HomeEF CountryListen to Larry Fleet's superb new song 'Layaway' & find out which...

Listen to Larry Fleet’s superb new song ‘Layaway’ & find out which store items are ‘laid away’ the most

Known for the depth of his heart-and-soul originals, Big Loud Records’ Tennessee troubadour Larry Fleet hits the blue-collar nail on the head with a studio version of ‘Layaway’, a soon to be signature telling the simple story of hard work in hard times to provide for your family.

Narrating the tune originally released in 2022 as one of his Live From 1979 performance clips, his full-voiced baritone enlivens the song he co-wrote with Joshua Miller and Mark Trussell about showing up daily, putting ‘a little more down’ on a wish list full of gifts until he doesn’t owe a dime on a working man’s hymn for the ages.

“When times get tough, the tough get to workin’ hard where I’m from,” Fleet notes. “I worked construction for years before this dream started to take shape for me, and I know how much it takes sometimes to keep things afloat. Sacrificing for your family is one of the most admirable things in the world to me, something I’ve seen my family and friends do for each other all my life. I wanted to pay tribute to that effort and dedication and write one for them.”

With 25+ headline shows on the horizon, Fleet is keeping his foot on the gas, revving up his schedule with support slots with Parker McCollum and Jon Pardi, along with several festivals and fairs including Summerfest, Country Fest, Country Stampede, and Moon River Music Festival. 

“I just can’t believe the way these folks have shown up for us,” Fleet says in awe of his touring demand. “This headline run has really started pickin’ up steam and the boys and I can feel it every night on stage. To have these shows to look forward to, especially at the Ryman which almost feels like a hometown show nowadays the way those crowds are so good to us. Shoot, to get to headline there and to sell it out so fast like that?”

The idea of ‘Layaway’ is a very American one that has not been, historically, as prevalent in the UK in modern times as it has in the USA or even in Australia and New Zealand where the process is called ‘Layby’. Layaway is a purchase in which the seller reserves an item for a consumer until the consumer completes all the payments necessary to pay for that item, and only then hands over the item. Rather than taking the item home and then repaying the debt on a regular schedule, as in most installment plans or hire purchases, the layaway customer does not receive the item until it is completely paid for. There is sometimes a fee associated, since the seller must “lay” the item “away” in storage until the payments are completed. Because there is little risk involved for the seller, layaway can be readily offered to those with bad credit.

The items most associated with layaway are furniture, technology like PCs and tablets, jewellery and children’s toys for Christmas. It’s become increasingly popular for anonymous donors to clear layaway lists at stores, releasing the goods to their intended purchasers early as an act of charity too.

Layaway became common during the Great Depression of the 1930s but it was widely withdrawn during the 1980s as the ubiquity of credit cards decreased its utility. The banking crash of 2008 saw the process rise in popularity again to the point where by 2012 many retailers were heavily advertising their layaway service and offering it for free (or effectively free) if all conditions were met. Kmart has been providing layaway in the United States for over forty years,and was at one time the only major national discount retailer offering the service. Other large retailers offering layaway programs include Burlington Coat Factory, Marshalls, Sears, and T.J. Maxx.

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