New York folk‑rock trio the Felice Brothers, who began busking in subway stations over twenty years ago, are receiving a dedicated tribute album. The project, titled Felice County Fair, was assembled by Brandy Schultz—a long‑time supporter of the band and wife of the Lumineers’ frontman Wesley Schultz—and features covers of the group’s songs by artists such as Brandon Flowers, Dawes, Old Crow Medicine Show, Deer Tick, Nathaniel Rateliff, and Bebe Stockwell.
Among the contributors, Bright Eyes— contemporaries of the Felice Brothers— have recorded a cover of the band’s 2008 track “Wonderful Life.” Conor Oberst, who previously joined the Felice Brothers to perform a Tom Petty song at a 2017 festival, delivers a stripped‑down, emotive rendition that feels like a natural fit for his own catalog. In a press release, Oberst said, “Whatever little check marks in my heart need to be checked to make the perfect music, they check all those things. The poetry is there, the soulfulness is there, the songcraft. Everything is so genuine. I want the world for them, and I want people to have the same experience I’ve had with how they’ve transformed my life with their art.”
The Lumineers also appear on the tribute, delivering a respectful interpretation of the 2019 song “The Kid.” Wesley Schultz shared a personal anecdote about his relationship with Brandy: “When we first started dating, we each made mix CDs for one another. We both put Felice Brothers songs on our playlists. It was then I knew she was a keeper. A lot of our initial falling in love was listening to the Felice Brothers.”
