Saturday, June 05, 2021

Sights and Sounds: Ray Charles, Barenaked Ladies, Amaunet, Robben Ford

This has been such a big week for music news I simply didn't have enough time to highlight everything that landed in my inbox. I am posting a number of noteworthy items to try to play catch-up. Have a great weekend everyone! Robert Kinsler 


Tangerine Records to Release
Limited Edition Six CD Ray Charles Box Set
On September 10, 2021

The Ultimate Collection From One of the Most Influential
and Groundbreaking Artists of the Past Century

Bonus Disc Includes Previously Unreleased Live Recordings 

New Lyric Video for “Hit The Road Jack” Streaming Now


June 4, 2021: In celebration of what would have been Ray Charles’ 90th birthday year, Tangerine Records, the label he founded in 1962, is proud to announce the September 10, 2021 release of True Genius, the ultimate Ray Charles collection. Featuring 90 of the greatest songs from his legendary career, this newly remastered, limited edition set includes all of Ray’s biggest hits.  The six CD physical box set includes a special bonus disc of eight previously unreleased tracks recorded live in Stockholm in 1972.
The digital release marks the first time this incredible collection of Ray Charles most important works will be widely available on streaming platforms, bringing classic hits such as “Hit The Road Jack,” “Crying Time,” “Busted,” “America The Beautiful,” “A Song for You,” “Unchain My Heart,” and many, many more back to streaming after more than a decade.  
"Hit The Road Jack" is available to stream today as both a new lyric video and audio track, part of a four-track sampler of Ray’s most soulful tracks, also including “No One,” “I Don’t Need No Doctor”, and “Hide Nor Hair”.  Additional samplers will follow in the coming weeks, showcasing Ray’s works in the Jazz & Blues, Country and Classic Pop genres.
Stream: “Hit The Road Jack” (lyric video)
 
“We’re extremely proud to present this collection, which maps the breadth and depth of Ray Charles’ music, presented in chronological order so the listener can join Ray on his journey through the most expansive and creative period of his legendary career. I’m also thrilled that this music will be widely available on all streaming services for the very first time, so that new and future audiences will continue to discover the True Genius of Ray Charles.”  - Valerie Ervin, President Ray Charles Foundation
The box set also includes a beautifully designed coffee table style book with rare, unseen photos, and detailed liner notes by Ray Charles Foundation President Valerie Ervin, legendary writer and music journalist A. Scott Galloway, and featuring a special message from Quincy Jones.
Ray Charles’s recordings are major landmarks in American culture. By blending country and roots with other popular sounds, this visionary singer, songwriter, pianist and composer brought his expansive musical vision to a worldwide audience. Charles’ albums, released during the heart of the Civil Rights Movement, broke down both racial and genre barriers. The incredible crossover success of Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, Volumes 1 & 2 led Willie Nelson to remark, “Ray Charles did more for country music than any other artist.” Ray continued to do something no other artist had done before or since, conquering all genres of music, from gospel and R&B to soul, country, jazz, blues, and pop, which led Frank Sinatra to dub Ray Charles, the only “True Genius” in music.
Ray further helped bring Americans together with his rendition of “America the Beautiful,” and he remains the only artist in history to create and define a national anthem.  Charles was also one of the first recording artists to have ownership of his masters as well as complete creative freedom.
Charles’ staggering achievements over a 58-year career include 17 GRAMMY Awards, induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a Lifetime Achievement and the President’s Merit Award, the Presidential Medal for the Arts, France’s Legion of Honor, the Kennedy Center Honors, the NAACP Image Awards’ “Hall of Fame Award,” and numerous other music Halls of Fame, including those for Jazz and Rhythm & Blues, all testament to his enormous influence. In 2019, he was honored by the Grand Ole Opry with An Opry Salute to Ray Charles, which was broadcast across PBS stations.
One of the greatest artists of all time, Charles successfully mastered and forever changed the blues, jazz, gospel, rock, pop, and country music landscapes. He teamed up with the best of the best in each stylistic genre, including B.B. King, Aretha Franklin, Lou Rawls, Hank Williams Jr, Willie Nelson, Stevie Wonder, and countless others. As he described himself. “I’m not a country singer. I’m a singer who sings country songs. I’m not a blues singer, but I can sing the blues. I’m not really a crooner, but I can sing love songs. I’m not a specialist, but I’m a pretty good utility man. I can play first base, second base, shortstop. I can catch and maybe even pitch a little.” 
Ray Charles was more than just the Genius of Soul; he was the Genius of Music.
The full tracklist for True Genius is available HERE.
About The Ray Charles Foundation
Ray Charles was equipped with a keen sensibility to the needs of others. It was this selfless generosity that motivated him when he founded, The Robinson Foundation for Hearing Disorders, Inc in 1986.  The mission and purpose of the foundation was to provide financial support in the area of hearing disorders and support institutions and make donations to organizations for educational purposes. Charles thought “the inability to hear was a handicap, not the inability to see.” In 2006 the official name of the foundation became The Ray Charles Foundation, in order to bring awareness to his name but the mission remained the same.  Ray Charles often made contributions anonymously to help fund cochlear implants for those who could not afford the operation, and shortly thereafter started supporting educational institutions for those who could not afford an education.
Ray Charles on the Web:



ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM DETOUR DE FORCE OUT JULY 16, 2021

PRE-ORDER / PRE-SAVE DETOUR DE FORCE HERE

SHARE NEW SINGLE "NEW DISASTER

 
Pre-order / Pre-save Detour de Force HERE

Stream / purchase “New Disaster” HERE

Watch the “Making of” Album Teaser HERE
“Classically BNL, playful in its structure and crowd-ready hooks while thematically addressing the human condition with acuity.” 
Consequence of Sound
 
“[A] high-energy missive towards correcting some of the more social wrongs”
American Songwriter
 
“Colorful”
Rolling Stone
(June 4, 2021 - 9:00AM ET - Toronto, ON) – Today, multi-platinum band Barenaked Ladies announce their 16th studio album Detour de Force will be released on July 16, 2021. Produced by JUNO and Grammy award winner Eric Ratz and Mark Howard, the eagerly awaited album features 14 newly minted tracks including “Flip”, the buoyant and sonically adventurous debut single and BNL’s first new music in four years. Detour de Force is available to pre-order starting today HERE and is available on CD and digital formats, along with a limited edition blue double vinyl featuring a bonus track. See below for a full tracklist.
 
Along with the announcement, the band has released a driving, and topical pop-rock gem titled “New Disaster”. Says Ed Robertson, "’New Disaster’ is about the distraction of modern politics coupled with the pressures of the 24-hour news cycle. It seemed like the Nostradamus predictions of new disasters were getting worse and worse, even after we recorded the song.” The official music video for will be released on June 11.


Detour de Force is BNL at its most ambitious, accomplished, intricate, intentional -- and, in some ways, circumstantial. Its gestation was long and exacerbated (as so many things have been) by the global pandemic. The good news is that it's BNL's most broad-reaching and diverse work to date -- fusing the distinct writing voices of Robertson, Hearn and Creeggan into a cohesive work from the stand-out tracks “Flip”, “New Disaster”, and “Good Life”, to the uptempo fun of "Flat Earth", the playful and country-flavoured "Roll Out" to the gentle melodics of "Live Well", "The National Park", "God Forbid" and "Man Made Lake" to the sonic roller coaster of the album-closing "Internal Dynamo".

The depth goes beyond sonics throughout the album. Though there's certainly the verbal playfulness and whimsy that's part of BNL's stock in trade, many of the songs have a reflective and philosophical, sometimes topical, underpinning that's also long been part of the BNL makeup.  

"We've always liked that our band is very diverse in what we do," says Robertson, "and on this record I really enjoyed the exploration. This record is a journey. Taking off one song would tip it in a way we didn't feel was representative of the record we made. We wanted everything that's here to be part of the record."
 
Adds Tyler Stewart, "This is some of our strongest material in 30 years, easily. I think it stands up there with our best albums. It hangs with ‘Gordon,’ or it hangs with ‘Maroon.’

BNL wasn't dormant as the world shut down -- evidence the group's spirited "Selfie Cam Jam" series and Robertson’s weekly Friday livestreams online, both for charity, as well as a pair of virtual concerts. But the pause brought a fresh perspective to where the band wanted Detour de Force to go.

"The pandemic really affected the album in an interesting way," recalls Jim Creeggan, who penned a pair of the Detour de Force songs. "I was getting calls from friends to do remote-based stuff, people asking each other to add something to those projects. So we started reaching out and bringing other things into what we were doing."
 
"We took several detours de force," acknowledges Kevin Hearn, "but I think what you get is a beautiful hybrid of a live off-the-floor band, all the way to full-on production numbers.' It's kind of reminiscent of ‘Stunt’.”
 
"There was a lot that was amazing about recording at the cottage," recalls Robertson, who wrote songs on his own and with friends Kevin Griffin, Craig Wiseman, Donovan Woods and Danny Michel. "The focus was great. The vibe was great. The hang was great. It was super positive for the band dynamic." Virtual guests were also invited, including original BNL keyboardist Andy Creeggan (Jim's brother), all-star singer and bassist Fernando Saunders and MOOG bass pedals borrowed from Rush's Geddy Lee even make an appearance.
                                   
Filmed and edited by Edward Pond, the band has released a Detour de Force teaser that captures the making of the album - from the snowy cold of northern Ontario in a make-shift recording studio in Robertson’s living room with Mark Howard, completing the album with the inimitable Eric Ratz at Noble Street Studios in Toronto. Watch it here.
 
Barenaked Ladies rescheduled their extensive Last Summer On Earth tour to 2022. All previously purchased tickets and VIP packages will remain valid for 2022. Check the routing and contact the original point of purchase for any questions.

Over the course of 33 years, the beloved quartet has sold 15 million records worldwide and built up an arsenal of hits such as "If I Had $1,000,000," "One Week," "Pinch Me" and "The Big Bang Theory Theme." Widely acknowledged as one of the best live acts on the planet, BNL has hosted a cruise, had its own ice cream flavor, amassed eight JUNO Awards, and was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2018. As Ed Robertson, Jim Creeggan, Tyler Stewart and Kevin Hearn put it on ‘Detour de Force,’ "Wasn't easy but it turned out alright/Wouldn't trade it for another...You don't wanna miss this mutha."

For more information on all things Barenaked Ladies, visit their website and stay connected via social media.
 
Detour de Force Tracklist
01. Flip
02. Good Life
03. New Disaster
04. Big Back Yard
05. Live Well
06. Flat Earth
07. Here Together
08. Roll Out
09. Bylaw
10. God Forbid
11. Paul Chambers
12. The National Park
13. Man Made Lake
14. Internal Dynamo
15. Way Of The Heart (Vinyl-only exclusive bonus track)
Photo credit: Matt Barnes
Photographed L-R: Kevin Hearn (keyboards), Ed Robertson (vocals/guitar), Tyler Stewart (drums), Jim Creeggan (bass)

CONNECT WITH BARENAKED LADIES:

2022 TOUR DATES:
Fri, Jun-03 - St. Augustine, FL - St. Augustine Amphitheatre
Sat, Jun-04 - Atlanta, GA - Chastain Park Amphitheatre
Sun, Jun-05 - Charlotte, NC - Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre
Tue, Jun-07 - Irving, TX - Toyota Music Factory
Thu, Jun-09 - Phoenix, AZ - Arizona Federal Theatre
Fri, Jun-10 - Los Angeles, CA - Greek Theatre
Sat, Jun-11 - Paso Robles, CA - Vino Robles
Thu, Jun-16 - Redmond, WA - Marymoor Park Amphitheatre
Fri, Jun-17 - Troutdale, OR - Edgefield
Sat, Jun-18 - Airway Heights, WA - Northern Quest Resort & Casino
Tue, Jun-21 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks
Fri, Jun-24 - Council Bluffs, IA - Stir Cove @ Harrah's Council Bluff's
Sat, Jun-25 – Prior Lake, MN - Mystic Lake Casino
Mon, Jun-27 - Chicago, IL - Chicago Theatre
Wed, Jun-29 - Kansas City, MO - Starlight Theatre
Fri, Jul-01 - Indianapolis, IN - Lawn at White River State Park
Sat, Jul-02 - Cleveland, OH - Jacob's Pavilion at Nautica
Sun, Jul-03 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre
Tue, Jul-05 - Lewiston, NY - Artpark - Summer Series
Wed, Jul-06 - New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage
Fri, Jul-08 - Gilford, NH - Bank Of New Hampshire Pavilion
Sat, Jul-09 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
Sun, Jul-10 - Boston, MA - Leader Bank Pavilion
Tue, Jul-12 - Philadelphia, PA - The Met
Wed, Jul-13 - Baltimore, MD - MECU Pavilion
Fri, Jul-15 - Charleston, SC - North Charleston Coliseum
Sat, Jul-16 - Raleigh, NC - Red Hat Amphitheatre
Sun, Jul-17 - Vienna, VA - Wolf Trap
Wed, Jul-20 - Cincinnati, OH - PNC Amphitheatre
Thu, Jul-21 - Toronto, ON - Budweiser Stage**
** Kim Mitchell, direct support
 
ABOUT BARENAKED LADIES:
Over the course of their remarkable career, Barenaked Ladies have written a variety of top 20 hits (including radio staples “One Week,” “Pinch Me,” “If I Had $1,000,000”), garnered two GRAMMY nominations, won eight JUNO Awards, had Ben & Jerry’s name an ice cream after them, wrote and recorded the theme song to the TV series The Big Bang Theory, and participated in the first-ever “space-to-earth musical collaboration” with astronaut Chris Hadfield. The band has also been inducted to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and received a proclamation from Toronto Mayor John Tory declaring October 1st “Barenaked Ladies Day.”


Swedish Indie-rock outfit Amaunet will release their new mini-album,”While I'm Living”, October 22, 2021 on Lövely Records. The mini-album will be released on all streaming platforms

The album offers 6 cuts, inspired by alternative rock bands from the 00s like The Strokes & Kings of Leon and 90s britpop bands such as Oasis. Mixing nostalgia with something new.

New Single "When You Come By" out now

Amaunet -1

Artist: Amaunet

Release Name: While I’m Living

Release Day: October 22, 2021

Format: Digital

Indie-rock outfit Amaunet hail from Lund, the southernmost part of Sweden. The band will release its new mini-album, ”While I'm Living”, on all streaming platforms on October 22, 2021 via Lövely Records.

The sound on ”While I'm Living” is both intense and nostalgic. Singer Nari’s vocals are equal parts rough, sweet, and soaring. The sound is recognized by classic rock vocals mixed with direct, tight drums, melodic guitar riffs and driving bass. The album offers 6 cuts, inspired by alternative rock bands from the 00s like The Strokes & Kings of Leon and 90s britpop bands such as Oasis. Mixing nostalgia with something new.

”This album is one of those albums we have been longing to record. We grabbed our instruments and headed over to the studio and recorded everything live. It instantly felt right”

Stream the first single "When You Come By" here:

https://orcd.co/amaunet_when

Watch a new music video here:

https://youtu.be/7MoZwVSvjEQ

Connect with Amaunet

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/Amaunetofficial

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/amaunetofficial/?hl=sv

About Amaunet:

Amaunet was formed in Lund, Sweden, back in 2017. Since then they've been playing and writing, recording songs and have played countless gigs and festivals throughout both Sweden and Europe. Their chemistry with each other shines through the songs they’re releasing, which sets the 
mood for their music. Their music has previously been played on Australian and American radio stations. The second single 'Supernovas' from their debut mini-album made it to international radio as well as Swedish student radio and national Swedish radio P3. Amaunet's self-titeled mini-album was released on Lövely in 2020. Their sophomore ”While I'm Living” is set for release in 2021.

Amaunet consists of Nariman Mirzaie (Lead Vocals), Oliver Miller (Electric Guitar), Viktor Hallberg (Electric Guitar) Oscar Ahlbin (Drums) and Josefine Hedberg (Bass Guitar)

Screen Shot 2021-06-02 at 8.50.05 AM
While I m Living - cover
***

Iconic Guitar Virtuoso Robben Ford


Releases 2nd Single 'Go' June 4th

Full-length album 'Pure' Drops August 27th

 
Robben Ford is pleased to announce the release of "Go", the second single off of Pure to be released on August 27, 2021 via earMUSIC (distributed by BFD / The Orchard in North America.) This will be the first wholly instrumental studio album since 1997's Tiger Walk. 

With nine unique tracks, Pure features the guitar virtuoso's tremendous music vocabulary of jazz, blues and rock. Pure seamlessly blends a soulful west coast vibe with bluesy hard rock stylings. Some of the exceptional guest musicians featured are Nate Smith, Toss Panos, and Shannon Forest.

About the album, Robben says “Pure is unlike any recording I’ve ever done. I’ve always been a traditionalist in the way I’ve worked in the studio, bring a great band into a great room with a great engineer, track songs for three to five days, do any overdubbing necessary, then, mix and master. I started Pure in that same way. But, somehow the influence of other musicians on the music, which is inevitable, always felt a little off. It became clear to me that I had to shape this new music myself from the ground up. My engineer and co-producer, Casey Wasner, proved invaluable in making that happen and most of the music you’ll hear in this recording was accomplished by the two of us working together in his studio, Purple House, getting the right shape and feel to the music, then adding bass and drums after the fact. Having worked in this way, I feel that Pure is perhaps the most complete representation of my personal musical vision. Previous recordings having been products of a period of development that lead to the music presented here. It’s been very satisfying to have shaped my own compositions so thoroughly and to deliver something so completely my own.”
The five-time Grammy nominee has played with artists as diverse as Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Witherspoon, Miles Davis, George Harrison, Phil Lesh, Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald, Bob Dylan, John Mayall, Greg Allman, John Scofield, Susan Tedeschi, Keb Mo, Larry Carlton, Davis Staples, Brad Paisley, and many others.

Robben's last album, Purple House (2018), featured a remarkable collection of songs that utilized Ford’s enlightened approach to composition and production. Exploring the range of the studio with a fresh perspective, he weaves in and out of surprising musical moments, ear-wormy hooks, and thoughtful lyrical themes. His sophisticated approach to the blues is evident throughout, yet the record is far more diverse regarding song structure and style.

In 2015, Ford released Into The Sun, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard Blues Chart and was also nominated for a Grammy in the Contemporary Blues category. It featured guests on that release were Warren Haynes, Keb’Mo, Robert Randolph, ZZ Ward, Sonny Landreth and Tyler Bryant. 

An important and essential component of Robben’s career is his commitment to teaching and passing on what he’s learned over the past 40 years to current and future musicians. His instructional videos and clinics over this time have culminated in a collaboration with TrueFire and the birth of the Robben Ford Guitar Dojo. The wealth of his expertise and creativity is generously presented in these state-of-the-art productions, and will be, for years to come.
 
Listen to Pure Here
Available in Red or Black Vinyl / Digital / CD

Pre-order Pure here.

Pre-save "Go" here.


DISCOGRAPHY here

CONNECT
Website / Facebook / Instagram / Youtube / Spotify

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