Mary Chapin Carpenter has set June 12 as the release date for 'Ashes and Roses,' the 12th studio album of her career and her fourth for Zoë/Rounder Records (including a 2008 holiday disc). 'Ashes and Roses' is the follow-up to the Grammy-nominated 2010 album, 'The Age of Miracles,' a Top 10 country and No. 1 folk album.

Among the tracks on the new collection is 'Soul Companion,' a duet with pop superstar James Taylor. In advance of the new disc, Mary Chapin will tour for the first time with longtime friend Shawn Colvin. The special shows will feature the pair performing as a duo and will intimately spotlight the expansive catalogs of both artists' celebrated careers. Mary Chapin has a solo headlining tour planned for later in the year as well.

A five-time Grammy recipient (who has been nominated for the honor 15 times), Mary Chapin has sold in excess of 13 million albums, scoring country hits with such songs as 'Passionate Kisses' and 'He Thinks He'll Keep Her.'

And although she has also been a contributing newspaper columnist and guest essayist, Mary Chapin insists anything outside of songwriting is also outside her comfort zone.

"I have periods of time where I'm immersed in songwriting and go for weeks and months into it," she told The Boot in 2010. "And then I sort of leave it for a while and go live my life. When I'm doing it, I do it every day. It's almost like a discipline. And when I'm not doing it, it's always comforting to know it's there if I feel like going to it."

Watch Mary Chapin Carpenter's 'Shut Up and Kiss Me' Video


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