DONOVAN
TO PERFORM ON “JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE!”
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 ON ABC TV (11:35 ET/PT)
50TH ANNIVERSARY “SUNSHINE SUPERMAN”NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
TO LAUNCH MONDAY, SEPT. 4 AND WRAP SATURDAY, OCT. 21
CITY OF LOS ANGELES WILL DECLARE SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3 AS
“DONOVAN DAY”
OFFICIAL CEREMONY, PRESS CONFERENCE AND ACOUSTIC PERFORMANCE THIS
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2
L.A. CITY HALL
John Ferraro Council Chambers
L.A. City Hall, 200 N Spring St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
10:00 AM
Ceremony Led By Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Koretz,
5th District
5th District
DONOVAN.
Photos here: https://we.tl/5bggtuVEZl
DONOVAN—the ‘60s legend, icon and poet–is set to perform on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” tomorrow, Thursday, September 1. DONOVAN will sit in with Cleo & the Cletones (Jimmy’s house band) and perform classic songs from his legendary canon. Tune-in to “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on ABC TV at 11:35pm ET/PT: http://abc.go.com/shows/jimmy-kimmel-live.
Look for DONOVAN to launch the 50th Anniversary ‘Sunshine Superman’ North American Tour on Monday, September 4. He’ll visit New York City‘s Carnegie Hall/Zankel Hall for a sold-out show Thursday, September 15 and continue across North America before wrapping Friday, October 21 for another sold-out concert at Danforth Music Hall in Toronto (all dates are below). Celebrating the 50th anniversary of his landmark 1966 album Sunshine Superman, DONOVAN’s tour is presented by ASTRELLA INC; tickets are on sale nowat http://donovan.ie/ and a special tour musical t-shirt from the Astrella Inc. collection (here).
On Friday, September 2, DONOVAN will be on hand at L.A City Hall in Los Angeles for a special ceremony, press conference and brief acoustic performance to mark the declaration of Saturday, September 3 as “DONOVAN DAY.” The ceremony begins Friday, September 2 at 10:00AM at L.A. City Hall in downtown Los Angeles (John Ferraro Council Chambers, L.A. City Hall, 200 N Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90012) and will be led by Councilmember Paul Koretz, Fifth District as well as other city leaders. Historically, September 3, 2016, marks the actual to-the-date 50-year anniversary of when DONOVAN’s hit single “Sunshine Superman” reached #1 on the Billboard charts in 1966.
Media are invited to attend, photograph and conduct interviews onsite at the event:
|
WHEN:
|
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2
|
|
TIME:
|
10:00 AM
|
|
“DONOVAN DAY” Ceremony + acoustic performance + press conference.
|
|
|
WHERE:
|
L.A. City Hall-John Ferraro Council Chambers
|
|
200 N Spring Street,
|
|
|
Los Angeles, CA 90012
|
|
|
MEDIA RSVP:
|
Libby Coffey/MSO PR 818-380-0400 x224;
|
DONOVAN, vintage image. Photo credit: Donald Leitch (Donovan Discs 2016).
By 1966, DONOVAN had evolved beyond his initial folk troubadour style and fully embraced the budding “flower power” movement. Finding inspiration in jazz, blues, world music and West Coast U.S. rock, he partnered with top UK producer Mickie Most and arranger John Cameron to capture the sound he was pursuing in his mind. Their first collaboration, the “Sunshine Superman” single, was a smashing success, reaching #1 on the U.S. charts and establishing Donovan as a major pop star.
DONOVAN’s Sunshine Superman album is considered a classic masterpiece and was cited during his induction into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2012: “Donovan single-handedly initiated the Psychedelic Revolution with Sunshine Superman.” Audiences during the 50th Anniversary Tour will be treated to DONOVAN’s history of hits, including “Sunshine Superman,” “Mellow Yellow,” “The Hurdy Gurdy Man,” “Jenifer Juniper,” “Season of the Witch” as well as his legendary storytelling and other cult classic songs.
Sunshine Superman vinyl from Sundazed cover artwork.
DONOVAN’s Sunshine Superman vinyl reissue from Sundazed–sourced from the original analog Epic tapes in the rare U.S. MONO mix–is out now (here). Sony/Legacy Recordings release of “The Essential Donovan“—a collection of DONOVAN’s hits and other innovative album selections is also available now. Meanwhile, Gibson Guitars has created a special “Donovan Model J45 Guitar,” the guitar on which DONOVAN composed, recorded, and performed all his 60s works.
DONOVAN: 50th ANNIVERSARY ‘SUNSHINE SUPERMAN” NORTH AMERICAN TOUR:
|
DATE
|
|
LOCATION
|
VENUE
|
TICKETS
|
|
FRI
|
9/2
|
Los Angeles, CA
|
L.A. City Hall “Donovan Day” *Press conference.
|
|
|
MON
|
9/4
|
Fairfield, IA
|
Sondheim Center
|
|
|
WED
|
9/7
|
Clearwater, FL
|
The Capitol Theatre
|
|
|
THU
|
9/8
|
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
|
The Parker Playhouse
|
|
|
SAT
|
9/10
|
Port Washington, NY
|
Landmark on Main Street
|
|
|
SUN
|
9/11
|
South Orange, NJ
|
SOPAC
|
|
|
WED
|
9/14
|
Troy, NY
|
Troy Music Hall
|
|
|
THU
|
9/15
|
New York City, NY
|
Carnegie Hall / Zankel Hall *SOLD OUT
|
|
|
SAT
|
9/17
|
Boston, MA
|
Jordan Hall-New England Conservatory
|
|
|
SUN
|
9/18
|
Peekskill, NY
|
Paramount Hudson Valley Theater
|
|
|
TUE
|
9/20
|
Dallas, TX
|
The Majestic Theatre
|
|
|
WED
|
9/21
|
Houston, TX
|
Wortham Theater Center
|
|
|
THU
|
9/22
|
San Antonio, TX
|
Tobin Theatre
|
|
|
SAT
|
9/24
|
Austin, TX
|
The Paramount Theatre
|
|
|
SUN
|
9/25
|
Boulder, CO
|
Boulder Theatre
|
|
|
TUE
|
9/27
|
Phoenix, AZ
|
Musical Instrument Museum
|
|
|
FRI
|
10/7
|
Pasadena, CA
|
The Rose
|
|
|
SAT
|
10/8
|
Beverly Hills, CA
|
Saban Theatre
|
|
|
WED
|
10/12
|
San Francisco, CA
|
The Regency Ballroom *SOLD OUT
|
|
|
THU
|
10/13
|
San Francisco, CA
|
The Regency Ballroom
|
|
|
SAT
|
10/15
|
Seattle, WA
|
The Neptune Theatre *SOLD OUT
|
|
|
SUN
|
10/16
|
Seattle, WA
|
The Neptune Theatre
|
|
|
FRI
|
10/21
|
Toronto, Canada
|
Danforth Music Hall *SOLD OUT
|
DONOVAN Photos and Biography:
A selection of vintage images are above and below.
Biography: http://www.donovan.ie/en/biography/
Photos credit, Michael Collopy: Donovan Discs 2016:
DONOVAN.
Photos here: https://we.tl/5bggtuVEZl
About DONOVAN’s Sunshine Superman:
By 1966 Donovan had evolved beyond his initial folk troubadour style and fully embraced the budding “flower power” movement. Finding inspiration in jazz, blues, world music and West Coast U.S. rock, he partnered with top UK producer Mickie Most and arranger John Cameron to capture the sound he was pursuing in his mind. Their first collaboration, the “Sunshine Superman” single, was a smashing success, reaching #1 on the U.S. charts and establishing Donovan as a major pop star. Containing a prominent psychedelic vibe and featuring exotic instrumentation like sitar and tablas, it foreshadowed the Summer of Love zeitgeist by a full year. Recorded at EMI Studios London, it also featured session guitarist and soon-to-be Yardbirds/Led Zeppelin member Jimmy Page. Upon signing with Epic Records in the U.S., Donovan, Most and Cameron traveled to Los Angeles to continue recording at CBS Studios. The subject matter of the songs ran the gamut, reflecting Donovan’s interests and influences. “The Fat Angel,” a tribute to Mama Cass, also name checks The Jefferson Airplane (who returned the favor by covering the song on their live album Bless Its Pointed Little Head). “Bert’s Blues” honors UK folk pioneer Bert Jansch, a major influence on Donovan, Jimmy Page and many other British guitarists. “The Trip” salutes the L.A. club of the same name and mentions Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, director Federico Fellini and the Buddhist concept of Zen in the lyrics. Elsewhere, the foreboding “Season of the Witch” served as the dark reflection of the cheery “Sunshine Superman” and remains one of Donovan’s most intriguing songs. Sessions for the Epic album, to be titled Sunshine Superman, concluded in May 1966 and it was released in the U.S. in September of that year. Due to a contract dispute with his former label, Pye Records, the album was not released in the UK until 1967, and then in a greatly altered form. The dispute, stemming from Donovan’s move to Epic, delayed the UK release of future recordings as well. This legal wrangling put Donovan in the rare position of a UK artist whose records came out in the U.S. before they appeared in his homeland. The Sundazed Sunshine Superman reissue has been sourced from the original analog Epic tapes in the rare U.S. MONO mix. Cameron’s arrangements sparkle as the instrument lineup varies from song to song (listen closely for Shawn Phillips on sitar) as Most’s production expertly frames each track. Above all, Donovan delivers an incredible collection of songs, perfectly preserving a moment in time. Sunshine Superman vinyl re-issue is available by Sundazed (here).
