Alex Hirsch Looks Back With New Americana Single “Memory Lane,” Out Now
The musical chameleon with eclectic tastes, Alex Hirsch releases his new single “Memory Lane,” out now, a country and Americana front porch-style ballad built around the pull of the past and the people who stay with us long after we have moved on. Set against lap steel guitar and layered harmonies, the song settles into an easy, unhurried groove, the kind that invites a listener to pour a drink and sit with their own memories for a while.
“Memory Lane” opens with an invitation into Hirsch’s storytelling. “Put another log on the fire, pour another glass of wine, and I’ll tell you my story about faded love and glory,” he sings, setting up a song built around reflection rather than regret. The chorus carries that same nostalgic pull forward: “Taking a ride down memory lane, just a left turn after pleasure and pain, the way I feel I just can’t explain, driving down memory lane,” a line that captures the song’s core idea, that some feelings need only be revisited, not explained.
The song’s inspiration comes from an ordinary moment turned meaningful. Songwriter Carl Paradise wrote “Memory Lane” after a visit to an old liquor store on a semi rural road west of Boston, Massachusetts, where he noticed a regular customer making small talk with the clerk behind the counter. That quiet scene stirred decades of memory about his time living in and around Boston, grounding the song’s imagery in a real place and a real feeling, and giving the track its unmistakably lived in quality.
Hirsch’s musical story stretches back to 1976, when he began playing guitar and piano as a child in Reseda, California. At ten years old, his father rented him an upright piano and arranged lessons with Dennis Considine, setting him on a path that soon led him to The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, and Steely Dan, the artists who continue to shape his sound today. He is the son of actor Judd Hirsch, though his own musical identity, rooted in Americana storytelling and classic songwriting craft, is entirely his own.
“Memory Lane” was built with a full band of seasoned collaborators. Hirsch takes on lead vocal and piano duties, joined by Lauren King on harmony and background vocals, Steve “Steel” Moonrider on lap steel guitar, Mike Frederick on drums, and Ron Marcus on bass. Mark Charles Hattersley adds organ and tambourine and served as mix engineer, while Matthew Alexander and Parker Freeman handled recording engineering. Hirsch produced the track alongside Paradise, who also mastered the recording, rounding out a tight knit creative team that gives the song its warm, organic feel.
Currently based in Michigan, Hirsch continues to write and record from the studio, with the door open to forming a full band for live performances as the song finds its audience.
“Memory Lane” marks a compelling entry point for an artist whose musical roots run deep and whose songwriting continues to grow with each release.
Hi, Alex! Good to meet you! Care to introduce yourself to the readers for those not familiar with your music?
Hello Canada!
I’m a lover of our big beautiful northern neighbor.
Got a rental upright piano at 10, learned The Beatles, Elton John and Kiss, found the guitar at 13 and have been trying to find a band since then. Lol
Today I’m heavily immersed in AI, using it for video generation but never for music origination. For music production, I’ve learned to use it as a prompt driven knob turning guru, like a digital Quincy Jones.
“Memory Lane” is about revisiting the past without getting stuck in it. Was there a particular memory in your own life that you found yourself returning to while recording this song?
The song generally affects me as I hope it affects everyone who’s lived a life or is living a life. When I hear this song, I think of Carl Paradise and his life, and I feel deeply for all people because every story is important, powerful, and unique.
You’ve been making music since you were a child in the 1970s. When you listen to yourself today, what do you hear that wasn’t there forty years ago?
That’s a complex question. In a nutshell I’ve always wanted to be a producer. Now technology allows me to do that so musically I’m spending most of my time producing songs that I wrote over the years that we’re never quite produced the way I’d dreamed them to be.
Being Judd Hirsch’s son is part of your story, but you’ve built your own creative path. Was there ever a point where you consciously decided you wanted your music to speak entirely for itself?
My father taught me how to be a free thinker and how to have the right to feel creative. He also let me hear the album ‘Tommy’ by The who when I was 2 years old which was a very good move. My music speaks for me and the people I collaborate with. I did put one of my dad’s poems to music during COVID which is on the YouTube page!