SCREEN star Kiefer Sutherland will play York Barbican on August 8 in support of his new country album, Reckless & Me, released next Friday.

This is the second chapter in a musical journey that has seen Sutherland, 52, play hundreds of shows. Best known for his role as Jack Bauer in the action-drama series 24, the Canadian actor, producer, director and singer-songwriter made the majority of the record during two sets of recording sessions, each spanning three or four days, at Capitol Studios in Los Angeles.

Reckless & Me emerged organically from Sutherland’s touring to promote his debut, 2016's Down In A Hole. The ten songs were written primarily by Sutherland, with contributions from his producer and long-term friend Jude Cole, and were recorded with guitarist Waddy Wachtel, who has worked with Stevie Nicks, pianist Jim Cox and drummer Brian MacLeod, whose credits include Sheryl Crow.

Although country music is the new album's beating heart, the songs span wider Americana, encompassing folk, rock, blues and more. All are connected by Sutherland’s love of sharing stories, whether by recounting snapshots of his own life or relating the experiences of others.

"As an actor I know that making a connection with an audience always comes by virtue of the story or the character," he says. "This is very different. They’re personal stories from my life. As lucky as I am, there are things you can’t avoid: friends of yours are going to die, you’re going to be let down, and your heart will be broken.

"Hopefully they help both me and the audience to realise that none of us are alone in trying to get these things in life. And there’s something comforting about that. At least to me."

One highlight is This Is How It’s Done, a high-octane honky tonk that demonstrates how Sutherland’s take on country is steeped in tradition. He was waiting in a bar when he had a flashback to his youth that inspired the song, hastily scribbling the lyrics on to napkins and recording the melody on to his phone.

"It’s about the first night I walked into a bar, and it was the first time I’d seen two adult men beat the **** out of each other. And that happened like three minutes after I walked in the door," he says. "It scared me a bit, and I’m still trying to figure out why I kept going back."

Elsewhere, the Tom Petty-meets-Bruce Springsteen rocker Something You Love, co-written with Cole, pays tribute to the "average person who works very hard just to stay in the middle" , only to be betrayed by big business. "Has it happened to a lot of people I care about?" questions Sutherland. "Yes, of course it has.”

The album closes with Song For A Daughter, Sutherland’s ode to his daughter, Sarah. "Long after I’m gone, the song will still be there and she’ll know how much I love her," he says. "I cried when I wrote it thinking about how much she’s meant to my life, and how different it would’ve been without her."

Tickets go on sale on April 26 at 10am at yorkbarbican.co.uk, on 0203 356 5441 or by visiting the box office.