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P.P. ARNOLD'S NEW ADVENTURES...51 YEARS ON

P.P. ARNOLD'S NEW ADVENTURES...51 YEARS ON

London, May 2019: Five decades after she became a '60s icon with the timeless pop hits 'The First Cut Is The Deepest' and 'Angel Of The Morning' on Rolling Stones manager Andrew Oldham's ultra-hip Immediate label, soul singer P.P. Arnold is set to release a double-album of stunning new material featuring contributions from, among others, Paul Weller, Ocean Colour Scene's Steve Cradock, The Specials and P.P's songwriter son, Kodzo. Titled 'The New Adventures Of...P.P. Arnold' and released via earMUSIC on August 9th, the album crowns an extraordinary career that has seen the singer back Ike & Tina Turner as one of The Ikettes, record with Mick Jagger, the Small Faces, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, Barry Gibb and Primal Scream, and provide her distinctive backing vocals for Billy Ocean, Peter Gabriel, the KLF, Paul Weller and, most recently, Roger Waters.

P.P. Arnold
P.P. Arnold
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P.P. (Pat) & Steve Cradock
P.P. (Pat) & Steve Cradock
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London date (October)
London date (October)
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'The New Adventures Of PP Arnold' was recorded and produced by life-long P.P. enthusiast, OCS star and Paul Weller band guitarist Steve Cradock at his Kundalini Studio in Devon, and follows on - after a 51-year gap - from the singer's two legendary solo albums on Immediate Records, 'The First Lady Of Immediate' (1967) and 'Kafunta' (1968), as well as a more recent compilation of previously unreleased material from the late '60s and '70s, 'The Turning Tide' (2017).

"Those Immediate records were great-sounding records, but they're also imperfect in a way," says Steve Cradock. "They're beautiful and they're amazing. But as a fan, I thought, how can I top them? I thought this new album should be inspired by the flavour and musical augmentation of that time. But every song then takes on a life of its own. It's a mix-and-match, very eclectic."

For the great lady herself, it's a chance to re-ignite a successful solo career that has been dogged by unlucky breaks (labels folding, a serious car accident, bad management, bankruptcy) and tragedy (the death of her young daughter in the mid-'70s). "I've got this huge catalogue of records I've sung on, but I have only released two albums - and they've stood the test of time," P.P. Arnold (aka Pat) explains. "It's been about quality not quantity! I've had to deal with a lot of tragedy. You kind of think people at record companies have forgotten about you, but Steve and his wife Sally have really made this happen. Steve's production is slamming."

The beginnings of the album - spanning classic orchestral soul ('Baby Blue', 'Finally Found My Way Back Home'), sunshine pop ('The Magic Hour'), house music ('Hold On To Your Dreams'), a spine-chilling gospel elegy inspired by her daughter's death ('I'll Always Remember You'), two Paul Weller originals ('When I Was Part Of Your Picture', 'Shoot The Dove') and an epic, edgy 10-minute reading of Bob Dylan's poem 'The Last Thoughts On Woody Guthrie' - can be traced back 25 years to 1994. It was that year that Cradock and his Ocean Colour Scene bandmates appeared at the stage door of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, where Pat was performing in the play Once On This Island, bearing a bouquet of flowers and an invitation to sing on their next record. Nothing came of the offer that night - "It was the last night of the run there, then I was busy with the play again," Pat says - yet within three years the singer was staying at Cradock's house in Birmingham, cutting demos for a possible new solo record.

Worldwide tours with Roger Waters put the project on the backburner, but when Cradock rediscovered the tapes during a house move four years ago, both parties were excited about the prospect of finally completing an album. Now living in Spain, Pat would fly over to the UK to add vocals to Steve's backing tracks at his home studio, with original material variously written by P.P., Cradock, Paul Weller, Pat's son Kodzo, The Boaty Man's Steve Grizzell, and Cradock solo band member Jake Fletcher, plus covers including Mike Nesmith's 'Different Drum' and Sandy Denny's 'I'm A Dreamer'.

The emotional vocal for the hymnal closing track, 'I'll Always Remember You... (Debbie's Song)', was recorded in the suitably spiritual environment of Exeter Cathedral, however, complete with church choir and pipe organ. "I gave Pat a hug afterwards, tears flowed, it was very emotional," recalls Steve. "It's great that I'm coming back with this record," says Pat. "Even now, I'm still finding my way, because the industry changes every decade, and you're sometimes out of the loop. For me it's all about faith, meditating, love, praying... try to be ready and don't give up the fight. That's the message."

'The New Adventures Of...P.P. Arnold' is out via earMUSIC on August 9th, available on CD/Vinyl/ Download. UK Date: October 11th, Islington Assembly Hall (London), preceded by a launch night & Q&A with BBC 6's Matt Everitt on May 15th.

https://pparnold.com

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