The personnel involved in the recording and production of
Here & Now departs sharply from previous projects and represents an effort to reconnect with fresh, young talent. The album is co-produced by
James Iha (of
The Smashing Pumpkins) and
Adam Schlesinger (of
Fountains of Wayne and
Ivy). Guest artists include
Ryan Adams,
Ben Kweller,
Jim James and Patrick Hallahan of
My Morning Jacket, Matthew Caws and Ira Elliot of
Nada Surf, Mark Rozzo of Maplewood, and longtime collaborator and friend
Stephen Bishop. Veteran America drummer Will Leacox joins in on percussion. Cover songs include "Indian Summer" (Maplewood), "Golden" (My Morning Jacket), and "Always Love" (Nada Surf). The recording sessions were completed in July 2006, but a scheduled September release was eventually pushed back to January 2007. This was the first known occasion on which America recorded in a studio in
New York City. The album reached No. 52 in its debut week, the highest position for the band since 1982's
View from the Ground. The first disc is composed of brand-new studio recordings, while a second disc features a live performance of the entire ''
History: America's Greatest Hits'' album as recorded for "Then...Again...Live!" on
XM Satellite Radio, with longtime sidemen Willie Leacox on drums, Michael Woods on guitar and keyboards, and newcomer
Richard Campbell on bass and vocals. Several alternate editions of
Here & Now exist with a bonus track added at the end of disc one. These editions could only be purchased at
Best Buy,
Borders,
Wal-Mart, and via
iTunes digital download. A version sold at
Target included a bonus DVD containing eight tracks of the XM performance. Of the bonus tracks, the title song and "Saturday Sky" originally appeared on
Gerry Beckley's solo record
Horizontal Fall (also the original source for "Love and Leaving"), while "Paradise" premiered on
The Complete Greatest Hits. ==Track listing==