Turned out the world didn’t end and we’re all still here and probably should have done the Christmas shopping earlier.
Following on from the previous post, I can report that the Duke Special gig at Shepherds Bush Empire was really rather excellent. We had some superb guests including Michele Stodart, Boo Hewerdine and Beth Rowley. It was so good to be playing on stage with all the regulars again after such a long time.
A few videos have already surfaced on YouTube from the show. Here’s the Duke and Michele performing John Prine’s In Spite of Ourselves. Loved this performance…
And here’s an old favourite, I Let You Down, featuring Chip, Ben and me at the start of the show. The Undertaker did indeed make an appearance. Frankly, I needed little excuse to don the tailcoat and top hat once again…
That’s all for now. Hope to see you all at a gig sometime in the new year. Have a lovely Christmas. I shall leave you for now with the latest offering Foreground Music, Vol. I from me, Jez and Mike. Do pop over to the Bandcamp page and grab yourself a copy (my solo records are all available on the same link). We’re all so proud of the record and we’ll be looking to do some more recording and live shows in the new year; watch this space! Until next time… See y’all in 2013 🙂 x
Ladies and gentlemen!! The new Duke Special record Oh Pioneer is released in the UK today!!
Oh yes indeed. It’s been a while since the last album came out but the wait is finally over. I spent a couple of days with the Duke in the studio earlier in the year to record some bass and lots of backing vocals along with Dorie Jackson and producer Paul Pilot. It was a really interesting album to work on and the recording process was so open and creative that the results are pretty special. All the backing vocals were put down very early in the proceedings so the arrangements were bulit up gradually around the songs themselves. Fantastic concept for building an album.
Here’s a little teaser video from the Duke sessions…
I recommend you all go out and buy this record immediately. I’ve been a big fan of Peter’s music since he supported The Divine Comedy back in 2006, way before I joined his band, and this is my favourite album of his to date. There are some fantastic songs on this record and it sounds beautiful thanks to the sterling work of Paul Pilot and engineer Dave Lynch.
Tell your mates…
And whilst you’re at it, you should also check our Paul Pilot’s new band Guidebooks. Their new EP In The Future has just bee released via Bandcamp. You can stream it below, or on their Bandcamp page. Enjoy! 🙂
