Prog legends CARAVAN announce the release of their new album It’s None Of Your Business to be released on CD format on 15th October 2021 and as a vinyl LP, on 5th November, on Madfish Music
It’s None Of Your Business is Caravan’s first album since Paradise Filter (2013) and features nine new songs plus one instrumental track influenced, to a degree, by the events and restrictions placed on society over the past 18 months.
Caravan are Pye Hastings (guitar, vocals). Geoffrey Richardson (viola, mandolin, guitar), Jan Schelhaas (keyboards) and Mark Walker (drums). Lee Pomeroy (ELO, Rick Wakeman and Take That) has guested as bass player, following the departure of Jim Leverton, while Jimmy Hastings has also guested on flute.
The album was recorded, as restrictions allowed, ‘in the old-fashioned way’ between 24th June and 4th July 2021 at Rimshot Studio, Bredgar near Sittingbourne. “Sitting round in a circle having eye to eye contact, a large sound room was required,” Pye Hastings explained. “I much prefer this method because you can bounce ideas off each other as they occur, and voice encouragement when the whole thing begins to click.
“And it is much more rewarding to be able to throw insults at each other in person rather than down a telephone line or via email. This is something we are all very experienced at, believe me!”
This togetherness characterises It’s None Of Your Business with Caravan’s trademark warmth and humour and, also, a sensitivity reflecting the times in which we are living. Sitting among Caravan’s typically whimsical tales Down From London and If I Was To Fly sit the heartfelt and poignant Spare A Thought and Every Precious Little Thing which looks forward to a return to normality.
“’Spare a Thought’ is a song that I hope will jog people to remember those unfortunate people caught up in the pandemic,” Hastings explains. “‘All those people who denied’ refers to the idiots who don’t follow the scientific advice. I get angry about that and the line ‘Sure are interesting times’ refers to an old Chinese saying: ‘may you live in interesting times’”
“Lyrics can sometimes be my Achilles Heel, trying to find anything meaningful to write about. But sitting in front of a blank screen with a pandemic raging all around, it was hard not to be influenced by the dreadful events going on. The lockdown certainly focused the mind when it came to writing the lyrics.”
It’s None Of Your Business cover and artwork has been created by renowned illustrator Bob Venables
( https://www.bobvenables.co.uk/)
It’s None Of Your Business Track Listing:
01. Down From London (4.03)
02. Wishing You Were Here (3.55)
03. It’s None Of Your Business (9.40)
04. Ready Or Not (4.45)
05. Spare A Thought (4.06)
06. Every Precious Little Thing (4.25)
07. If I Was To Fly (3.23)
08. I’ll Reach Out For You (8.07)
09. There Is You (4.26)
10. Luna’s Tuna (3.14)
Produced, engineered and mastered by Julian Hastings with assistant engineer Mike Thorne.
It’s None Of Your Business is released on 15th October 2021 on CD & digitally with the LP on black vinyl released on 5th November through Madfish Music.
PRE ORDERS AVAILABLE NOW
https://CaravanBand.lnk.to/ItsNoneOfYourBusiness
