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Al Stewart

Background information
Birth nameAlastair Ian Stewart
Born5 September 1945 (1945-09-05) (age 62)
Glasgow, Scotland
OriginBournemouth, England
Genre(s)Folk, Rock
Occupation(s)Musician, Singer-songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar
Years active1966 - Present
WebsiteAlStewart.com

Al Stewart (born Alastair Ian Stewart on 5 September 1945), is a British singer-songwriter and musician. Events 1590 - Alexander Farnese 's army forces Henry IV of France to raise the siege of Paris. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar Glasgow (ˈglæzgoʊ is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Bournemouth ( is a large coastal resort town in the Borough of Bournemouth in Dorset, England. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous Rock music is a genre of Popular music often though not necessarily employing Electric guitar, Bass guitar, and Drums. A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a Singer-songwriter is a term that refers to Performers who write, compose and sing their own material including Lyrics A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified for the purpose of making Music. Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, which is often contrasted with Speech. The guitar is a Musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. Events 1590 - Alexander Farnese 's army forces Henry IV of France to raise the siege of Paris. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Singer-songwriter is a term that refers to Performers who write, compose and sing their own material including Lyrics A musician is a person who plays or writes Music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music An instrumentalist plays a He is best known for his 1976 single "Year of the Cat" and its 1978 follow-up "Time Passages" (both of which were produced by Alan Parsons). Year of the Cat is a song by British Singer-songwriter Al Stewart. Time Passages is the eighth album by Al Stewart, released in 1978 Alan Parsons (b 20 December 1948 in London) is a British Audio engineer, Musician, and Record producer Stewart grew up in the coastal resort town of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. A resort is a place used for Relaxation or Recreation, attracting visitors for Holidays or Vacations Resorts are places towns or sometimes A town is a type of settlement ranging from a few to several thousand (occasionally hundreds of thousands inhabitants although it may be applied loosely even to huge metropolitan Bournemouth ( is a large coastal resort town in the Borough of Bournemouth in Dorset, England. Dorset ( (or archaically, Dorsetshire) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland He moved to the United States in 1977 and recorded/produced most of his work in Los Angeles during the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West

While studio albums are now few and far between, he still tours extensively throughout the United States and Europe. An album or record album is a collection of related audio or Music tracks distributed to the public The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Recordings of concerts are often made available through his fan clubs. Stewart's career in music has spanned over 40 years.

Contents

Recording career

Stewart's first record was the single "The Elf", backed with a version of the Yardbirds' "Turn into Earth", which was released in 1966 on Decca Records, and included guitar work from Jimmy Page (later of the Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin), (the first of many leading guitarists Stewart worked with, including Richard Thompson, Tim Renwick and Peter White). The Yardbirds are an English rock band noted for starting the careers of three of rock's most famous Guitarists Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. Decca Records is a British Record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. James Patrick Page, OBE (born 9 January 1944 is an English Guitarist, Composer and record producer Led Zeppelin were Richard John Thompson (born 3 April 1949 in Notting Hill Gate, West London) is a British songwriter Guitar player Timothy John Pearson 'Tim' Renwick (born 7 August 1949 in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England) is an English Guitarist Peter White (born 1954 is a Smooth jazz / Jazz fusion Guitarist. Stewart then signed to Columbia Records (CBS in the UK), for whom he released six albums. Columbia Records is an American Record label founded in 1888 Columbia is the oldest surviving Brand name in pre-recorded sound being the first record company The first four of these attracted relatively little commercial interest, although they contain some of Stewart's most incisive and introspective songwriting, and he became popular on the university circuit. A songwriter is someone who writes the Lyrics to songs the Musical composition (chords or Melody to songs or both Stewart's debut album Bed-Sitter Images was released on LP in 1967; a revised version appeared in 1970 as The First Album (Bed-Sitter Images) with a few tracks changed. Bed-Sitter Images is the debut album of folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1967 and again in a revised edition with a new cover picture in 1970 Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. Its dramatic string orchestrations by Alexander Faris arguably stifled the songs somewhat (Stewart premiered the album with a full orchestra at a concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London). The album was reissued on CD in 2007 by Collectors' Choice Music with all the songs from both versions.

Love Chronicles (1969) was notable for the 18-minute title track, an anguished autobiographical tale of sexual encounters that was the first mainstream record release ever to include the word "fucking". Love Chronicles is the second album of Scottish folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1969 in the UK on the CBS label and in 1970 on the affiliated US label Epic It was voted "Folk Album of the Year" by the UK music weekly Melody Maker. Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly Music Newspaper It also features Jimmy Page on guitar. James Patrick Page, OBE (born 9 January 1944 is an English Guitarist, Composer and record producer

His third album, Zero She Flies followed in 1970 - this time with a larger number of shorter songs which ranged from purely acoustic ballads and virtuoso instrumentals, to a couple of rockier songs with snarly electric lead guitar. Zero She Flies is the third album by folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1970. This time, the various virtuoso guitarists included Australian Trevor Lucas, who would later marry Sandy Denny and join Fairport Convention. Trevor George Lucas ( December 25[[ 943]] - February 4 1989) was an influential folk artist, a member of Fairport Convention and one Sandy Denny, born Alexandra Elene Maclean Denny ( 6 January 1947 &ndash 21 April 1978) was an English Singer

A crucial song in Stewart's career was the acoustic ballad 'Manuscript'. Here we see Stewart's muse flirting with European History, which would soon blossom to become virtually a personal genre: one which persists to this day. The history of Europe describes the passage of time from humans inhabiting the European continent to the present day

These first three albums (including 'The Elf') were released as the two CD set To Whom it May Concern: 1966-70.

Orange (1972) was very much a transitional album, combining songs in Stewart's confessional style with more intimations of the historical themes that he would increasingly adopt (e. g. 'The News From Spain', with its prog-rock overtones, including dramatic piano by Rick Wakeman). Progressive rock (often shortened to " progressive " " prog " or " prog rock " is a form of Rock music that evolved Richard Christopher Wakeman (born 18 May 1949 in Perivale, London) is an English Keyboard player best known as the Perhaps the most prophetic song is the ballad Songs out of Clay, which combines his powerful melodic instinct, emotional flair, and subtle prog-rock nuances.

The fifth release, Past, Present and Future (1973), was Stewart's first album to receive a proper release in the US, via Janus Records. Past Present and Future is Al Stewart 's fifth album released in March 1973 in the UK and in May 1974 in the US Janus Records was a Record label owned by GRT Corporation, also known as General Recorded Tape It echoed a traditional historical storytelling style and contained the song "Nostradamus," a long (9:43) track in which Stewart tied into the re-discovery of the claimed seer's writings by referring to selected possible predictions about twentieth century people and events. Michel de Nostredame (14 December 1503 or 21 December 1503 &ndash 2 July 1566 usually Latinized to Nostradamus, was a French Apothecary While too long for mainstream radio airplay at that time, the song became a hit on many US college/university radio stations, which were flexible about running times. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Airplay (noun The broadcasting of an audio (eg a piece of music or audiovisual recording on the air over radio or television Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Nevertheless, Past, Present and Future is the album where Stewart's 'history genre' intimations reached full bloom, with songs about American President Warren Harding. Past Present and Future is Al Stewart 's fifth album released in March 1973 in the UK and in May 1974 in the US Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2 1865 August 2 1923 was the twenty-ninth President of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death from a heart attack aged World War II, Ernst Röhm, Christine Keeler, Louis Mountbatten, and Stalin's purges. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Ernst Julius Röhm, (Munich November 28, 1887 – July 2, 1934) was a German military officer and later the commander and co-founder Christine Keeler (born February 22, 1942) is an English former model and Showgirl. Admiral of the Fleet Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, KG, GCB, OM, GCSI, Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party

Stewart followed Past, Present and Future with Modern Times (1975), in which the songs were lighter on historical references and more of a return to the theme of short stories set to music. Modern Times is Al Stewart 's sixth album released in 1975 The album has been re-released in 2007 with bonus tracks Significantly though, it was the first of his albums to be produced by Alan Parsons, and All Music Guide regard it as his best. Alan Parsons (b 20 December 1948 in London) is a British Audio engineer, Musician, and Record producer allmusic (previously All Music Guide) is a Metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide.

Stewart's contract with CBS Records expired at this point and he signed to RCA Records for the world outside North America. This article is about the record label founded in 2006 For the earlier CBS Records label see Columbia Records. RCA Records (originally The Victor Talking Machine Company, then RCA Victor is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. His first two albums for RCA, Year of the Cat (released on Janus in the US, then reissued by Arista Records after Janus folded in 1977) and Time Passages (released in the US on Arista), set the style for his later work, which many feel is less incisive than his early 1970s releases on CBS, although Cat and Passages are generally agreed upon to be his best work. For the cat in Vietnamese astrology see Rabbit (zodiac. For the song see Year of the Cat (song. Arista Records (ˈɛərɪstə is an American Record label. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operates under the Time Passages is the eighth album by Al Stewart, released in 1978 This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970. Stewart, however, reported hearing 'Time Passages' in an elevator, and being disgusted with it - especially when he realised that it was himself.

The overwhelming success of the songs "Year Of The Cat" and "Time Passages"—both of which still receive substantial radio airplay on classic-rock/pop format stations—has overshadowed the depth and range of Stewart's body of songwriting. Stewart managed to adopt the traditional folk idiom of documenting real events to produce contemporary songs.

Stewart then released 24 Carrots (1980) and his first live album Live/Indian Summer (1981), with both featuring backing band Shot in the Dark. 24 Carrots is the ninth album by Al Stewart, released in 1980 Live/Indian Summer is the tenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1981 They both reached the Billboard Charts, but failed to match the success of Year of the Cat and Time Passages, arguably because of the advent of the new wave and pop movements in the early 1980s. New Wave is a Rock music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the 1980s Pop music as a genre features a noticeable rhythmic element catchy melodies and hooks, a mainstream style and conventional structure

After those releases Stewart was dropped by Arista and his fame started to dry up soon afterwards. Yet, despite his lower profile and waning commercial success, he would continue to make solid albums and develop as a songwriter. There was a four year gap between his next two albums Russians and Americans (1984) (which was highly political) and the upbeat pop-orientated Last Days of the Century (1988), which appeared on smaller labels and had lower sales. Russians & Americans is the eleventh album by Al Stewart, released in 1984 Last Days of the Century is the twelfth album by Al Stewart, released in 1988 Stewart followed up with his second live album, the acoustic Rhymes in Rooms (1992), which featured only himself and Peter White, and Famous Last Words (1993), which was dedicated to the memory of the late Peter Wood (famous for co-writing "Year of the Cat", born Egham Surrey and lived Hythe Field Avenue as a child), who died the year of that release. Rhymes in Rooms is thirteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1992 Peter White (born 1954 is a Smooth jazz / Jazz fusion Guitarist. Famous Last Words is the fourteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1993. Year of the Cat is a song by British Singer-songwriter Al Stewart. Stewart followed these up with concept albums, with Between the Wars (1995), covering major historical and cultural events from 1918 to 1939, such as the Versailles Treaty, Prohibition, the Spanish Civil War, and the Great Depression and Down in the Cellar (2000), covering the aspects of wine, one of Stewart's areas of enthusiasm and expertise. This article is about the Al Stewart album For the Billy Bragg EP of the same name see Between the Wars EP. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, also known as Noble Experiment, refers to a Sumptuary law which prohibits Alcohol The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of Down in the Cellar is the seventeenth album by Al Stewart, released in 2000 In 2005, he released A Beach Full of Shells. A Beach Full of Shells is the eighteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 2005 He continues to tour the United States and Europe, along with guitarists such as Laurence Juber, whilst also devoting time to collecting wines. Laurence Juber (born November 12, 1952 in Stepney, East London) is an English Guitarist, most famous for playing lead guitar

Stewart's historical work includes songs such as:

On occasions Stewart has set poems to music, such as "My Enemies Have Sweet Voices" (lyrics by the poet Pete Morgan) on the 1970 album Zero She Flies. Pete Morgan (Born 1939 in Leigh near Wigan, Lancashire) is a British poet lyricist and TV documentary author and presenter During his 1999 UK tour, Stewart invited Morgan to read the lyrics as he performed this song in the Leeds City Varieties Theatre show of 7 November 1999. The Leeds City Varieties is a Grade II* listed Music Hall in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Events 1492 - The Ensisheim Meteorite the oldest Meteorite with a known date of impact strikes the Earth around noon in a Wheat Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar)

Discography

Stewart has also released many compilations, which mainly feature his radio hits and some of his more unknown songs. Bed-Sitter Images is the debut album of folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1967 and again in a revised edition with a new cover picture in 1970 Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. Love Chronicles is the second album of Scottish folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1969 in the UK on the CBS label and in 1970 on the affiliated US label Epic Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Zero She Flies is the third album by folk artist Al Stewart, released in 1970. Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Orange is Al Stewart 's fourth album originally released in 1972 and re-released in 1996 and 2007 on CD. Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Past Present and Future is Al Stewart 's fifth album released in March 1973 in the UK and in May 1974 in the US Year 1973 ( MCMLXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the 1973 Gregorian calendar. Modern Times is Al Stewart 's sixth album released in 1975 The album has been re-released in 2007 with bonus tracks Year 1975 ( MCMLXXV) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. For the cat in Vietnamese astrology see Rabbit (zodiac. For the song see Year of the Cat (song. Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Time Passages is the eighth album by Al Stewart, released in 1978 Year 1978 ( MCMLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1978 Gregorian calendar) 24 Carrots is the ninth album by Al Stewart, released in 1980 Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Live/Indian Summer is the tenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1981 Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Russians & Americans is the eleventh album by Al Stewart, released in 1984 Year 1984 ( MCMLXXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link displays the 1984 Gregorian calendar) Last Days of the Century is the twelfth album by Al Stewart, released in 1988 Year 1988 ( MCMLXXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar) Rhymes in Rooms is thirteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1992 Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) Famous Last Words is the fourteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 1993. Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) This article is about the Al Stewart album For the Billy Bragg EP of the same name see Between the Wars EP. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Laurence Juber (born November 12, 1952 in Stepney, East London) is an English Guitarist, most famous for playing lead guitar Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) Down in the Cellar is the seventeenth album by Al Stewart, released in 2000 2000 ( MM) was a Leap year that started on Saturday of the Common Era, in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. A Beach Full of Shells is the eighteenth album by Al Stewart, released in 2005 Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Stewart has also announced that he is working on a new album with Laurence Juber, to be released in 'late spring or early summer of 2008'[1]

References

  1. ^ http://www.alstewart.com/, 07. 12. 07

External links


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