John Oates Launches Yearlong Musical Journey with Good Road To Follow
John Oates Launches Yearlong Musical Journey with Good Road To Follow
April 30, 2013, Nashville, TN …John Oates is taking fans on a cross-genre journey with his latest project, Good Road To Follow. Unrestricted by musical barriers, Oates has collaborated with some of the world's brightest music makers, ranging from acclaimed songwriter/producer/rocker Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic, to pop band Hot Chelle Rae, to country music icon Vince Gill.
Oates will release a single-a-month from the PS Records / Elektra Records project. Fans can subscribe to the series receiving a new download and exclusive content every four weeks, purchase limited edition clothing and merchandise inspired by the songs, and individual tracks. The lead single "High Maintenance," an exciting rave-up of sound featuring rising pop superstars Hot Chelle Rae, will be released in June.
A future single, "Stand Strong," has been released as a sneak peak in conjunction with ESPN featuring the song in the live broadcast of the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway.
Oates approached Good Road To Follow with the same unique creativity that has been the hallmark of his 4- decade career. "It's an interesting project," he explains. "Almost every song is done with a different producer and a different co-writer, so I get to step into the worlds of other people. Some people I've worked with in the past, some people I've never met. I reached out to the songwriters, musicians and producers that I respect and asked them if they would work with me on one individual song. It was a pure collaboration from writing to recording. My idea was to share an intense creative experience and not get bogged down in a long drawn out album project."
"This project is about getting people to capture the moment, capture their attention and getting them to respond to it," says Oates, who has enjoyed purchasing singles since his youth. "I'd go to a record store and buy a 45, so it's cool," he remembers, adding that the music consumption trend has come full circle. "It seems that the album, as a medium, is quickly becoming a thing of the past. Don't get me wrong, I love listening to an album's worth of music, but the digital world has given people the freedom to download and create their own personal playlists."
A Songwriters Hall of Fame member, Oates, wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on Good Road To Follow. Among the in-demand producers and/or songwriters who contributed to the effort are Tedder, Gill, Hot Chelle Rae, Kevin Griffin (Better Than Ezra), Nathan Chapman (Taylor Swift), Tommy Simms (Eric Clapton), Teddy Morgan (Kevin Costner), Pat Alger, Craig Wiseman and Jim Lauderdale. These remarkable collaborative experiences, combined with not having to think about the album as a cohesive collection, gave Oates the freedom to explore his wide range of influences. The project delves into rootsy blues, Philly Soul, experimental Americana, and contemporary pop/rock and country.
With the innovative release schedule, there is no limit to the number of musical collaborations that could follow. "Who knows, this could be a recording project that never ends," Oates muses. "I'm having more fun now than I've ever had in my career."
Tags:
Posted on Tuesday, April 30, 2013 | Comments (0) | Permalink