NEWS:
May 2012:
Following a critically acclaimed New Blood tour in 2011 that reignited Peter Gabriel fans across the world by re-imagining his best known songs through stunning orchestral arrangements, Gabriel announced today his return to U.S. stages to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his groundbreaking, iconic album So.
Focusing on the entirety of that multi-platinum album, the tour, entitled BACK TO FRONT, will feature Gabriel with many of
the members of the original band he toured with 25 years ago and will feature the album’s songs from start to finish
plus some of his other biggest hits. Tour dates.
October 2010: Pictures and a
review of the gig in Cologne (2 October 2010).
May 2010:
Peter has extended the 'New Blood', 'Scratch My Back' live experience to select European venues in 2010. The New Blood tour is Peter Gabriel, orchestra, no drums, no guitars
Links to ticket purchase and sound-check packages coming soon.
We're hoping to add dates for Verona and Zurich which should fall between the Barcelona and Mannheim concerts. We'll let you know as soon as we get confirmation.
You can get a glimpse of events around and inside the last tour with a look back at our
Tour Diary.
More live pics here.
April 2010:
April’s full moon sees the 4th of the double A-side ‘Scratch My Back...and I’ll Scratch Yours’ song swap releases on iTunes. ‘The Power of The Heart’ and Lou Reed’s reciprocal cover of ‘Solsbury Hill’.
For ‘The Power of The Heart’, a recent Lou Reed composition, Peter abandons its author’s trademark gravelly delivery for an open vocal performance that, backed by unobtrusive piano and sympathetic orchestrations, places great emphasis on the song’s uncomplicated but moving melody. Simple things can be the most profound.
Peter, Bob Ezrin and John Metcalfe talk about ‘The Power of The Heart’ in a new video exploring the recording of the song.
Lou Reed chooses the iconic Solsbury Hill and gives it a radical reinterpretation. Unfortunately we didn’t capture him on camera, but he told us how he had approached the song and gave his response to Peter’s version of his composition:
“I tried to keep an open mind for this wonderful song I wanted to own it and redo it’s essence. I picked the version I and everyone else knows. I think Peter has tried to strike a balance between the demands of the marketplace and his desire for uniqueness. And intelligence. He has quite an arrangement in the Ezrin produced version. I choose to single out one desire and concentrate on that. The desire for a home.
“Peter’s version of my song is overwhelmingly beautiful and I thank him for including me on this soulful journey through the heart. He has never sung more beautifully. This is a landmark album.” Lou Reed
Feb 2010: Scratch My Back is out!
For more info; see below.
Oct 2009: Peter is involved with Nick Mason, Troy Donockley and a few
other Bad Shepherds in this charity event. Please read more a Nick's Page.
But watch the clip first:
Live:
Peter Gabriel is bringing 'Scratch My Back' to select venues in the New Blood Tour (2010) - Peter Gabriel, orchestra, no drums, no guitar.
More news at is website. Tour dates 2010 at this page.
13 February 1950, London, England. After seven years fronting
Genesis, Gabriel tired of the
extensive touring and group format and went solo in 1975. He left the band with some great
albums like Selling by the Pound ('73) and The Lamb lies down on Broadway ('74).
Until PLAYS LIVE, released in 1983, his four solo albums were all called PETER GABRIEL.
The first included the track "Solsbury Hill," a metaphorical account of his split from
Genesis which made the Top 20 in the UK. Peter Gabriel (1st LP '77):
Unlike his earlier extravagant, theatrical presentations, he favoured minimalism and often played shows in a plain boiler suit. Robert Fripp was brought in as producer for the second album which made the UK Top 10 and just missed out on a Top 20 place in the Billboard chart. The album contained chiefly introspective, experimental music, but healthy sales figures were encouraging. However, Atlantic Records refused to distribute his third album in the USA, claiming its maudlin nature would mean 'commercial suicide'. Mercury stepped in and with Steve Lillywhite's disciplined production the striking collection was far from the flop Atlantic feared. "Games Without Frontiers" was a Top 5 hit in the UK and the track "Biko," about the murdered South African activist Stephen Biko, became an anti-racist anthem. Peter Gabriel (3rd LP '80):
Continuing his deliberated approach, his fourth album, given the full title of PETER GABRIEL (SECURITY), was not released until 1982 and appeared to be hinting at a more accessible approach. A German-language edition of the album was also released. PETER GABRIEL PLAYS LIVE, was released by Charisma/Geffen in 1983;
David Rhodes,
Larry Fast,
Jerry Marotta.
Peter Gabriel (4 from '82, with songs like San Jacinto and the ultimate stage-diving-act; Lay your Hands on me):
Jerry Marotta,
Tony Levin,
Larry Fast,
David Rhodes,
John Ellis,
Robert O'Laneri,
Marris Pert,
Stephen Paine,
David Lors, Peter Hammill,
Jill Gabriel and,
Ekome Dance Company.
Two years later Gabriel composed the haunting soundtrack to the Alan Parker film, BIRDY. The journey to complete commercial acceptance was finished in 1986 with SO, containing the US number 1 single "Sledgehammer" which was supported by a pioneering, award-winning video featuring puppetry and animation. He was celebrated as an artist whose work was popular without being compromised. A duet with Kate Bush, "Don't Give Up," also lifted from SO, became a UK Top 10 hit in November 1986. So ('86):
Nile Rodgers,
David Rhodes, Daniel Lanois - Guitars,
Simon Clark,
Tony Levin,
Larry Klein, Bill Laswell - bass, Jerry Marotta,
Stewart Copeland, (Yes the Police-man), Manu Katche - drums,
Mark Rivera - sax,
Peter Gabriel - keyboards, vocals producer,
Richard Tee - piano,
Wayne Jackson - trumpet,
Kate Bush,
Laurie Anderson,
Youssou N'Dour - vocals,
Don Mikelsen - trombone, Congas; Djalma Correa,
Simon Clark - synthesizers,
L. Shankar - violin,
Background Vocals:
Jim Kerr, David Rhodes, P.P. Arnold, Coral Gordon, Dee Lewis, Michael Been.
Throughout the '80s, Gabriel dedicated much of his time to absorbing world music and in 1982 sponsored the WOMAD (World Of Music And Dance) Festival. He also became heavily involved in Amnesty International and recorded with Senegalese star Youssou N'Dour. The pair toured the USA under the banner of Conspiracy Of Hope and raised money for Amnesty. He invited musicians from all over the world to record at his self-built studios in Bath and incorporated many non-Western ideas into his own music. In 1989 he wrote the score for the film, The Last Temptation Of Christ, released on a label backed by WOMAD. Virgin Records, the owners of the Charisma back-catalogue, released a greatest hits collection in 1990, SHAKING THE TREE. The title track was written by Gabriel with N'Dour and was included originally on N'Dour's album, THE LION. Although US fell short of the high standard set by SO, it put Gabriel back in the public eye with a series of outstandingly creative videos to accompany the release.
Us ('92):
David Rhodes,
Leo Nocentelli,
Bill Dillon,
Gus Isidore,
Daniel Lanois - guitars (Daniel did also produced the album),
Peter Gabriel,
Tony Levin,
John Paul Jones - bass,
Manu Katche,
Nasssane Thiam,
Babacar Faye,
The Babacar Faye Drummers,
Daryl Johnson - drums and percussion,
Tim Green - sax,
Brian Eno,
Richard Blair,
John Paul Jones - keyboards,
Sinead O'Connor,
Daniel Lanois
Ayub Ogada
Richard Maophall
Peter Hammill Marilyn McFarlane
The Dimitri Pokrovsky Ensemble - vocals,
L. Shankar - violin,
Peter - percussion, keyboards, vocals, bass and flute.
SECRET WORLD LIVE, one of the best gigs ever...said me, a real Pink Floyd affiniciado ('93);
David Rhodes - guitar,
Levon Minassian - doudok
Jean Claude Naimro - keyboards Tony Levin - stick
Reddy Mala Amissi - b-vocals
Styno Mubi Matadi - b-vocals, Paula Cole - vocals,
Shankar - violin, Manu Katche - drums,
Papa Wemba - vocals,
Peter Gabriel - vocals, keyboards, telephone and producer,
Peter Walsh, producer/ engineer.
OVO is his latest project at the Millenium Dome, with the stage-builder Mark Fisher (known from Pink FLoyd, the Rolling Stones and and and...)(2001);
Jim Barr,
Tony Levin - bass,
Shankar - violin, vocals,
Richie Havens,
Richard Eavns, guitars, engineer,
Elizabeth Fraze,
Paul Buchanan - vocals,
David Rhodes - guitar,
Steve Gadd, (worked with;Al Di Meola, Diana Schuur, Dave Grusin, Chick Corea,
Carla Bley, Spyro Gyra, Weather Report, David Sanborn, Joe Cocker ('75-'76-'78), Paul
Simon ('75-'76, '86, '90), Art Garfunkel ('78-'79), Ringo Starr ('77), Steely Dan ('77,
'80), Carly Simon ('78), Aztec Camera ('87), Eric Clapton, B.B.King & Tony Levin '06). Manu Katche - drums,
and many more singers, drummers, whistlers, shakers and ...
And in the meantime he married a girl called Mean Flynn on the island Sardinie; 09 June '02. Of course good old Phil was there too. Hope they've all a happy life.
UP ('02):
Peter Gabriel: Vocals/Keyboards/Guitar,
David Rhodes: Guitar,
Tony Levin: Bass/Stick,
Melanie Gabriel: Vocals,
Manu Katche: Drums/Percussion, Ged Lynch: Drums,
Richard Evans; guitars,
Steve Gadd: Drums,
Will White: Drums,
Daniel Lanois: Guitar (on Sky Blue),
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: Vocals,
Youssou N'Dour: Vocals,
The Blind Boys of Alabama: Vocals,
Yacine Ould Nana (from Mauritania): Vocals,
From Youssou N'Dour's band:
Babacar Faye: Senegalese Percussion (e.g. Sabar, Djembe),
Habib Faye: Bass/Keyboards, Hassan Thiam: Senegalese Percussion (e.g. Sabar, Djembe),
B'Net Houariyat: Moroccan female vocal group,
Gopal Shankar Misra: Vina (a sitar type instrument),
Hukwe Zawose and his nephew Charles (from Tanzania): Thumb Piano,
Jocelyn Pook: String arrangements,
Ayub Ogada: Vocals/Nyatiti,
Christian Chevretel: possibly trumpet, trombone or keyboards,
Peter Green (formerly of Fleetwood Mac): Guitar,
Danny Thompson (Talk Talk, David Sylvian, Tim Buckley, Nick Drake): Double Bass,
Chris Hughes: Programming,
Dominic Greensmith: Drums,
Hossam Ramzy: Percussion,
Mahut Dominique: Percussion, Chris Lawrence,
Will Gregory: String arrangements,
Nick Ingman: String arrangements.
A great album, a bit dark, a bit mysterious.
And of course he goes on tour, with:
We had a great wonderful gig
in Oberhausen... ;-)
With some pictures of his show and of course the right side Up.
In the meantime a DVD of his Secret World Live is out, with a small impression of his
new show.
In the meantime this man has a lot of energy left to do some activity: he has no less
than six album projects in the pipeline, in various states of completion.
Let's have a look:
i/o: This should be the follow-up album to UP, which Gabriel will start working on properly
later in the year. In the UP tour book, Gabriel states that "it shouldn't take that long to
finish because a lot of the writing has been done and some tracks are already done".
He hopes for a release in late 2004.
OVO2: This is basically OVO, but with Gabriel doing all the male vocals. It looks like this
is being aimed at the US market and will likely be released before the end of the year.
UP Remixes: This is an album of remixes of UP tracks, which may or may not include
remixes that have already been released as b-sides on UP singles.
Another Tongue: This is a project that has been mentioned a number of times, but details
are sketchy. Apparently this will be Gabriel singing other people's lyrics to this own
music. This album may also be called AT.
Twelve Lives: This one's even more obscure than Another Tongue. In fact, nothing more
is known about this one than the title.
Odds and Sods: A collection of single b-sides and other rarities. <
Source: The Way They Walk (thanks to 'JJ').
He composed some tracks for Long Walk Home ('03).
Two new DVD's: "Africa Calling - Live 8 at Eden" &
"Peter Gabriel Still Growing Up, Live And Unwrapped".
Peter Gabriel must have noticed his former Genesis colleague enjoying a nice career revival by
scoring songs for Disney, so he has jumped that bandwagon by penning the song Down To Earth together with Thomas Newman
for the latest Pixar/Disney film Wall-E. At the moment it is unclear whether the song will be released as a single, but it
is available for download through all the regular digital outlets, and also featured on the Wall-E original soundtrack
album.
"His" new album "Big Blue Ball" is really a nice summer break, from songs of the master himself till
cheerful songs
from Natascha Atlas, Papa Wembla, Karl Wallinger and more.
Produced by Peter Gabriel, Karl Wallinger (Waterboys & World Party) and Stephen Hague and mixed by Tchad Blake - Big Blue Ball features artists
from a myriad of different cultures and nations - some well known names, others hidden gems of writing and performing
talent... Billy Cobham (see also the news about the Reasoning), The Holmes Brothers, Jah Wobble, Manu Katche, Joseph Arthur, Iarla Ó Lionáird, James McNally,
Deep Forest, Hukwe Zawose, Natacha Atlas, Hossam Ramzy, Marta Sebestyen, Papa Wemba, Sinead O Connor, Joji Hirota,
Guo Yue, Vernon Reid, Peter Gabriel, Karl Wallinger... and more.
“After all these years, it's a fine wine ready to be drunk. It was the most fun music making I've ever had.”
Peter Gabriel
“It's like a wall of sound coming at you, listening to the planet from outer space. It's a real world-view of music, a snapshot of the music-making continents at that time.”
Karl Wallinger
And yes of course Pete is on that album too (3 tracks), more info at
Big Blue Ball.
Scratch My Back:
Recruiting a number of "extremely legendary artists" the resulting album 'Scratch My Back' is said to be set for a Spring 2010 release.
Speaking to BBC 6Music, Peter Gabriel collaborator John Metcalfe claimed that "the songs are not simply covers. They are major reinterpretations of some famous stuff. It's quite radical."
The largely orchestral album is due to feature material from the likes of The Kinks, Loud Reed, Talking Heads and more.
Not due for release for over six months, the tracklisting for 'Scratch My Back' has supposedly been leaked by a Japanese distributor.
Including some strange choices, Peter Gabriel is supposedly set to cover 'Street Spirit' by Radiohead amongst a host of other tracks. Arcade Fire's 'My Body is A Cage' is due to get the Gabriel treatment, as well as Magnetic Fields classic ballad 'The Book Of Love'.
The alleged tracklisting for 'Scratch My Back' is as follows:
'"Heroes"' (David Bowie)
'Street Spirit (Fade Out)' (Radiohead)
'The Book Of Love' (Magnetic Fields)
'Flume' (Bon Iver)
'My Body Is A Cage' (Arcade Fire)
'Listening Wind' (Talking Heads)
'I Think It's Going to Rain Today' (Randy Newman)
'Après Moi' (Regina Spektor or Eartha Kitt)
'Waterloo Sunset' (The Kinks)
'The Boy In The Bubble' (Paul Simon)
'The Power Of The Heart' (Lou Reed)
'Philadelphia' (Neil Young)
'Mirrorball' (Elbow)
Following from our recent post regarding the Peter Gabriel New Blood Live In London [DVD] – we now have updates on the 3D cinema screenings which will be broadcast in Australia, Croatia, Germany, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, UK and US. For a list of these cinema screenings please click HERE. Peter Gabriel will also be a studio version of New Blood scheduled for release on 10th October 2011
New Blood (Studio Album)
‘NEW BLOOD’ features re-imagined arrangements of many of Peter’s songs which dispense with the traditional weapons of the rock armoury – no guitar, or drum kits – the lyrics are exposed and laid bare, often taking new meaning with the passing of the years.
This treatment is applied with painstaking attention to detail and stunning effect to songs including ‘Digging In The Dirt’, ‘Don’t Give Up’, ‘Downside Up’, ‘Intruder’, ‘Mercy Street’ ‘ The Rhythm of the Heat’ and the spine tingling, atmospheric ‘San Jacinto’. Working together, acclaimed composer and arranger John Metcalfe, Peter and the New Blood Orchestra have given each track a new depth and a powerful significance. These tracks were recorded with a 46-piece orchestra, conducted by Ben Foster.
In addition to the album’s 12 songs, there’s a special bonus track of ‘Solsbury Hill’ (introduced by ‘A Quiet Moment’; 5-minutes of ambient sound recorded by Peter’s long-term engineer, Dickie Chappell, actually on Solsbury Hill).
‘NEW BLOOD’ tracklisting:
01. The Rhythm of the Heat
02. Downside Up (ft. Melanie Gabriel)
03. San Jacinto
04. Intruder
05. Wallflower
06. In Your Eyes
07. Mercy Street
08. Red Rain
09. Darkness
10. Don’t Give Up (ft. Ane Brun)
11. Digging in the Dirt
12. The Nest that Sailed the Sky
13. A Quiet Moment
14. Solsbury Hill (bonus track)
Session:
Robert Fripp
Exposure (1979),
Laurie Anderson, Mr Heartbreak ('84),
Sun City, No more Apartheid, Phil Collins, No Jacket required ('85) & Hello, i must be going ('82)(?),
Robert Fripp Network (1985),
Call, Reconciled ('86),
Robbie Robertson, R.R. ('87),
Nona Hendryx, Female Trouble ('87),
Joni Mitchell, Clark Mall in a Rainstorm ('88),
Youssou D'Nour, The Lion ('89),
Geoffrey Oryema, Exile ('91),
Shankar, Soul Searcher ('91),
Lou Reed ('92),
Jam Nation, Way down Buffolo Hell ('93),
Toni Childs, Womens Boat ('94),
Joy Askew, Tender City, ('94), Paula Cole, This Fire (1996),
Joseph Arthur, Big City Secrets (1997),
John Giblin - bass, 
Manu Katche - drums,
And in the meantime he married a girl called Mean Flynn on the island Sardinie; 09 June '02. Of course good old Phil was there too. Hope they've all a happy life.
Scratch My Back:
‘NEW BLOOD’ features re-imagined arrangements of many of Peter’s songs which dispense with the traditional weapons of the rock armoury – no guitar, or drum kits – the lyrics are exposed and laid bare, often taking new meaning with the passing of the years.
Symfo-Index.