Onthakan The Blue Hour (2015)

Provogue Records is proud to announce the new studio album from the legendary Steve Cropper, 'Friendlytown'. The follow-up to his 2021 album, 'Fire It Up', which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Album Chart, and was nominated for the Best Blues Album at the 64th Grammy Awards, 'Friendlytown' is yet another hit from the guitar hero. Featuring guest appearances from Billy Gibbons, Brian May, and Tim Montana, 'Friendlytown' is a must have for fans of Cropper's world-renowned repertoire. "I feel great about this batch of songs. It's packed with great radio hooks, and features some of the best musicians in the world," says Cropper. "It's like guitar heaven."

This is a keeper from the word "go." Recorded live in 1995 (but not released until 1998) at Yoshi's in Oakland, CA, Robben Ford is joined by long-time Blue Line trio members Roscoe Beck on bass and Tom Brechtlein on drums, as well as Bill Boublitz on a baby grand piano. Although nearly all of the songs can be found on other Ford albums (most are from Handful of Blues), one of the things that makes this jazzy recording so special is that Ford is playing only an acoustic guitar. The Ray Charles gem "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying" (which you WON'T find elsewhere) is simply beautiful, and on Paul Butterfield's "Lovin' Cup," it's just Ford and his guitar. The brilliance of his playing and the reason behind why so many guitar players put him at the top of their list can be found in Ford's performance on this release, alternating between lead and rhythm. The Authorized Bootleg also has great (albeit laid-back) versions of "When I Leave Here" and "Tired of Talkin'." Highly, highly recommended.

Provogue Records is proud to announce the new studio album from the legendary Steve Cropper, 'Friendlytown'. The follow-up to his 2021 album, 'Fire It Up', which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Blues Album Chart, and was nominated for the Best Blues Album at the 64th Grammy Awards, 'Friendlytown' is yet another hit from the guitar hero. Featuring guest appearances from Billy Gibbons, Brian May, and Tim Montana, 'Friendlytown' is a must have for fans of Cropper's world-renowned repertoire. "I feel great about this batch of songs. It's packed with great radio hooks, and features some of the best musicians in the world," says Cropper. "It's like guitar heaven."

To complete their reissue programme The Blue Nile again worked alongside long term producer/engineer partner Calum Malcolm. This 2CD deluxe set, features all nine tracks remastered plus a bonus disc featuring four previously unreleased songs plus two extended remixes - over 32 minutes of new music!