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Via: variety.com

The actor turned musical stylist says he approached his new album, “The Blues,” with reverence… except, maybe, in the extreme case of the Screamin’ Jay Hawkins classic.

William Shatner hit upon his share of musical genres in the 2000s and 2010s, as he resumed the long-dormant musical part of his career, which began with 1968’s “The Transformed Man.” In recent years, he’s gone country and punk, done an album of famous space songs and a Jewish oratorio, and covered the Christmas beat. Now he’s found his final frontier — or at least his next final frontier — with “The Blues,” an album that unites his patented speak-singing style with shredding turns from guitarists including Albert Lee, Steve Cropper, Ritchie Blackmore, Sonny Landreth, Brad Paisley, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter and Pat Travers.

It’s the last of these joining him on “I Put a Spell on You,” Shatner’s cover of the Screamin’ Jay Hawkins classic, which finds the actor doing some vocal shredding, of sorts, in his own inimitable style. Variety has the exclusive premiere of the ribaldry funny music video for “Spell,” in which director Balázs Gróf animates Shatner as a positively crazed lush, alone with his lusty thoughts in a bar as he obsesses over a buxom and completely oblivious barmaid. Shatner spoke with Variety about coming up with the concept for the video … and why he felt emboldened to take on one of America’s great indigenous artforms.

Shatner says he approached the blues for the album with the utmost reverence — but does agree that maybe that wasn’t a necessary precondition for the already utterly irreverent “Spell.” Given that Hawkins’ spellbinding performance in 1956 would probably come in at No. 1 on any expert’s or neophyte’s list of the most histrionic lead vocals of all time, Shatner could have tried to go over the top, and then multiplied that times 10, and still come up with a rendition that would read as subtle compared to the original.

“I know! I know!” says Shatner, in a phone interview about the new song and album. “As you point out, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, you can’t go further than that; you had to go under that. But it’s a fun song, and done in this way (with the video), it’s got great humor, I think, where the guy is screaming his mind out and. of course, nobody hears. …I said to the animator, here’s what I was thinking when I was getting ready to do the song: I see this guy lusting over the barmaid in a small, smokey bar and he he’s totally nuts about her, and she never hears him, of course — it’s all in his own head. And he just did it superbly.”

That represents most of the extent to which Shatner took a comic approach to the project, however. He’s mining these mostly classic blues songs for all the drama each tortured line is worth, but (apart from “Jay”) taking that angst seriously, with gradations to his tone.

“At the other end of the spectrum is ‘The Thrill Is Gone’,” he says, noting his attempt to refrain from melodrama in lending that weeper a lighter touch. “I didn’t know (B.B. King) personally. Got to know his daughter, Shirley King. But I started to sound like a little bit of an imitation of Mr. King, and then I heard it and thought, ‘That’s not right.’ I went back to what is essential for me, which is to go to the emotion of the song. And then if you are filled with sadness over a love affair that’s over, it’s really sad, if you’re not angry about it — sad that that emotion didn’t and couldn’t last, and how low you are with it.”

Shatner took his research seriously in preparing for the album, taking counsel from a rocker who previously sat in on his Christmas album, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, who doesn’t appear on this album, and a new friend who does, Arthur Adams.

“I really researched all this,” Shatner says. “Billy Gibbons helped me with books that he lent me on the blues. He lives this part of the time here in the Valley, so we’ve gotten together a few times and I was able to partake of his wisdom. I read quite a bit of his material. And Arthur Adams, a wonderful musician who is living in Los Angeles now, and on call all the time, came into the office because I had asked talk to me about the blues. He said, ‘Well, I used to sing the blues when I was a kid, picking cotton.’ And he got up out of his chair and he started miming picking the cotton and putting it in the imagined bag, meanwhile humming and singing some of the call songs they would have used in the fields in Mississippi. And it was just a complete insight into some kid who still hadn’t yet taken up the guitar, and who tried to find his way in the world.

“In any case, I approached it with the reverence that blues musicians feel toward the genre. They’re very protective of it, and they wanted to be very sure that I wasn’t going to mock it. And I certainly didn’t, and did the best I could within my limitations of my interpretation of the blues.”

Shatner admits to non-Mississippian privilege, although he says his very, very northern background did prepare him for this, pre-Hollywood.

“I started off with a handicap of being a white guy from Montreal, Canada. But Montreal is a very musical city, and is the springboard for many musicians. Especially at university there, I was wandering around downtown a lot. There is a tradition of French Canadian music with a fiddle, maybe two fiddles. I’m picturing two French Canadian men who are traditionalists. Their music must’ve come from France, and they’re sitting in a chair beating single time with one foot and double time with the other and sawing away on a fiddle. They were making dancing music for the rest of the French Canadian friends of mine who were up at the country places when schools let out; I was up in the mountains that are, at that time, totally habitant, which is the word for the original Quebecer. And that’s where my music beginnings for the blues began. So I understood that kind of music from whence blues stemmed, and having felt the pain of living, I was in a position to kind of understand more than most people that come to it for the first time.”

The full track list for “The Blues,” which comes out October 2, 2020.

1. Sweet Home Chicago feat. Brad Paisley
2. I Can’t Quit You Baby feat. Kirk Fletcher
3. Sunshine Of Your Love feat. Sonny Landreth
4. The Thrill Is Gone feat. Ritchie Blackmore
5. Mannish Boy feat. Ronnie Earl
6. Born Under A Bad Sign feat. Tyler Bryant
7. I Put A Spell On You feat. Pat Travers
8. Crossroads feat. James Burton
9. Smokestack Lightnin’ feat. Jeff “Skunk” Baxter
10. As The Years Go Passing By feat. Arthur Adams
11. Let’s Work Together feat. Harvey Mandel & Canned Heat
12. Route 66 feat. Steve Cropper
13. In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company feat. Albert Lee
14. Secrets Or Sins

Legendary star of the stage and screen, William Shatner, brings his dramatic interpretive talents to the blues music canon on this superb new album!

Features guest appearances by blues giants Sonny Landreth, Canned Heat & Tyler Bryant PLUS country superstar Brad Paisley, Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore, and many more!

The album’s first single, “Let’s Work Together” featuring Canned Heat, has already been released and stirring up a mighty buzz!

Watch for a fully animated video for “I Put A Spell On You” featuring Pat Travers will be released on the same day as the album!

Available on both CD in a gorgeous digipak as well as limited edition colored vinyl!

Track Listing:
1. Sweet Home Chicago feat. Brad Paisley
2. I Can’t Quit You Baby feat. Kirk Fletcher
3. Sunshine Of Your Love feat. Sonny Landreth
4. The Thrill Is Gone feat. Ritchie Blackmore
5. Mannish Boy feat. Ronnie Earl
6. Born Under A Bad Sign feat. Tyler Bryant
7. I Put A Spell On You feat. Pat Travers
8. Crossroads feat. James Burton
9. Smokestack Lightnin’ feat. Jeff “Skunk” Baxter
10. As The Years Go Passing By feat. Arthur Adams
11. Let’s Work Together feat. Harvey Mandel & Canned Heat
12. Route 66 feat. Steve Cropper
13. In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company feat. Albert Lee
14. Secrets Or Sins

The new album is a follow-up to William Shatner’s 2018 holiday album ‘Shatner Claus’

Via: meaww.com

William Shatner is primarily known as an author, producer, director, screenwriter and especially for his iconic portrayal of Captain James T Kirk in ‘Star Trek’ franchise. Therefore, blues is something that doesn’t come to mind when we hear the legend’s name. However, the 89-year-old artiste is also a singer-songwriter and has been releasing music since 1968.

The talented blues singer is all set to release his brand new album titled ‘The Blues’. The actor made the big announcement through a press release on his official website. The press release talks about how he teamed up with Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore for a rendition of B B King’s 1970 classic ‘The Thrill Is Gone’.

“Despite being popularized by King in 1970, ‘The Thrill Is Gone’ was actually written in 1951, the same year Shatner made his film debut. Since then it has been interpreted numerous times but King’s version was the first to unite the soul-piercing lyrics with absolutely awe-inspiring guitar licks to create the definitive version of the song, and no doubt inspired the Shatner/Blackmore version.

As a special treat, Blackmore’s wife and longtime collaborator in Blackmore’s Night, Candice Night, contributes background vocals to add even more pathos to this inspired track.” The press release then states, “‘Thrill’ is a highlight of Shatner’s fantastic new album ‘The Blues’ which is now available for pre-order on CD, vinyl and digital.”

The new album is a follow-up to Shatner’s 2018 holiday album ‘Shatner Claus’

William Shatner’s ‘The Blues’ will arrive on October 2, 2020, on all the leading social media platforms via Cleopatra Records.

Talking about his heavy guest features in an interview with Consequence of Sound, William Shatner said, “Oh, if you’re at all cognizant of the blues majesty, these are the kings and queens of the blues that have accompanied me, and that is such an honor that they would deign to grant their talents to me. Mostly it was me singing to the rhythm track the producer created and then we’d send it back to these extraordinary people — Brad Paisley, Kirk Fletcher.

Sonny Landreth on the slide guitar He’s a monument. Ritchie Blackmore on ‘The Thrill Is Gone’ and his wife Candice Night singing on it… It goes on like that, one musician after another, some of the best people in the world. Ronnie Earl, for God’s sake! Albert Lee! To have them bring their instruments out and wail with me, it’s fabulous.”

The album comes with a lot of collaborations and will entertain the fans with a total of 14 songs which are as follows:

‘Sweet Home Chicago’ featuring Brad Paisley
‘I Can’t Quit You Baby’ featuring Kirk Fletcher
‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ featuring Sonny Landreth
‘The Thrill Is Gone’ featuring Ritchie Blackmore
‘Mannish Boy’ featuring Ronnie Earl
‘Born Under A Bad Sign’ featuring Tyler Bryant
‘I Put A Spell On You’ featuring Pat Travers
‘Crossroads’ featuring James Burton
‘Smokestack Lightnin’ featuring Jeff “Skunk” Baxter
‘As The Years Go Passing By’ featuring Arthur Adams
‘Let’s Work Together’ featuring Harvey Mandel and Canned Heat
‘Route 66’ featuring Steve Cropper
‘In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company’ featuring Albert Lee
‘Secrets Or Sins’

Check out ‘The Thrill Is Gone’ featuring Ritchie Blackmore here:

Via: guitar.com

Ritchie Blackmore has teamed up with William Shatner on a cover of the classic B.B. King tune The Thrill Is Gone. The rendition of the tune will appear on Shatner’s upcoming solo album, The Blues, which features a surprising guest lineup of guitar greats. Take a listen to the track below.

The Blues is due out October 2 through Cleopatra Records. Other guitarists that guest on Shatner’s 14-track tribute to the blues include Brad Paisley, Sonny Landreth, Steve Cropper, Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, James Burton, Albert Lee, Tyler Bryant and Kirk Fletcher.

While the lineup is surprising, this isn’t the first time Shatner’s collaborated with big-names in music. For 2018’s Shatner Claus, his Christmas album, Captain Kirk linked up with the likes of Billy Gibbons, Iggy Pop and Todd Rundgren.

Legendary star of the stage and screen, William Shatner, brings his dramatic interpretive talents to the blues music canon on this superb new album! Features guest appearances by blues giants Sonny Landreth, Canned Heat & Tyler Bryant PLUS country superstar Brad Paisley, Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore, and many more!

The album’s first single, “Let’s Work Together” featuring Canned Heat, has already been released and stirring up a mighty buzz! Watch for a fully animated video for “I Put A Spell On You” featuring Pat Travers will be released on the same day as the album!

Available on both CD in a gorgeous digipak as well as limited edition colored vinyl!

Track Listing:
1. Sweet Home Chicago feat. Brad Paisley
2. I Can’t Quit You Baby feat. Kirk Fletcher
3. Sunshine Of Your Love feat. Sonny Landreth
4. The Thrill Is Gone feat. Ritchie Blackmore
5. Mannish Boy feat. Ronnie Earl
6. Born Under A Bad Sign feat. Tyler Bryant
7. I Put A Spell On You feat. Pat Travers
8. Crossroads feat. James Burton
9. Smokestack Lightnin’ feat. Jeff “Skunk” Baxter
10. As The Years Go Passing By feat. Arthur Adams
11. Let’s Work Together feat. Harvey Mandel & Canned Heat
12. Route 66 feat. Steve Cropper
13. In Hell I’ll Be In Good Company feat. Albert Lee
14. Secrets Or Sins

Via: broadwayworld.com

In 1969, songwriter and recording artist Wilbert Harrison released “Let’s Work Together” amidst unprecedented social strife and racial tensions in America. The song was a clarion call to “every boy, girl, woman and man” to join the burgeoning social movements that promoted peace, justice and equality and a declaration that “Together we will stand, divided we’ll fall.” The following year, Southern California hippie blues band Canned Heat released their own version of the song, which became a major hit and amplified Harrison’s call to action and unity. Now, that same band has teamed up with famed actor and musical interpretationist William Shatner for a much-needed revival of the spirit of unity found in this song.

“Let’s Work Together” features a backing track created by the current line-up of Canned Heat, including long-time drummer Adolfo “Fito” de la Parra, as well as a special guest appearance by former member, and revered blues guitarist, Harvey Mandel. The musical stage thus set, Mr. Shatner joins in with a dramatic, passionate rendering of the song’s lyrics, breathing a new life into the message.

Mr. Shatner proclaims, “This is a terrific song for this moment in time!”

Fittingly, “Let’s Work Together” will be one of the centerpieces on Mr. Shatner’s new album, The Blues, coming later this year that will feature a constellation of blues, rock and country performers who work together with Mr. Shatner to bring the blues to life including Sonny Landreth, Brad Paisley, Ritchie Blackmore, Pat Travers, Tyler Bryant and more – courtesy of Cleopatra Records.

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Famed actor William Shatner and blues legends Canned Heat offer a timely, passionate call for unity in these troubled times!