Singer/songwriter Marc Cohn [ tickets ] is hitting the highway to support his first new studio release in nearly a decade.

The tour, which kicked off last night in Cary, NC, is set to resume Oct. 6 in Crystal Lake, IL. It will roll through US clubs and theaters from coast to coast through mid-December, and includes a Nov. 7 gig in Toronto. Details are listed below.

Though Cohn did a run of US dates in the spring, the current outing is considered his first nationwide trek since the "Rainy Season" tour of 1993, "... so we'll be pulling out all the proverbial stops," the singer said in a posting at his website.

"The band will be unusually well rehearsed, the costumes will be finely tailored and pressed, and the choreography alone should be worth the price of admission," he added. "I don't want to give too much away, but there are bound to be some surprises at the upcoming shows."

The concerts will feature old favorites and material from Cohn's new Decca Records album, "Join the Parade," which is scheduled to drop Oct. 9. The 10-song set, his first since 1998's "Burning the Daze," was produced by former Bob Dylan guitarist and solo artist Charlie Sexton. The lead single, "Listening to Levon," is streaming at Cohn's website.

The Grammy-winning performer, best known for his 1991 hit "Walking in Memphis," was suffering from writer's block a couple of years ago until a near-death experience and Hurricane Katrina inspired him to pick up a pen. He was shot in the head during an August 2005 carjacking attempt in Denver (miraculously sustaining only minor injuries) and watched the hurricane tragedy unfold while recuperating.

"Getting shot was a traumatic experience, but it did open the songwriting channels," Cohn recently told The News & Observer of North Carolina. "It's nothing I'd recommend. But it worked."