Blue Élan Records
Blue Élan RecordsLast year, former Yes frontman Jon Anderson self-released a star-studded studio album called 1000 Hands. Now the project is set to get an official label release on July 31, thanks to a new partnership with Blue Élan Records.
The album will issued digitally, on CD and as a deluxe two-LP, 180-gram vinyl package. Two of the record’s 11 tracks, “Now” and “Ramalama,” are available now as digital singles and via streaming services.
As previously reported, Anderson completed 1000 Hands nearly 30 years after he started the project. Anderson began recording the album with a group of musicians that included Yes bassist Chris Squire and drummer Alan White, but shelved the unfinished recordings for many years to focus on his famous band and other musical endeavors.
Eventually, veteran producer and pianist Michael Franklin, who earlier had worked on orchestrations for some tracks, convinced Jon to revisit the project and complete the unfinished songs. Over the course of two years, Anderson wound up working on the album at Franklin’s studio in Orlando, Florida.
Franklin also recruited various guests artists to contribute to the record, including Yes guitarist Steve Howe, Jethro Tull‘s Ian Anderson, Journey‘s Jonathan Cain, Rick Derringer, Deep Purple‘s Steve Morse, the Tower of Power horns, and jazz greats Chick Corea, Billy Cobham and Jean-Luc Ponty.
“That’s where the title 1000 Hands comes from, all of the brilliant musicians who played a part in making the record,” Anderson explains. “Michael acted like something of a casting director, bringing so many great players. It was really exciting to hear the record open up and become what I had always envisioned.”
The collection offers an eclectic mix of musical genres and sounds, including prog-rock, reggae, World Music and acoustic pop.
Here’s 1000 Hands‘ full track list:
“Now”
“Ramalama”
“First Born Leaders”
“Activate”
“Makes Me Happy”
“Now Variations”
“I Found Myself”
“Twice in a Lifetime”
“WDMCF”
“Come Up”
“Now and Again”
By Matt Friedlander
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