Vocal group Rockland Road came across a song a few years ago that they instantly felt passionate about, though they could hardly have imagined how meaningful it would be coming out of a worldwide pandemic. “Mountains Up Ahead” not only speaks to the peaks and valleys we’ve all experienced in the last two years, but also carries a message of resiliency. The new single and video will be available today, Friday, Feb. 25, through all streaming platforms and digital retailers.
Co-written by Grammy Award–winning singer/songwriter Marcus Hummon (“One of These Days”/Tim McGraw, “Bless the Broken Road”/Rascal Flatts), “Mountains Up Ahead” doesn’t pull any punches—people everywhere have found themselves “too afraid to whisper” and “too angry to shout.” But as the chorus explains, there is a path to putting our troubles behind us:
Keep the mountains up ahead
Keep close to the river
Turn where the river bends
Leave all your valleys in the rearview mirror
The dust will rise and they will disappear
March Martin’s soulful lead vocal is perfectly accompanied by the texture-rich harmonies provided by his dad, Paul, a Grammy Award-winning artist who has played with Marty Stuart and the Oak Ridge Boys and is the former lead singer of country/pop supergroup Exile; his mom, Jamie Allen Martin, daughter of Oak Ridge Boys’ lead singer Duane Allen and his wife, Opry singer Norah Lee; and siblings Kell, Texas and Tallant—all six are talented vocalists who play an incredible 23 different instruments.
“We immediately felt connected to this song and knew we had to record it, but had no idea just how relevant the message would become once the world seemed to change overnight,” Jamie says. “Now that it appears things are opening up again, we are thrilled to release this song and get back to playing live music!”
Rockland Road has performed everywhere from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry to the U.S. Library of Congress and the White House. The group already has several dates scheduled for this spring before hitting the summer fair festival trail.
