Grammy winning singer-songwriter DAN WILSON releases his brand new single ‘LOVE WITHOUT FEAR’ on Ballroom Music via Kobalt Label Services on October 27th 2014. The single is the bitter-sweet title track from his new critically acclaimed solo album and was described by Sunday Times as having a “country rock gait that walks in step with sharp lyrics (‘I’ll call you when I want to hear / my voice whisper in your voicemail’s ear’)”.
The single release will be accompanied by a very special ‘Words and Music with Dan Wilson’ UK Tour that runs through October. “Words & Music by Dan Wilson” is an evening of songs and stories which pulls back the curtain on the art and practice of song-writing. Between stripped down renditions of some modern-day classics he has written on his own and with collaborators including Adele, Dixie Chicks and Carole King the singer-songwriter and producer shares his insights into songwriting and relates the moments of discovery that led to them. His double life as a musician and visual artist has attuned him to the deeper questions of the creative process, one of the reasons he has become such a sought after collaborator. At the end of each show, each audience member receives an Illuminated Set List, featuring not only song titles but also Dan’s hand drawn illustrations, which map the connections between the songs and stories from the evening’s show.
“Words and Music with Dan Wilson” is performed in the UK at the following UK shows:
12th October EDINBURGH Electric Circus
Tickets: http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/event/140629
13th October BIRMINGHAM Glee Club
Tickets: www.glee.co.uk/music-birmingham
A man whose songs have already touched millions, Dan is best known in the UK as the frontman for Semisonic with their huge hits ‘Closing Time’, ‘Secret Smile’ and the million selling album ‘Feeling Strangely Fine’ which went platinum in the US and the UK.
In the interim Dan has carved out a stellar reputation as one of the most talented, successful and in-demand songwriters at work today, collaborating with a diverse range of artists including Nas, Birdy and Adele with whom Dan co-wrote the multi-award winning million-selling masterpiece “Someone Like You”, one of three songs he co-wrote for her invincible ‘21’ album.
Now in 2014 Dan has stepped back into the spotlight with ‘Love Without Fear’, an album that showcases his songwriting skills from start to finish. Containing eleven songs as carefully crafted as they are spontaneously touching, the album traverses the spectrum of human relationships from the darkest blues of loss and heartache to the brightest reds of love and happiness.
“I really wanted to make a record that felt singer-songwriter in its DNA,” says Dan. “I like things that are, basically, folk music with that Americana twang, but I’m too influenced by Broadway or urban pop sounds from the 60s to make a proper country-sounding record. With this album, I wanted to make something that sits at the intersection between twangy Americana and The Beatles.”
Born in Minneapolis, Dan spent his childhood “walking through the neighbourhood singing very loudly, imagining I was Elton John”. By his teens, Dan was hanging out with Prince’s keyboard player, Dr Fink, and sneaking into local bars underage to soak up Minnesota’s burgeoning post-punk scene, a breeding ground for the likes of The Replacements and Husker Du. After studying printmaking at Harvard, for many years he balanced life as a travelling musician in his brother’s band, Trip Shakespeare, with a career as a visual artist, until committing himself to Semisonic, and due success.
SOCIAL MEDIA