I am lucky to have lots of friends who have great taste in music. One of them who is probably the most influential in opening my eyes to great music, both old and new, once told me a story about her best friend, who was a huge fan of the band America in high school. She was such a big fan that she wrote them a fan letter, and they were so past their prime and happy to have a high-school-age fan that they actually wrote back!
I'd like to think that experience had some influence on their decision to make an album with some of the hottest young musical talent out there right now. The album, called Here and Now, will be released Jan. 16 (one week from today!) and is produced by Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne and Ivy, who is, in my opinion, one of the greatest pop songwriters/producers alive today. Guest stars on the double-disc set include Ryan Adams and Ben Kweller and the track listing includes some interesting covers, including songs by (another fave of mine) My Morning Jacket and Nada Surf.
Stereogum has posted one of the tracks already, and I love it!
I'm so glad to see a talented band expanding musically and reaching a new audience -
I cannot wait for this release!
Update: To see some behind-the-scenes video of the making of the album, visit the official Web site. How cool to hear that Gerry Beckley is an equally big Adam Schlesinger fan!
Double update: Listen to three tracks from the new album at America's MySpace page!
1 comment:
The guys in the band America are really great people. I'm not surprised they'd respond to your friend's letter. They're really nice guys. Oh, and very talented musicians.
The album is available for download already on iTunes (with an awesome bonus track exclusive to iTunes called "Glass King" - it was co-written by Ryan Adams).
I hope you enjoy the album! I'm enjoying mine already...
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