Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul's Highly Anticipated New Album 'Summer of Sorcery' Out Today Via Wicked Cool/UMe

NEW YORK, May 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --

"The most eclectic record he's ever made... it largely dispenses with protest songs and revels in the rock, soul and R&B of his Sixties youth. On tracks like 'Soul Power Twist,' 'Vortex' and 'Love Again,' he returns to the sort of Jersey Shore soul shakers he once wrote for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes."
– Rolling Stone

"A nostalgic New Jersey starburst of sex and soul."
– Uncut

"Summer of Sorcery's 12 tracks also explore a variety of motifs, from the brassy soul rock of 'Communion' to the funk of 'Gravity,' rockabilly on 'Superfly Terraplane,' doo-wop on 'Love Again,' the Latino flavor of 'Party Mambo!,' 'Vortex's' homage to Isaac Hayes' Shaft soundtrack and the bouncy Gary U.S. Bonds feel of 'Soul Power Twist.' 'A World of Our Own,' meanwhile, has a shimmering Phil Spector quality that Van Zandt acknowledges as 'the girl group entry of this album.'"
– Billboard

"Steven, his musical director Marc Ribler and veteran mixers/masterers Bob Clearmountain and Bob Ludwig, pull out all the stops to make this sonic smorgasbord explode out of the speakers with passion and clout. Few artists have the financial means or artistic vision to pull off a thunderous production like this which is impressive in its scope and sheer booming audio audacity."
– American Songwriter

Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul's first new album of original material in 20 years, Summer of Sorcery, is available today via Wicked Cool/UMe. The highly anticipated new album, a collection of 12 songs that captures the energy, excitement and electricity of summer, is receiving rave reviews for its exuberant mix of rock n' soul delivered with unmatched passion and authenticity by one of rock and roll's most loyal practitioners, Steven Van Zandt. Summer of Sorcery is available now on CD, digitally, and on vinyl as double LP on 180-gram black vinyl. A limited edition double LP on 180-gram psychedelic swirl vinyl is available exclusively via uDiscover. Order Summer of Sorcery now: https://ume.lnk.to/SummerOfSorceryPR

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and founder of SiriusXM's Underground Garage (Ch. 21) will celebrate the release of Summer of Sorcery with a special weekend-long takeover of SiriusXM's Classic Vinyl (Ch. 26). "Steven Van Zandt's Classic Vinyl Takeover" will feature Little Steven spinning vintage and classic rock tracks as well as playing songs from the new album. The takeover begins Friday, May 3 at 5pm ET with replays throughout the weekend on Classic Vinyl.

"These are richly bombastic horn arrangements, dancing grooves, and high powered performances from a band that loves taking it at full throttle."
– Glide Magazine

Having just returned from an Australian/New Zealand tour where they put the exclamation point on their Soulfire Live! Tour, Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul will celebrate Summer of Sorcery with a pair of eagerly awaited record release shows at Los Angeles' Saban Theatre this Saturday, May 4 and Asbury Park, NJ's famed Paramount Theatre on Wednesday, May 8. The band will then embark on the epic "Summer of Sorcery World Tour 2019," beginning May 16 at Liverpool, UK's 02 Academy and continuing through the year. The globetrotting trek will feature headline and festival stops across the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy and Spain before returning home to kick off an extensive North American tour that will get underway June 29 at Syracuse, NY's New York State Blues Fest and then travel the Eastern US and Canada through an eagerly awaited performance at Annapolis, MD's Outlaw Jam on July 28. Additional European headline and festival dates follow, including dates in Norway, Denmark, Poland, Germany, Luxembourg, Ireland, Austria, and the United Kingdom.

"Back in the saddle as bandleader, his tangible labour of love defiantly captures old-school New York's cross-pollinating melting pot with rich infusions of Latin ('Party Mambo'), blues ('I Visit The Blues'), blaxploitation ('Vortex'), classic rock'n'roll ('Superfly Terraplane'), Southside Johnny And The Asbury Jukes ('Soul Power Twistin''), and still making a social point on 'Education.'"
– Classic Rock

Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul will then set off for the second leg of their North American tour, beginning September 5-8 at Las Vegas, NV's Big Blues Bender at Hard Rock Casino & Hotel and traveling through the fall. The band will make an appearance at Louisville, KY's Bourbon & Beyond on September 22 and include dates up and down the Western US, South, Midwest and East Coast before culminating with a hometown show at the legendary Beacon Theatre in NYC on November 6. All shows for the second leg of the tour will go on sale next Friday, May 10. Each ticket purchased online for the first leg of the US headline tour dates will include a CD of Summer of Sorcery. Exclusive VIP Meet & Greet Upgrade Packages are also available for most dates. All teachers and a guest will get in to the shows for free. For complete details, updates and ticket availability, please visit www.littlesteven.com/on-tour.

In addition, each and every US headline date on the Summer of Sorcery Tour 2019 will benefit Van Zandt's TeachRock education initiative and offer an introduction to the Teachrock.org curriculum. Before the show, the TeachRock staff will host free professional development workshops designed to engage educators with techniques and content through which they can comfortably use music to inspire students, even if they've never touched an instrument. The free, multimedia K-12 interdisciplinary curriculum meets prevailing standards in English Language Arts, Social Studies/History, the Fine and Performing Arts, and also includes STEAM and advisory material suitable for K-12 teachers of all disciplines, interdisciplinary best practices, and group activities.

"It's genuinely doubtful that many other—if any other—musicians working today could have the ambition or confidence to deliver an album of this power and surprise. But Van Zandt simply knows no bounds nor succumbs to uncertainty or hesitancy—concepts that beleaguer many but are routinely shouldered aside by this genuine genius. With this, Van Zandt's first release in around 20 years, we should count ourselves lucky that he's prepared to share some of his magic with us from time to time."
– Elmore Magazine

Little Steven will be joined on the "Summer of Sorcery World Tour 2019" by the one and only Disciples of Soul, a 14-strong all-star ensemble made up of some of the best studio and live musicians in the business. Leading the charge alongside Van Zandt is musical director and guitarist Marc Ribler (Darlene Love, Roger McGuinn, Carole King) who conducts the band: Lowell "Banana" Levinger (of The Youngbloods) on piano and Wurlitzer, bassist Jack Daley (Lenny Kravitz, Boz Scaggs, Darryl Hall), drummer Rich Mercurio (Ben E King, Sara Bareilles, Idina Menzel), percussionist Anthony Almonte (King Creole and The Coconuts), Andy Burton on B3 organ, piano, synthesizers (Cyndi Lauper, John Mayer, Ian Hunter), the dynamite horn section of horn director Eddie Manion on baritone saxophone (Diana Ross, Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny), Stan Harrison on tenor saxophone and flute (David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Duran Duran), Ron Tooley on trumpet (James Brown, John Lennon, Maceo Parker), Ravi Best on trumpet (Aretha Franklin, Stevie, Wonder, Kool and The Gang) and Clark Gayton on trombone (Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Joss Stone, Rhianna). The band is rounded out with the soulful, synchronized dancing backup singers Jessie Wagner (Kid Rock, Lenny Kravitz, Chic), Sara Devine (Alicia Keys, Mary J Blige) and Tania Jones (Disciples of Soul).

Summer of Sorcery is Van Zandt's commitment to his solo career and was born from his renewed interest in his own music following his return to the spotlight with 2017's Soulfire, his first album as Little Steven in nearly two decades. Created with a new incarnation of the Disciples of Soul, that album saw him revisit songs that spanned the length of his career as artist, performer, producer, arranger, and songwriter, focusing on the "soul horns-meet-rock 'n' roll guitars" sound he first pioneered on Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes' classic first three albums and later, his own first solo LP. After two years on the road, which totaled more than a hundred shows and resulted in a rousing live CD, concert Blu-ray video and 7LP vinyl box set, Little Steven was inspired to record his first album of original material in 20 years, buoyed by his incredible 14-piece band, the first time he ever used the same band for consecutive albums. Together they retreated to Van Zandt's NYC studio in the fall of 2018 and conjured up 12 incredible sonic movie scenes that feel like summer.

"Featuring Little Steven's lifelong production expertise, passionate vocals and biting lead guitar and the effortless musicianship of the Disciples of Soul (who've now played over 100 shows together and are capable of performing any style of music, anyway, anyhow, anywhere), it's an eclectic mix of rock and soul, blues, Latin rhythms, funky grooves and – for the first time in a while – pure, uncomplicated, infectious pop music. The good kind, rooted in tradition and influenced by past masters of the art."
– Backstreets

Summer of Sorcery is Little Steven at his omnivorous, humanistic best, expertly crafted and deeply rooted in the many classic genres which taught and inspired the self-proclaimed "walking history lesson" from the jump. With their richly bombastic arrangements, floor-shaking groves, and high-powered performances from all involved, new songs like "Soul Power Twist" and the album kick off "Communion" synthesize Van Zandt's incalculable range of cultural and sonic inspirations into a one-of-a-kind brass-fueled brand of Technicolor rock 'n' soul unlike anyone else's. The album features 10 original new songs alongside "Suddenly You," an outtake from the "Lilyhammer" score, Netflix's first original series, which starred Van Zandt who also composed all the music for trailblazing show, and a reimagining of "Education" which was first recorded for his 1989 album Revolution. "The education system needs to be fixed, needs to be improved," he says. "Teachers need to be supported. There needs to be more support, more funding. That's what I'm trying to get across with my TeachRock program and that's all in this song."

The record culminates with the epic title track, "Summer of Sorcery," an eight-minute mission statement that conjures the euphoric rush of a summer romance and limitless possibility. "The whole theme of the album is summed up in that song, that wizardry, that magic mixture of falling in love in the summer," says Van Zandt.

"With this record I really wanted to travel back to a time when life was exciting, when unlimited possibilities were there every day," says Van Zandt. "That was the feeling in the '60s, the thrill of the unexpected coming at you. Our minds were blown every single day, one amazing thing after another, constantly lifting you up. So you kind of walked around six inches off the ground all the time, there was something that kept you buoyant in your spirit. I wanted to try and capture that first and foremost."

LITTLE STEVEN AND THE DISCIPLES OF SOUL

SUMMER OF SORCERY WORLD TOUR 2019

SUMMER OF SORCERY RECORD RELEASE SHOWS 2019

MAY
4 - Beverly Hills, CA - The Saban
8 - Asbury Park, NJ - Paramount Theatre

SUMMER OF SORCERY TOUR - EUROPE 2019

MAY
16 - Liverpool, UK - O2 Academy
18 - Leeds, UK - O2 Academy
20 - Glasgow, UK - O2 Academy
22 - Bristol, UK - O2 Academy
24 - London, UK - O2 Forum Kentish Town
26 - Derbyshire, UK - Bearded Theory Festival *
28 - Berlin, Germany - Huxley's
30 - Jelling, Denmark - Jelling Muiskfestival *

JUNE
1 - Stockholm, Sweden - Cirkus
3 - Oslo, Norway - Rockefeller
5 - Hamburg, Germany - Fabrik
7 - Brussels, Belgium - Ancienne Belgique (AB)
9 - Emmen, The Netherlands - Hello Festival *
11 - Zurich, Switzerland - Kaufleuten
13 - Milan, Italy - Alcatraz
15 - Bilbao, Spain - Music Legends Festival *
17 - Barcelona, Spain - Sala Apolo
20 - Kragujevac, Serbia - Arsenal Festival *
23 - Paris, France - La Cigalle

SUMMER OF SORCERY TOUR - NORTH AMERICA 2019

JUNE
29 - Syracuse, NY - New York State Blues Fest *

JULY
2 - London, ON - London Music Hall
4 - Ottawa, ON - Ottawa Bluesfest *
6 - Quebec City, QC - Festival d'été de Québec *
10 - Toronto, ON - Phoenix Theatre
12 - Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
14 - Clifton Park, NY - Upstate Concert Hall
16 - New Haven, CT - College Street Music Hall
18 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount
20 - Glenside, PA - Keswick Theatre
24 - Richmond, VA - The National
26 - Easton, PA - State Theatre Center For The Arts
28 - Annapolis, MD - Outlaw Jam *

SUMMER OF SORCERY TOUR - EUROPE 2019

AUGUST
3 - Notodden, Norway - Notodden Blues Festival *
5 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Amager Bio
7 - Warsaw, Poland - Stodola
9 - Erfurt, Germany - Gewerkschaftshaus
11 - Hanau, Germany - Amphitheater
13 - Nuremberg, Germany - Serenadenhof
17 - Luxembourg, Luxembourg
21 - Manchester, UK - O2 Ritz
23 - Dublin, Ireland - Vicar Street
25 - Oxford, UK - O2 Academy
27 - Newcastle, UK - O2 Academy
29 - Cardiff, UK - Tramshed

SEPTEMBER
2 - Vienna, Austria - Arena Wien

SUMMER OF SORCERY TOUR - NORTH AMERICA 2019

SEPTEMBER
5-8 - Las Vegas, NV - Big Blues Bender @ Hard Rock Hotel and Casino *
9 - Ventura, CA - The Majestic Ventura Theater
11 - Berkeley, CA - The UC Theatre
13-15 - San Diego, CA - Kaaboo Del Mar *
15 - Tucson, AZ - The Rialto Theatre
17 - Englewood, CO - The Gothic Theatre
22 - Louisville, KY - Bourbon & Beyond *
29 – Austin, TX @ Emo's Austin

OCTOBER
3 – Birmingham, AL – Iron City
17 – Burnsville, MN – Ames Center
19 – Milwaukee, WI – Pabst Theater
21 – Winnipeg, MB @ Burton Cummings Theatre for the Performing Arts
23 – Chicago, IL – House Of Blues
26 – Cleveland, OH – Masonic Auditorium
28 – Des Moines, IA – Hoyt Sherman Place
30 – Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall

NOVEMBER
2 – Medford, MA – Chevalier Theatre
4 – Warrendale, PA – Jergel's Rhythm Grille
6 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre

* FESTIVAL APPEARANCE

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SOURCE UMe

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