David Randall chatted to Justin Furstenfeld for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio in February 2017.  In the first hour of his weekly show, David plays tracks from the current and recent albums whilst asking Justin about the band’s background and success in the USA.  (First broadcast 26 February 2017).

Blue October, the platinum-selling Texas-based band, release their long-awaited ninth studio album ‘I Hope You’re Happy’ on 17 August 2018; via Absolute and Up/Down-Brando Records. 

The band are set to announce more UK dates following a successful tour earlier this year.

Blue October is Jeremy Furstenfeld (drums), Matt Noveskey (bass), Ryan Delahoussaye (violin and piano) and Justin Furstenfeld (guitar and vocals).

Blue October have experienced phenomenal success in the States with eleven charting singles from their eight previous albums with songs like ‘Into The Ocean’, ‘Hate Me’, ‘Home’, ‘Calling You’, ‘Dirt Room’, ‘Say It’, ‘The Chills’, ‘Bleed Out’, ‘Fear’ and ‘I Want It’.

These albums include 2009′s Billboard Top 200 #13 debut ‘Approaching Normal’, 2011′s Billboard #8 debut ‘Any Man In America’, the Platinum-selling ‘Foiled’ and Billboard’s #13 debut ‘Sway. The band’s last album ‘Home” released in 2016 hit #1 on the Billboard Alternative Chart.  #1 on the Independent Chart and #5 on the Billboard Top 200 Current Chart.

TRACKLISTING
Daylight / Your Love Is Like A Car Crash / I Want To Come Back Home / I’ll Do Me, You Do You / I Hope You’re Happy / Colors Collide / Remission In Cmaj / How To Dance In Time / King / Let Forever Mean Forever / All That We Are / Further Drive [The House That Dylan Built]

Album review

Gig review (March, 2017)

On Sunday 12 August at 18:00 GMT Graham Gouldman chatted about his career in a one hour special for Get Ready to ROCK! Radio. (Thursday 16 August, 22:00 repeat)

In this exclusive edit using non-broadcast material Graham chats about his stint this summer with Ringo Starr and touring, including 10cc (12:06)

Full interview

10cc will be touring again in the UK from 18 October.  Bandleader and founder member Graham Gouldman releases his solo album ‘Love & Work’ via Wienerworld on 17 August.

‘Love And Work’ was first released in 2012 and includes a track recorded with the late Andrew Gold to whom the album is dedicated and with whom Gouldman worked in the 1980s and 1990s in the band “Wax”.

Love And Work is the fourth studio album by the Manchester-born Gouldman who is perhaps best known for his time with 10cc.  The band launched in 1972 and had a series of hit singles and best-selling albums many of which are featured in their current live set.

Since the 1960s, though, Gouldman has provided songs for many other artists including – in 1965 – the Yardbirds (‘For Your Love’ ) and The Hollies (‘Look Through Any Window’).

On Sunday 12 August (18:00 GMT), Graham Gouldman chats to David Randall on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio about his career with tracks played from ‘Love And Work’.

More information
Album review

Photo: Steve Goudie

10cc UK tour dates

 Oct 18 High Wycombe Swan Theatre
Oct 19 Margate Winter Gardens
Oct 20 Malvern Forum Theatre
Oct 22 Inverness Eden Court Theatre
Oct 23 Perth Concert Hall
Oct 24 Edinburgh Concert Hall
Oct 25 Rhyl Pavilion Theatre
Oct 27 Bexhill-on-Sea De La Warr Pavilion
Oct 28 Basingstoke The Anvil
Oct 29 Northampton Royal & Derngate
Oct 30 Tunbridge Wells Assembly Hall Theatre
Nov 01 Doncaster The Dome
Nov 02 Halifax Victoria Theatre
Nov 03 Stevenage, Concert Hall
Nov 04 Cambridge Corn Exchange
Nov 06 Shrewsbury Theatre Severn
Nov 07 Crawley, Hawth Theatre
Nov 08 Chichester, Festival Theatre (on-sale from September)
Nov 09 Weymouth Pavilion
Nov 10 Isle of Wight Shanklin Theatre
Nov 12 Buxton Opera House
Nov 13 Hull City Hall
Nov 14 St Albans Alban Arena
Nov 15 Bury St Edmunds The Apex
Nov 16 Reading, The Hexagon
Nov 17 Dartford Orchard Theatre

Graham Bonnet releases a new studio album in July followed by a UK tour in August.

‘Meanwhile, Back In The Garage’ is the second album by the Graham Bonnet Band and follows ‘The Book’ (2016).

The Graham Bonnet Band features Kurt James on guitar, Beth-Ami Heavenstone on bass, Jimmy Waldo on keyboards, and Mark Benquechea on drums.

This new studio album includes a bonus live DVD captured at a Live From Daryl’s House performance in early 2018.

The Graham Bonnet Band will be on tour in the UK/RoI during August, with dates as follows :

08.08.18 GLASGOW G2
09.08.18 ABERDEEN The Assembly
10.08.18 EDINBURGH Bannermans
11.08.18 LOUTH Town Hall
12.08.18 NEWCASTLE Trillians
14.08.18 MANCHESTER Rebellion
15.08.18 HULL O’Rileys
16.08.18 STOKE Eleven
17.08.18 BELFAST Limelight
18.08.18 DUBLIN Button Factory
19.08.18 PONTYPRIDD Muni Arts Centre
21.08.18 BILSTON Robin 2
22.08.18 LONDON Underworld
23.08.18 BLACKPOOL Waterloo Music Bar
24.08.18 BUCKLEY Tivoli
25.08.18 NEWARK Stonedeaf Festival

Album review

Camel’s appearance at London’s Royal Albert Hall in September 2018 will be preceded by an extensive run of UK tour dates.

The band – led by Andrew Latimer (guitar, flute, vocals) and featuring Colin Bass (bass guitar, vocals), Denis Clement (drums) and Peter Jones (keyboards, vocals) – will be playing their 1976 album “Moonmadness” in its entirety plus plenty of other classic tracks.

‘Moonmadness’ was one of Camel’s most successful albums and has featured in various prog polls.

The full run of UK dates is as follows.

Fri 07 Sep 2018 Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Sat 08 Sep 2018 Tyne Theatre & Opera House, Newcastle
Sun 09 Sep 2018 The Assembly, Leamington
Mon 10 Sep 2018 Friars Aylesbury at The Waterside Theatre, Aylesbury
Wed 12 Sep 2018 O2 Guildhall, Southampton
Thu 13 Sep 2018 Corn Exchange, Cambridge
Fri 14 Sep 2018 Birmingham Town Hall, Birmingham
Mon 17 Sep 2018 Royal Albert Hall, London

This summer the band have been playing gigs in Europe including the Netherlands, Poland and Germany.

It’s nearly 50 years since the formative Camel emerged as “The Brew” with an early job of backing the singer Philip Goodhand-Tait.  By September 1971 another important piece of the jigsaw was fitted into place with the arrival of keyboard player Peter Bardens.

By December 1971 the band – now known as “Camel” – were playing their first gig supporting Wishbone Ash.

By 1976, with three albums under their belt, Camel released ‘Moonmadness’ which led to greater attention in the States.  For some fans however the jazzier direction was less endearing, a trend consolidated on the subsequent albums ‘Rain Dances’ and ‘Breathless’.  The addition of Mel Collins on sax underlined this change of direction and the first casualty was bassist (and founder member) Doug Ferguson who left in early-1977 and – in 1978 – Peter Bardens on the eve of a UK tour.

Following Bardens’ departure the band used two keyboard players and the bass position was then occupied by Colin Bass.

By the 1980s Camel re-grouped with an all-new line-up following drummer Andy Ward’s prolonged absence due to alcohol-related issues.  The album ‘The Single Factor’ featured musicians who had worked with The Alan Parsons Project.  Around this time, the band was involved in a legal case involving former management that dragged on until the late-1980s.

In spite of one further album (‘Stationary Traveller’ in 1984) Andrew Latimer – the sole founder member of the band – became disillusioned and decided to emigrate to the States in 1988.

The 1990s ushered in a new era for the band, with the subsequent releases very much part of a “cottage industry”.  ‘Dust And Dreams’ appeared in 1991 followed by a live album (recorded in 1972) and culminating in the release of ‘Rajaz’ in 1999.  Camel were back touring extensively in 1997.

Andrew Latimer succumbed to a debilitating blood disorder at the start of the millennium and it wasn’t until 2013 that the band ventured out on tour, followed by more dates in 2014.

2018′s September tour will be a reminder of one of the most enduring of progressive rock bands that has witnessed tragedy, turmoil, but a large amount of persistence in the face of adversity.  This is largely due to the perseverance of the band’s founder member and guitarist.

Photo: David Randall/GRTR!

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