Alison Brown & Steve Martin – “Dear Time” (feat. Jackson Browne with Jeff Hanna)
“Dear Time” is the kind of collaboration that feels inevitable once you hear it—acoustic, patient, and gently luminous. Instead of a star-power pileup, you get a small ensemble that listens first and speaks second. The song isn’t an argument with the clock so much as a conversation with it, asking for mercy, remembering what endures, and finding a little grace in the space between notes.
What it is
Banjo innovator Alison Brown and Steve Martin set a warm acoustic frame: interlocking banjo figures, brushed percussion, and guitar that shimmers like first light. Then the voices enter—Jackson Browne bringing that low, kind urgency, and Jeff Hanna (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) adding a familiar, lived-in harmony. It plays like a front-porch hymn for people who still believe songs can slow the pace of a day.
Sound & feel
Brown’s banjo doesn’t flash; it converses. Her tone is round and unhurried, locking with guitar in a lattice that leaves air for the lyric. Martin’s role is supportive and musical—tasteful lines, little conversational replies, a player who understands that restraint is a kind of generosity. The rhythm section keeps time without insisting on it, and when the chorus opens, the lift is all breath and wood rather than muscle. It’s recorded to feel close—headphone-intimate—so the small creaks and string noise become part of the prayer.
Writing & theme
“Dear Time” is written like a letter you never mailed: direct address, plain language, heavy meaning. The lines ask for softness from a hard constant—less rush, more mercy—and land on the idea that love and memory are the only tools we have to make minutes feel bigger. Browne sells that humility beautifully; he’s always been a specialist in ordinary holiness. When Hanna joins, the blend feels like a handshake across eras—California folk-rock through a bluegrass lens, with no seams showing. It’s not trying to be clever; it’s trying to be true.
Why it matters
In a landscape that often rewards volume, “Dear Time” makes its case with quiet conviction. Brown has built a career proving the banjo can hold anything you put in it—jazz harmony, chamber delicacy, front-porch fire—while Martin continues to be a musician first and celebrity last. Add Browne’s humane glow and Hanna’s country-rock lineage, and you get a collaboration that sidesteps trend and goes for timeless. There’s even a little outlaw spirit in that choice: do it your way, let the song breathe, trust the players.
Final Verdict
Gentle on the surface, sturdy underneath. “Dear Time” glows with craft, kindness, and the comfort of people who know exactly what to leave out. File it under late-afternoon light and conversations you hope never end.
References
- YouTube — “Dear Time” (Official Video): link
- Alison Brown — Official site: alisonbrown.com
- Steve Martin — Official site: stevemartin.com
- Jackson Browne — Official site: jacksonbrowne.com
- Nitty Gritty Dirt Band / Jeff Hanna: nittygritty.com
- Steve Martin announcement (FB): post
