Press release –
AJ Swearingen and Jayne Kelli of the Nashville-based country/Americana duo Swearingen & Kelli have released a new single, “Summer’s End” (a cover of a John Prine song). Recommended if you like: John Prine, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell, The Civil Wars, Buddy and Julie Miller, Ocie Elliott.
The beauty of impermanence is sung to life in John Prine’s “Summer’s End” by Americana duo Swearingen & Kelli. Steeped in tenderness, their rendition brings harmony-rich intimacy to one of Prine’s most poignant works. With Swearingen’s guitar work laying the foundation, the duo’s honey-warm vocals intertwine to reshape the song into something both reverent and deeply personal. Their interpretation balances fragility with resilience, echoing the way Prine captured love, loss, and the fleeting nature of time.
Swearingen & Kelli’s story begins in a Florida songwriters club, wherePennsylvania native AJ Swearingen and Michigan-born Jayne Kelli first crossedpaths over a decade ago. They became fast friends, eloped in Punta Cana, and setoutfor Nashville, chasing the kind of timeless music that shaped them. Recent songs like“Break Me Down”(premiered viaThe Bluegrass Situation) and“Cold-Hearted Truth (Alt. Version)” (premiered viaAmericana UK) reveal theduo’s expressive range, from grit-laced bluesy tension to stripped-down,emotionally vulnerable balladry. Their 2023 EP, Build Myself Up from theGround, earned praise fromThe Bluegrass Situation, Wide Open Country, andAmericana Highways, who said they sound “as good as John Prine withBonnieRaitt on ‘Angel From Montgomery.’”Their songs carry both beauty and resilience. The couple has weathered losingboth fathers to Parkinson’s disease, and mold exposure challenges leading to fivemoves in one year. Through it all, they’ve kept theircenter in music: Harmony-rich country and folk songs rooted in love, survival, and truth-telling.
Based in Nashville, the pair has carved out a space with evocative guitar work andvocals steeped in ’60s and ’70s country-folk traditions. They’ve shared the stagewith legends like Crystal Gayle, Kenny Rogers, Tom Rush, and David Bromberg,while continuing to write, record, and tour with a sound that bridges the past andpresent.
Says Jayne Kelli of “Summer’s End”:
“When I sang over top of AJ’s vocals, I literally teared up. I had no idea where that came from. When I got out of the vocal booth, AJ told me he was choked up singing this song, too. This song is just so beautifully written, it’s so poetic. It has become a favorite of mine.”
Says AJ Swearingen of “Summer’s End”:
“I detuned the guitar for a rich and deep sound. When I sang this, as Jayne said, it hit me emotionally. There’s something about Prine’s writing that gets right to the core.”
