Veteran Southern rockers 38 Special have debuted a second advance track from their forthcoming studio album, Milestone. The tune, titled “Slightly Controversial,” is a soulful, grooving rock song featuring Train singer Pat Monahan sharing lead vocals with 38 Special frontman Don Barnes.
Videos by American Songwriter
The track is available now via streaming services, and a companion lyric video has premiered at 38 Special’s YouTube channel. The clip features graphics and footage inspired by vintage film noir flicks and pulp novels.
Speaking about the theme of “Slightly Controversial,” Barnes explained in a press statement, “This song is wrapped around a mystery woman who’s been through a few things in her life. She wants to keep people guessing and talking about her every move and they just can’t seem to figure her out. Her choice to be an enigma is for her own emotional protection. I’ve known someone like this and felt compelled to explore the story.”
Don added about the tune, “The song is a powerful guitar banger with Pat Monahan and me singing together. Pat absolutely crushed it! We all had a great time putting that track together.”
Monahan, meanwhile, shared how the collaboration came about.
“A while back I sang on Joe Bonamassa’s version of ‘Hold On Loosely,’ one of the all-time great songs from 38 Special,” Pat noted. “Don heard it and contacted me about ‘Slightly Controversial.’ What a great honor to sing on a track from one of my favorite bands and songwriters. I hope I did it justice.”
Barnes also revealed that he and Monahan now have plans to co-write songs in the future.
More About the Milestone Album
As previously reported, Milestone is a collection of nine new original tunes that will be released on September 19. It’s 38 Special’s first new studio album since Drivetrain, which was released in 2004.
Milestone, which celebrates 38 Special’s 50-year history, features songwriting contributions from longtime 38 Special collaborator Jim Peterik, co-founder of Survivor and The Ides of March, and Randy Bachman of The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive fame.
Barnes co-produced Milestone with Peterik and the duo co-wrote wrote six of the album’s tracks together. Don also co-wrote two additional tunes on the album, including “Slightly Controversial” and the Bachman collaboration “Long Long Train.”
Barnes explained that he wanted to update 38 Special’s sound, combining classic and contemporary influences.
“After all this time, we wanted to create a more modern 38 Special album,” he explained. “This is a fresh, updated approach to the sound we’ve been making together for so long. Why not make a big statement after all these years? When you’re reintroducing yourself to the world, ‘good enough’ doesn’t work anymore. If you’re gonna do it, you might as well go big.”
“All I Haven’t Said,” a heartfelt, melodic rock ballad, was released as Milestone’s lead single. It was co-written by Barnes, Peterik, and Don’s wife, Christine. You can check out a music video for the tune now on YouTube.
Meanwhile, Barnes will promote Milestone’s upcoming release during a September 3 appearance on the TalkShopLive website’s Rock and Roll Channel. The one-hour show will premiere at 7 p.m. ET and will then be available to view on demand. Barnes will chat about the making of Milestone, offering details about each track.
Fans can purchase exclusive autographed Milestone CDs and colored-vinyl LPs now at TalkShop.live. You also can pre-order Milestone here.
38 Special’s 2025 Tour Plans
38 Special is on tour in the U.S. now. The band has almost 30 upcoming concerts lined up in 2025, plotted out through a November 15 show in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 38 Special also has a February 16, 2026, performance scheduled in Greeneville, Tennessee.
The band’s itinerary includes a few dates supporting Kansas, as well as headlining shows, festival gigs, and state and county fair performances. On October 9, 38 Special will perform at Styx’s Rockin’ in Paradise vacation event and festival in Miramar Beach, Florida. Styx and John Waite also part of that day’s lineup.
Visit 38Special.com for the group’s full tour schedule.
(Photo by Nick Spanos)
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