will contain 14 previously unreleased songs and ten songs previously released on one of his six earlier albums. The release will be celebrated with a show at The Backstage at El Mercado on Saturday, September 7, 2024, featuring performances by Chris Searles, Brian Standefer, Randy Miller, Dave Madden, JM Stevens, Kyle Brock, John Viehweg, Kim Hayley, Will Sexton and more.

 Two songs, “A Passing Train” and “The One That I Got (Melinda’s Song),” were recorded in 2024, specifically for this release. Each song has a year written by each title, identifying the era from which it came. “This Is No Accident,” 1980, is the oldest song from Doster’s original touring band, which formed gradually on the stage of The Hole In The Wall in the late 1970s. 

Stephen is especially excited that four songs from 1982 have been curated from his work with his friend and mentor, James Honeyman-Scott of the Pretenders. “Jimmy was on break with his band and in Texas with his wife, Peggy Sue, when he heard some demos. Lucky for me, he wanted to work with me as my producer, which was a dream come true.” Sadly, he passed away while they were working. The main master tape was stolen, and its chance of being heard greatly diminished. Luckily, inspired by The Beatles’ recent restoration of cassette tapes, Doster found these working demos with Honeyman-Scott in a box in his drawer. “These tapes initially sounded unworkable, but then I realized my cassette player was more the problem. I then digitized it, took it to the studio, and my collaborators at EAR Studio, James Stevens and Jim Wilson, at Jim Wilson Mastering, made it sound as good as possible.” These recordings are from the original recordings and have not been altered with AI. The rest of the unreleased songs are from before the release of Doster’s debut, Rosebud. Indie records were not as prevalent then, so they were never released. 

In 2023, Stephen and his wife, photographer Melinda Doster, lost their only son, Django Doster. His paintings and drawings, along with his wife’s photos, will be featured in the 24-page booklet accompanying this record, which is dedicated to his life.