diff --git a/openstack_releases/cmds/list_changes.py b/openstack_releases/cmds/list_changes.py
index 792d2cc17e..8e4d0b09af 100644
--- a/openstack_releases/cmds/list_changes.py
+++ b/openstack_releases/cmds/list_changes.py
@@ -393,7 +393,8 @@ def main():
             previous_tag = gitutils.get_latest_tag(
                 workdir,
                 project.repo.name,
-                '{}^'.format(project.hash)
+                '{}^'.format(project.hash),
+                always=False,
             )
             try:
                 previous_release = deliv.get_release(previous_tag)
@@ -582,7 +583,7 @@ def main():
                 notes = release_notes.generate_release_notes(
                     repo=project.repo.name,
                     repo_path=os.path.join(workdir, project.repo.name),
-                    start_revision=new_release.diff_start or start_range,
+                    start_revision=new_release.diff_start or start_range or '',
                     end_revision=new_release.version,
                     show_dates=True,
                     skip_requirement_merges=True,
diff --git a/openstack_releases/gitutils.py b/openstack_releases/gitutils.py
index 60fba27f77..65b243272c 100644
--- a/openstack_releases/gitutils.py
+++ b/openstack_releases/gitutils.py
@@ -262,10 +262,13 @@ def check_ancestry(workdir, repo, old_version, sha):
         return False
 
 
-def get_latest_tag(workdir, repo, sha=None):
-    cmd = ['git', 'describe', '--abbrev=0', '--always']
+def get_latest_tag(workdir, repo, sha=None, always=True):
+    cmd = ['git', 'describe', '--abbrev=0']
+    if always:
+        cmd.append('--always')
     if sha is not None:
         cmd.append(sha)
+    LOG.debug(' '.join(cmd))
     try:
         return processutils.check_output(
             cmd,