Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan Announce New Compilation Album Where The Willow And The Dogwood Grow Featuring Bruce Springsteen, Willie Nelson, Norah Jones & More For May 2026 Release

Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan are being celebrated with a new multi-artist compilation album that highlights their expansive songwriting legacy. The collection, titled Where The Willow And The Dogwood Grow, is set for release in May of this year via Ace Records. Featuring a wide range of artists across genres, the project showcases the enduring influence of one of music’s most distinctive creative partnerships.

The album is part of Ace Records’ long-running songwriter series and places Waits and Brennan alongside legendary figures like Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen. Spanning decades of material, the compilation includes 19 tracks performed by artists from rock, jazz, gospel and folk, many of which were personally selected by Waits and Brennan themselves.

The record opens with a live version of “Jersey Girl” by Bruce Springsteen and closes with “Day After Tomorrow” by Joan Baez. Standout contributions include Johnny Cash’s moving rendition of “Down There By The Train,” track noted in the press release as especially meaningful to Waits and difficult to license. Elsewhere, artists like Willie Nelson, Norah Jones and Lucinda Williams bring their own interpretations to the duo’s work.

Waits’ genre-defying career, shaped in close collaboration with Brennan, has drawn from blues, jazz, vaudeville and experimental traditions, influencing generations of musicians across disciplines. This compilation aims to capture that breadth while honoring the emotional and artistic depth of their songwriting.

Where The Willow And The Dogwood Grow Tracklist:

1. Jersey Girl – Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band (Live at Meadowlands Arena, NJ – July 1981)
2. 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six – Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band
3. Gin-Soaked Boy – Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes
4. Jockey Full Of Bourbon – Los Lobos
5. Hang Down Your Head – Lucinda Williams
6. Temptation – Diana Krall
7. Yesterday Is Here – Bettye LaVette
8. Way Down In The Hole – The Blind Boys Of Alabama
9. Strange Weather – Marianne Faithfull
10. I Don’t Want To Grow Up – Ramones
11. Down There By The Train – Johnny Cash
12. House Where Nobody Lives – King Ernest
13. Picture In A Frame – Willie Nelson
14. Hold On – Madison Cunningham
15. The Long Way Home – Norah Jones
16. 2:19 – John Hammond
17. Diamond In Your Mind – Solomon Burke
18. Trampled Rose – Alison Krauss and Robert Plant
19. Day After Tomorrow – Joan Baez