Songfacts®:

• And drop the needle on Dusty
  Frost on the leaves like a lake
  The moment came out of nothin'
  A beautiful smile on your face
  
  In the early mornings spent with his first daughter, Lyra, Ed Sheeran often plays records. While listening to British singer Dusty Springfield's 1969 album, Dusty in Memphis, the singer and Lyra enjoyed a joyous moment that inspired this song.
• Sheeran penned "Dusty" during a time of personal turmoil. Not only was his pregnant wife, Cherry Seaborn, diagnosed with cancer, but he also experienced the tragic loss of his best friend, Jamal Edwards. To add to the emotional weight, Sheeran was also dealing with a challenging plagiarism lawsuit.
  
  Driven by a pulsing electronic beat, "Dusty" encapsulates a moment of clarity that Sheeran experienced while indulging in his morning ritual of listening to vinyl with Lyra.
  
  "I'm going through that time of turbulence and massive lows," Sheeran disclosed to Rolling Stone, "but then waking up in the morning and having a joyous morning with a beautiful girl. It's such a weird juxtaposition to go to bed crying and wake up smiling with your daughter."
• Sheeran realized that despite grieving, worrying about his wife's health, or feeling depressed, none of that matters when he is with his children. For Sheeran, his two daughters have brought a new perspective to life, helping him prioritize.
  
  "I'd cry myself to sleep after spending hours and hours at Jamal's mural," he told Apple Music, "And then waking up in the morning at six to your daughter being like, 'Hey, let's eat porridge. Let's listen to...' There is a switch that you can flip; you go into dad mode, like, 'Yeah, let's do it!' 'Cause I don't want my daughters ever feeling that I'm like that. Especially not for now."
• "Dusty" is a collaborative effort between Ed Sheeran and Aaron Dessner, the renowned producer and musician from the American band The National. Dessner has lent his songwriting and production talents to a diverse range of artists, including Gracie Abrams, Sharon Van Etten, and Taylor Swift. He is perhaps best known for his work on Swift's critically acclaimed studio albums Folklore and Evermore, both of which earned nominations for the prestigious Album of the Year Grammy Award in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Folklore went on to win the coveted prize.
• Dessner played The Juno synthesizer, Mellotron, electric guitar, bass, synth bass, piano, and percussion. Sheeran also played electric guitar. The other musicians are:
  
  Rob Moose: violin, viola, cello, orchestration
  Dave Nelson: trombone
  J.T. Bates: drums
  James Krivchenia drums, percussion
  James McAlister drums
  Benjamin Lanz: synthesizer