After a lengthy dry spell, Peter Wolf is back with a brand new solo album, A Cure For Loneliness, out April 8th. Wolf is the longtime frontman of blues rock group the J. Geils Band, who scored a #1 hit in 1982 with their single “Centerfold.”
The charismatic performer parted ways with the band for a period, in 1983, and began a successful solo career, releasing a total of seven studio albums. Now, six years after 2010’s Midnight Souvenirs, he’s sharing a terrific, first tune, “Wastin’ Time,” from his forthcoming record and announcing tour dates beginning April 9 and continuing through June 9.
Wolf’s new album (on Concord) features 12 tracks – three covers and nine originals, four of which he wrote with Will Jennings. The tunes run the gamut in terms of style, featuring everything from gospel boogie to introspective ballads and swingin’ big band numbers, as well as a bluegrass reworking of the classic J. Geils anthem, “Love Stinks.” Another highlight, soul ballad “It’s Raining,” was one that Wolf wrote with R&B and rock’n’roll biggie Don Covay. (He had planned to record the song as a duet with Bobby Womack, but received news of Womack’s death before he could do so.)
Here’s “Wastin’ Time”…
(Check out Best Classic Bands‘ review of the J. Geils Band’s Boston concert with Wolf from last summer here.)
Another interesting choice was to intermingle studio performances with live cuts. “Performing in front of an audience is one of the things I enjoy most,” explains Wolf. “It’s a different energy that comes out in the studio. So mixing studio and live tracks is like using different lighting for different scenes in a film.” Included on the tracks are musicians like keyboardist Kenny White (a co-producer of the album), and the members of The Midnight Travelers, Wolf’s touring band: guitarists Duke Levine and Kevin Barry, bassist Marty Ballou and drummers Tom Arey and Shawn Pelton.
“I see this album as a continuation of a body of work that I’ve been creating for a long, long time,” says Wolf. “Each album is a challenge and every one of them has been a learning experience. I think that they’ve become more personal and revealing as I’ve continued. I still feel the way I felt when I started out decades ago. I’m just trying to prevail and continue to grow as an artist, and to keep rolling on with music as a cure for loneliness.”
For more specific details about tour dates and to purchase tickets, click here.
Peter Wolf 2016 Tour Dates:
April
29 – Hartford, CT – Infinity Hall
30 – Fall River, MA – Narrows Performance Hall
May
1 – Londonderry, NH – Tupelo Music Hall
5 – Norfolk, CT – Infinity Hall
6 – New York, NY – The Bowery Ballroom
11 – Portland, ME – Port City Music Hall
12 – Somerville, MA – Somerville Theatre
13 – Albany, NY – The Sawyer w/ Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams
19-20 – Ann Arbor, MI – The Ark
21 – Chicago, IL – Park West
June
1 – Alexandria, VA – The Birchmere
3 – Atlanta, GA – City Winery
4 – Nashville, TN – City Winery
5 – Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall
7 – Cleveland, OH – Music Box Supper Club
9 – Annapolis, MD – Rams Head On Stage
24 – Clarkston, MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre
July
8 – Greenfield, MA – Green River Festival
