British singer-songwriter Bobby Long has announced 2011 tour dates from January through April with ATO Records releasing his official label debut A Winter Tale. Recorded in London, the eleven-song album was produced by Grammy-awardwinner Liam Watson (The White Stripes) and features backing vocals from Nona Hendryx (LaBelle) and Icelandic singer Lay Low as well as pedal steel by B.J. Cole (Elton John, Sting). Long's stops will include Sundance Film Festival and SXSW in Austin.
Bobby Long Tour Dates:
January 9 - Brooklyn, NY - Public Assembly January 24 - Park City, UT - House of Blues Park City January 25 - Park City, UT - Sundance ASCAP Music Café January 28 - Vancouver, BC - Media Club January 29 - Seattle, WA - Tractor Tavern January 31 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir February 2 - San Francisco, CA - Café du Nord February 3 - Los Angeles, CA - The Troubadour February 4 - San Diego, CA - Anthology February 5 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress February 8 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court February 10 - Denver, CO - Bluebird February 11 - Lawrence, KS - Bottleneck February 12 - St. Louis, MO - Old Rock House February 14 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon February 15 - Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater February 16 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Ballroom February 17 - Indianapolis, IN - Radio Radio February 18 - Chicago, IL - Schuba’s February 19 - Columbus, OH - Basement February 21 - Ann Arbor, MI - The Ark February 22 - Toronto, ON - Revival February 23 - Montreal, QC - Divan February 24 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground February 25 - Portland, ME - Port City Music Hall February 26 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall February 28 - Northampton, MA - Iron Horse March 1 - Baltimore, MD - Otto Bar March 3 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom March 4 - Philadelphia, PA - World Café March 5 - Vienna, VA - Jammin Java March 22 - Charlottesville, VA - The Southern March 23 - Pittsburgh, PA - Rex Theatre March 24 - Cincinnati, OH - 20th Century Theatre March 25 - Knoxville, TN - Barley’s Tap Room March 26 - Louisville, KY - Headliners Music Hall March 27 - Nashville, TN - 3rd & Lindsley March 29 - Raleigh, NC - Lincoln Theatre March 31 - Greenville, SC - The Handlebar April 1 - Atlanta, GA - Vinyl April 2 - Orlando, FL - The Social April 3 - Jacksonville, FL - Jack Rabbits April 5 - Birmingham, AL - Workplay April 6 - Memphis, TN - Hi-Tone April 8 - Dallas, TX - Poor David’s Pub April 9 - Austin, TX - Stubbs Jr. April 10 - Houston, TX - Fitzgerald’s
As previously reported here, British singer-songwriter-guitarist Bobby Long will release his ATO Records debut, A Winter Tale February 1. The set was produced by Grammy-winner Liam Watson (White Stripes).
Long, 24, is currently living in New York City. Originally from rustic Wiltshire in South West England, he moved to London and became a regular at club open-mic nights while attending London Metropolitan University where he studied Music in Film and wrote his thesis on The Social Impact of American Folk Music. As he played London venues, he met actor and fellow musician Robert Pattinson, now of Twilight fame, of course, who would go on to sing “Let Me Sign” (co-written by Long and friend Marcus Foster) for the soundtrack of the first Twilight film. Long built up a loyal following through his live performances, which have included notable Los Angeles dates at the Hotel Cafe and this past summer, at the Troubadour (see this review at That Writer Guy). In 2009, Long played 160 shows in seven months in seven countries. The upcoming album includes Nona Hendryx (LaBelle) on backing vocals on "Penance Fire Blues," B. J. Cole (Elton John, Sting) on pedal steel, Icelandic singer Lay Low on several tracks, and other top players working with Long. And by way of continued extensive touring, He'll headline a U.S club tour January-April 2011, with dates to be announced. Long will play a special benefit show in New York December 9 at Housing Works Bookstore Cafe in Soho. A free track, "Who You Been Loving," may be downloaded for now at his official website.
British singer-songwriter-guitarist Bobby Long has signed to New York-based independent label ATO Records, co-owned and founded by David Matthews. Long's debut A Winter Tale is set for release February 1, 2011.
The album will feature 11 original songs drawing upon American folk, blues and country produced by Liam Watson - a Grammy-winner for his engineering work on Elephant by The White Stripes - at his analog Toe Rag Studios in London. Since he began performing in North America in April, 2009, Long has played more than 150 shows (including a number of sold-out appearances in major U.S. and Canadian cities, along with European dates). His distinctive vocals and finger-pick acoustic guitar playing, along with storytelling skills, have won him news fans with each performance. Buzzine said,"The influences were obvious at times, but they’re good ones, like Dylan and Neil Young. Can’t go wrong there. His way with wordplay and imagery also recalled Conor Oberst a few years back. But unlike Oberst’s early work, Long has already found a fine singing voice to match that imagery. Plus, he’s also an impressive guitarist as a picker." On the upcoming album, Long is backed by various studio players on slide guitar, piano, standup bass, drums and keyboards. The songs include the guitar-driven "The Bounty of Mary Jane," the haunting imagery of "Being a Mockingbird," the anthemic "Dead and Done" ("I've already had the neighbors here, Johnny Cash came 'round and we split a beer" ") and the defiant "Penance Fire Blues" contrasted by the sparse and plaintive "Who Have You Been Loving," which is already quite a fan favorite and appeared in a simpler acoustic form on Long's homemade self-released recording, Dirty Pond Songs, only available at his shows. Among the other tracks on the album are "In the Frost," "A Passing Tale" and "Sick Man Blues," "Two Years Old," he title cut, "A Winter Tale," and rhe closing "A Stranger Song," inspired greatly by one of Long's musical heroes, Leonard Cohen.
Long, 24, moved to London from Wiltshire in the southwest of England to attend college, and became part of the burgeoning open mic circuit to expose his music. He met actor and fellow musician Robert Pattinson, who would go on to sing "Let Me Sign" (co-written by Long and friend Marcus Foster) for the soundtrack to the film Twilight. The inclusion of the song in the film's soundtrack and CD opened doors for Long, who followed through with heartfelt shows to earn his own legion of devoted fans. Long's "Left To Die" from Dirty Pond Songs reached #1 on the iTunes "Unsigned" chart and #8 on the Folk chart. That Writer Guy covered a recent Long show at the Troubadour in Los Angeles and wrote, "No false encores were needed. He'd made his statement and without a doubt won new fans. For an indie artist, with little if any airplay at all, it was remarkable how many in the crowd sang along to many of the songs. These fans are devoted already and the flock is growing. Long is one of several British singer-songwriters on the rise, including his friend Marcus Foster and another pal who's kind of become well-known in film, a guy by the name of Rob Pattinson. But while that Twilight connection may send some to check out Long's music, his songs and earnest performances stand on their own." Long and his band return to North America this fall, supporting Michael Franti A limited edition 10" vinyl EP containing songs from forthcoming record (including two bonus tracks) will be available at the shows.
Bobby Long on tour with Michael Franti: October 18-Buster's, Lexington, KY 19-Newport Music Hall, Columbus, Ohio 20-Bluebird Nightclub, Bloomington, IN 22-Madison Theatre, Covington, KY 23-Carnegie Music Hall of Homestead, Pittsburgh 24-The Town Ballroom, Buffalo, NY 25-Northern Lights, Albany, NY 28-Terminal 5, New York City 29-Wellmont Theatre, Montclair, NJ 30-Electric Factory, Philadelphia.
November 1-2-Calvin Theatre, Northampton, MA 3-State Theatre, Ithaca, NY; 5-Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel, Providence, RI 6-State Theatre, Portland, ME 7-Capitol Center, Concord, NH; 9-Toad's Place, New Haven, CT 10-Metropolis, Montreal, Quebec 12--Kool Haus, Toronto, ON 13-House Of Blues, Cleveland, OH 14-Crofoot Ballroom, Pontiac, MI. Additional tour dates to be added.
British singer-songwriter Bobby Long
has announced 2011 tour dates from January through April with ATO Records releasing his official label debut A Winter Tale
.
of the first Twilight film.
has signed to New York-based independent label ATO Records, co-owned and founded by David Matthews.
