The story here -- the latest collaboration from Rodney Crowell and friends -- paints a picture of things that aren't all that rosy when you're living like flatland hillbillies. The ones who, according to Crowell, Lee Ann Womack and Randy Rogers, are just getting by on what they can, and getting by on what they've got. By the end of the new tune, the singers draw the conclusion that living on the edge of nowhere isn't for the faint of heart.

"Flatland Hillbillies" will be on Crowell's next album, TEXAS, due out Aug. 15. It's an album full of collaborations with Crowell's friends from inside and outside the country genre. And on August 10, Crowell will be inducted into the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame in Carthage, Texas.