Ray Davies to release collaborations album, 'See My Friends'

Ray Davies, one of the UK's finest songwriters, releases 'See My Friends', an album of classic Kinks songs turned into unique collaborations on Universal on November 1st.

On this one of a kind album, Ray collaborates with a formidable selection of artists on tracks from his incredible songwriting career, revisiting his back catalogue and crafting new versions of his classic songs. Everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Metallica features on this diverse collection of material.

Highlights include 'Days'/'This Time Tomorrow' with Mumford amp; Sons, 'Better Things' with Bruce Springsteen, 'You Really Got Me' with Metallica and 'Tired of Waiting For You' with Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody.

"This project came about almost by accident," says Davies of the project, which was kick-started when he recorded a version of 'Till The End Of The Day' in the summer of 2009, with the late, great Big Star singer Alex Chilton.

"With some tracks I had to appreciate the style of the other artists, otherwise it would have sounded unbalanced. And I wanted the album to work as an entire listening experience but each track had a life of its own," explains Ray.

Ray was happy to go where the music took him, in every sense: Oslo via Denmark, Germany and Belgium to record with Metallica, New York to record with Jon Bon Jovi, New Jersey for Bruce Springsteen, Chicago for Billy Corgan from Smashing Pumpkins and his own north London base, the legendary KONK studios, for much of the rest. "This record is well-travelled already," explains Ray.

Paloma Faith, Jackson Browne, Black Francis of the Pixies, Lucinda Williams, Amy Macdonald and Spoon also feature on the record, which follows Ray's acclaimed tour of North America and the UK plus a stand out set on Glastonbury's Pyramid stage this summer.

The tracklisting for 'See My Friends' is:

1. Better Things - Ray Davies & Bruce Springsteen
2. Celluloid Heroes - Ray Davies, Jon Bon Jovi & Richie Sambora
3. Days/This Time Tomorrow - Ray Davies & Mumford amp; Sons
4. Long Way From Home - Ray Davies, Lucinda Williams & The 88
5. You Really Got Me - Ray Davies & Metallica
6. Lola - Ray Davies & Paloma Faith
7. Waterloo Sunset - Ray Davies & Jackson Browne
8. 'Til The End of The Day - Ray Davies, Alex Chilton & The 88
9. Dead End Street - Ray Davies & Amy Macdonald
10. See My Friends Ray Davies & Spoon
11. This Is Where I Belong - Ray Davies & Black Francis
12. David Watts - Ray Davies & The 88
13. Tired Of Waiting - Ray Davies & Gary Lightbody
14. All Day And All Of The Night/Destroyer - Ray Davies & Billy Corgan

Billy Corgan announces new, free 44-song Smashing Pumpkins album

As per Billy Corgan @ SmashingPumpkins.com:

I'm happy to finally announce the plans for the new Smashing Pumpkins album.

Recording began yesterday, September 15th, 2009 on the new record which will be entitled 'Teargarden by Kaleidyscope'. The album will feature 44 songs, 4 of which are now being recorded. My desire is to release a song at a time beginning around Halloween of this year, with each new release coming shortly after until all 44 are out. Each song will be made available absolutely for free, to anyone anywhere. There will be no strings attached. Free will mean free, which means you won't have to sign up for anything, give an email address, or jump through a hoop. You will be able to go and take the song or songs as you wish, as many times as you wish.

We will however sell highly limited edition EP's (of 4 songs each times 11), and details of how those EP's will be made available are still being worked out. Because the songs themselves will be free, the EP's will be more like collectors items for the discerning fan who will want the art itself, along with the highest possible audio quality available. The EP's will be more like mini-box sets rather than your normal cd single. We may also offer other variations for sale, say for example a digital single with a demo version of a song. The commitment that is most important is the one I'm making to you: that the music of 'Teargarden by Kaleidyscope' will be available for free to everyone. All 44 songs: free for ALL.

When the entire album is finished, it will be compiled into a deluxe box set which will also be made available for sale. Those who have bought the EP's need not worry, as the box set will not be a recompilation of the limited edition pieces.

The story of the album is based on 'The Fool's Journey', as signified in the progress of the Tarot. It is my intention to approach this by breaking down the journey of our life here into four phases as made by these different characters; the Child, the Fool, the Skeptic, and the Mystic.

The music of 'Teargarden by Kaleidyscope' harkens back to the original psychedelic roots of The Smashing Pumpkins: atmospheric, melodic, heavy, and pretty.

I already have 53 songs written for the record, so I am quite confident that I already have much of the material that I would need to undertake such an extensive project. I am very committed to seeing this album through to its completion and very, very excited about the prospect of delivering new Smashing Pumpkins music to you in a unique and exciting way.