Boo Hewerdine: 'My Name In Brackets' Album Launch + Rosalie Deighton

Folk at KINGS PLACE

Music / Friday, 14 November 2014 - 8:00pm / Hall Two  

Online Price: £12.50 | Savers £9.50*

Amazing Robot is the new single by one of England's finest songwriters Boo

Hewerdine, released by Reveal Records on June 23rd 2014.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeQl9kQHs6s



The song is 'about the certainties of childhood and how they disappear' whilst paying tribute to the much loved 1970's board game The Amazing Magic Robot. In the game a small green robot would spin on a mirror and point at the answer to your question. The Amazing Robot was always right!

Released as either limited edition CD or digital download Amazing Robot comes backed by a second brand new track Drinking Alone of which Boo explains:
'Drinking Alone is a song for anyone who has sat up at two in the morning having just one more. Both these tracks were recorded as a one man band just like the very first recordings I made, with the exception of the drums (Chris Pepper) and clarinets (Gustaf Ljunggren), I can't do those'.
Recorded, mixed and mastered by Chris Pepper at Hub Studios in Cambridge Amazing Robot / Drinking Alone are the first tracks from Boo Hewerdine's forthcoming My Name in Brackets album currently scheduled for October 2014 release by Reveal.
Support comes from English/Dutch singer-songwriter Rosalie Deighton. Beginning her career with the musical entourage that was The Deighton Family, Rosalie released her first solo album, Truth Drug, in 2001. 21 Days followed six years later, and earlier this year Rosalie released her third album, Burning Boat, the first from newly formed UK label Bearclaw Records. Rosalie navigates her way through her Country and Folk roots, delivering a seasoned performance that engages, through a voice that inspires trust. She also performs as the critically acclaimed duo Balsamo/Deighton with long-time collaborator Steve Balsamo, as well as from time to time appearing as guest member of the band Danny & the Champions of the World. 

update Andy Collins -ex member the Storys

Track 8 ....2nd album. ..2 (or maybe 3) to go .... Spring release looks about right .. its sounding great if I do say so myself ....Thank you all for your patience .....
Andy xxx







 http://balsamo-deighton.blogspot.nl/

update Dai Smith- vote for the song YEARNING -Swiss Eurovision 2015

Hi all Could I ask a HUGE favour please? The song YEARNING that I co-wrote with Allyson Summerhayes and Kitty Brucknell (from forthcoming musical Life Happened Kid) is shortlisted for Swiss Eurovision 2015. Could you please log onto the below website and Register a vote? (click and vote next to YEARNING).

Voting starts today and I would be very grateful if you could find the time. Please share this post with your friends thank you.

Dai


http://esc.srf.ch/de/kitty-brucknell

Nov 2003 - Poe Press Release

Eric Woolfson's POE, More Tales of Mystery and Imagination is a magnificent follow-up to the Alan Parsons Project's 1976 debut album.
Eric Woolfson was the creator and writer of the Alan Parsons Project, who released Tales Of Mystery And Imagination - Edgar Allan Poe, in 1976, which went on to sell over 8 million units. The Alan Parsons Project released ten albums between 1976 and 1986, which have sold in excess of 45 million copies to date.

POE, More Tales of Mystery and Imagination, features the amazing lead vocals of Steve Balsamo, who played the lead in the recent West End production of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Eric comments that "I have finally found my 'Voice'. My material has never sounded better than when Steve Balsamo sings it". Steve Balsamo continues that "It's probably the best recording yet of my voice, and there seems to be a beautiful marriage between Eric's music and the way I sing".
Top musicians, including guitarist John Parricelli, who played the mandolin in Captain Corelli's Mandolin, bassist Laurence Cottle, who has worked with Sting, Cher and Seal, keyboards man Simon Chamberlain (Bjork, Pet Shop Boys, Paul McCartney), Ralf Salmins (Madonna, Van Morrison, Mike Oldfield), an 80 strong choir and a forty piece orchestra were enlisted to record the album.
POE, More Tales of Mystery and Imagination has taken 6 years to make and cost over 3/4 of a million pounds to record in Abbey Road Studios.

The album was recently previewed with three stunning, sold-out, "POE In Concert" world premiere performances at Abbey Road Studios, featuring a 16 strong cast, a full orchestra and a specially constructed set, lighting and sound system. This staged rock opera concert version of POE was filmed and recorded for release on DVD later next year.

 

 

http://balsamo-deighton.blogspot.nl/

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Steve Balsamo - He’s gone from Son of God to father-of-two

December 5th 2011

He’s gone from Son of God to father-of-two, but becoming a dad again hasn’t slowed Steve Balsamo down. Here the West End star-turned-rocker tells Nathan Bevan about cosmic co-incidence, performing with his childhood musical hero and giving Robert Plant singing lessons

 
STEVE BALSAMO is a big believer in serendipity. The former West End star-turned-rocker recently became a dad for a second time to a bouncing baby boy born at 2.22pm on Friday, November 11
.
And 2.22, 11/11/11, as he’s keen to tell me, is quite significant chain of digits in numerologist circles.
“Some friends of mine who are into that sort of thing have informed me that those numbers together have a very auspicious meaning,” says the Swansea-born singer.

“So we’ve named him Frankie Balsamo, and with a name like that he’ll either end up a boxer, a rock star or a gangster – or all three.

“Personally, I’ve always been more into psychic phenomena and, without being too hippy-dippy about it, usually take note of the significant events that occur in my life and see if they correlate with other things further down the line,” adds the 40-year-old.

Talking of which, I tell Balsamo that next summer my sister (who’s a big fan) is holding her wedding reception in the same Swansea hotel where I first interviewed him back in 2006.

“See! There you go, spooky,” he laughs, adding that since his Elton John-approved West Coast-style rock outfit The Storys broke up a few years back he’s been gigging around the world with one of his childhood heroes – Deep Purple’s keyboard maestro Jon Lord.

“God, I was huge Purple fan growing up and loved their singer Ian Gillan’s turn as the Messiah on the album version of Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar,” he adds – a part which, co-incidentally, Balsamo would later go on to make his own when it became an acclaimed London stage production.
“In fact, if I’m honest, I pinched most of his chops for my own rendition.”

And it was performing at a cancer charity event organised by Lord’s wife that turned the 70-year-old legend onto Balsamo’s impressive three and a half octave range voice.

“Next thing I know I was part of his band and performing a show halfway up a mountain in Switzerland,” says the singer, who was first prompted to perform in his teens as a means of competing with a then-girlfriend’s crush on Jon Bon Jovi.

“Ever since then me and Jon have been writing songs, largely classical crossover numbers that we’ve thought about getting Bryn Terfel to sing, really beautiful stuff.

“Unfortunately though Jon is battling cancer himself and isn’t well at the moment, so we’ve had to put a few things on hold,” adds Balsamo – although he later emails to say that, serendipity again perhaps, Lord had phoned him shortly after our chat to say he’s feeling much better.

So that means the pair’s recent re-recording of part of Purple’s groundbreaking 1969 Concerto For Group And Orchestra, also featuring Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson, should get to see the light of day soon.
“Proper rock royalty that lot, it was a thrill to be asked,” says Balsamo.

Until then though the Italian-blooded dad-of-two has got his “Celtic Americana” musical project with winsome Anglo-Dutch-Indonesian folk singer Rosalie Deighton to occupy most of his time.
“I love Rosie, I’ve know her for ages and she ended up joining The Storys in 2008 when Dai (Smith, guitar) left – she’s fabulous, got a voice just like Emmylou Harris,” he smiles.

“At the moment the group’s called Balsamo/Deighton, which sounds a bit like a firm of solicitors, but I quite like that though.

“It’s quite an eclectic sound, with a bit of cajun in there – a bit like that Grammy-winning bluegrass/country album Robert Plant did with Alison Krauss a while back.”

And while we’re on the subject of certain ex-Led Zeppelin front men...

“The Storys played at Radio Two DJ Bob Harris 60th birthday and Robert had seen us and liked our harmonies,” recalls Balsamo.
“So when he rang me up asking if I knew anything about Appalachian mountain music I automatically found myself saying, ‘Yeah, sure’, when what I really meant was, ‘No, haven’t a clue’,” he laughs.
“In any case, what on Earth can I tell Robert Plant that he doesn’t already know – he’s sold a gazillion albums for God’s sake!
“But that still didn’t stop me finding myself in a recording studio with him going, ‘Mmm, that sounds great Robert, but what if you try it like this’?” he smiles.

“You can’t help but love it though when someone of his stature still has such great love and enthusiasm for music – I mean, he could just be out playing golf or something.”

And would he ever consider rekindling his love for the stage, having originally found such great acclaim there back in 1996?
“Never say never, that’s my motto,” says Balsamo. “I keep getting asked and occasionally I’ll go along and sing something just for the craic.
“I’ve not done that sort of performance in a long time but I take my voice very seriously and have a great vocal coach in London whom I go and see all the time.
“The voice is like a muscle, a tool that needs a constant workout,” he adds.

“But people’s ranges generally change over time and they tend to get lower the older you get, so I’d have to see.
“Then again, everything starts to drop when you hit 40, so it might be nice to be told I have a lovely bottom end,” Balsamo laughs.

http://balsamo-deighton.blogspot.nl/

Steve Balsamo All Those Years ago

Jon Lord All Those Years Ago is an exclusive, limited edition book and music package, available as a strictly limited edition box set. http://balsamo-deighton.blogspot.nl/

the Story of Balsamodeighton

Steve Balsamo and Rosalie Deighton met over 10 years ago at Grammy award winning producerMartin Terefe's London recording studio where he was working on their respective major label debut albums. Bonding over a love of 70's singer/

songwriters, country music and cake, they vowed one day to record together as they felt their voices would blend and give what Emmylou Harris calls 'the rub'.

 

Several times around the world in various musical guises and Balsamo Deighton's paths crossed again when Rosalie supported Steve's highly regarded country/rock  bandThe Storys. 

 

 Having returned from touring with the likes of Elton John, Santana, Celine Dion and Joe Cocker, The Storys asked Rosalie to join and help write and record for their 3rd album, "Luck"

 

When The Storys decided to call it a day, Steve and Rosalie took it as a sign that the time was right to make some music together. They called on friend and ace songwriter Julian Wilson of Grand Drive, and slowly and quietly kicked some ideas around at his South London studio

These initial sessions were inspiring, fun and very rewarding and all three realised that indeed they had found 'the rub'.

 

Recording began in earnest with producer and songwriter John Reynolds ,who has worked with Sinead O'Connor, The Indigo Girls and U2, tracking the first song ideas at his North London Studio.

 

nfluenced by everyone from Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, Crowded House, Steve Earle, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Jackson Browne, Ryan Adams, Bryan Adams and Douglas Adams, Balsamo Deighton's songs pretty much nod, wink and steal from them all.

 

The duo have released a couple of cover songs to whet peoples' appetites; 'Sky Blue and Black' by Jackson Browne, and Shawn Colvin's 'I Don't Know Why' for which they have made a remarkable, hair raising/removing video.

 

The duo Balsamo Deighton are currently putting the finishing touches to their debut album with producers Tim Hamill and Ben Robbins and are looking forward to sharing the fruits of their labour both on record and on the road very soon.

 

© www.balsamodeighton.com


http://balsamo-deighton.blogspot.nl/