The material for Southland of the Heart is culled from a myriad of songwriters, many of whom have contributed tunes to prior Muldaur recordings. The collection includes its share of the sultry love songs and spirited, gospel-flavored numbers for which Muldaur is known.

Recorded in Los Angeles, unlike several of her previous recordings which were made in Louisiana, Southland of the Heart is also a departure from the straight-ahead blues that Muldaur has been known to perform in recent years. “On this album, I was taking somewhat of a chance,” Muldaur said. “As songs started coming in, I kept thinking I love these songs, but they’re not blues; they’re bluesy but they’re not the straight-ahead blues that I’ve been doing. Then I thought—these are the songs that are moving me now. They’re blues for our times, and they need to be heard.”