GERRY BECKLEY
–CO-FOUNDING MEMBER OF LEGENDARY ROCK BAND AMERICA–
PREMIERES LYRIC VIDEO FOR
“MINUTES COUNT”
ON BESTCLASSICBANDS.COM
NEW SOLO ALBUM
‘CAROUSEL’
OUT NOW
VIA BLUE ÉLAN RECORDS
Above: cover art for CAROUSEL
GERRY BECKLEY–co-founding member of the legendary Grammy Award-winning rock band America-has partnered with BestClassicBands.com to premiere the colorful and striking lyric video for “Minutes Count.” A highlight of his recently released solo album CAROUSEL (9/9 via Blue Élan Records), the song is classic BECKLEY with a graceful urgency about the countdown of life. Click here to watch the video.
“‘Minutes Count’ is one of my personal favorites from Carousel,” says BECKLEY. “Time is not the enemy, time is the challenge. Hope you enjoy!”
CAROUSEL, the new 12-track solo album plays to all of BECKLEY‘s strengths with the singer, songwriter and musician playing most instruments on the album. Fans can purchase the shimmeringalbum–which was recorded at BECKLEY‘s Los Angeles studio Human Nature and–via iTunes (digital) here and Amazon (digital and physical) here. Earlier this month, BECKLEY released the lyric video for CAROUSEL‘s lead single, “Tokyo.” Click here to watch the Asian-accented imagery-rich lyric video.
The album contains original standouts such as the deeply personal “Lifeline,” “No Way I’m Gonna Lose You” (co-written with Dan Wilson who won a Grammy award for his work with Adele) and above mentioned “Tokyo.” There are also three covers on which BECKLEY puts his distinctive spin: Spirit’s “Nature’s Way,” Gerry Rafferty’s “To Each and Everyone” and Gerry and The Pacemakers’ “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying.”
PRAISE FOR GERRY BECKLEY’s CAROUSEL:
“After nearly half a century, Gerry Beckley, co-founder of the classic rock group America, remains at the top of his creative game. He has proven that with his new solo album, Carousel. Sounding fresh and vibrant, the record features Beckley’s great new songs like the title track, ‘Lifeline’ and ‘Tokyo,’ as well as gorgeous covers of Spirit’s ‘Nature’s Way,’ Gerry Rafferty’s ‘To Each and Everyone’ and the Gerry & The Pacemakers beauty ‘Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying.'”
–Paul Freeman, PopCultureClassics.com, September 16, 2016
“Beckley covers all bases on Carousel. Whether it’s conjuring up the unmatchable harmonies of the Beach Boys, incorporating the invaluable studio production tips learned from the late ‘fifth Beatle’ George Martin, or tapping into the unmistakable horn sounds of Chicago, Carousel is a fun, full circle ride into the past, present and future of a songsmith whose musical wheels will never stop turning.”
–Jim Villanueva, AllAccess.com, September 1, 2016
“Gerry’s new album, Carousel, just gets better with each listen. It has many layers that unfold as you explore the tracks.”
–Mary Andrews, AXS.com, August 30, 2016
“…the songs on Carousel flow in musical harmony. From the opening upbeat track, ‘Tokyo,’ through ‘Minutes Count,’ ‘Lifeline,’ ‘Widows Weeds,’ the Gerry Rafferty cover ‘To Each & Everyone,’ to the crescendo of ‘Serious’ and ‘Carousel,’ there is a sense of a story of life going on.”
–Leslie Michele Derrough, GlideMagazine.com, July 18, 2016
“…[Beckley’s] McCartney-esque gift for melody still reigns supreme on Carousel and his lyrics showcase a healthy dose of realism and inventiveness…”
–Jude Warne, TheVinylDistrict.com, August 16, 2016
TRACK LISTING FOR CAROUSEL:
1 “Tokyo”
2 “Nature’s Way”
3 “Minutes Count”
4 “Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying”
5 “Lifeline”
6 “Widows Weeds”
7 “No Way I’m Gonna Lose You”
8 “Once A Distant Heart”
9 “To Each And Everyone”
10 “Fly”
11 “Serious”
12 “Carousel”
ABOUT GERRY BECKLEY:
Gerry Beckley is a co-founding member of the rock band America who recently released the albums Lost & Found (2015) and Back Pages (2011) which hit #1 on the Amazon chart. Born in Fort Worth, Texas on September 12, 1952 to an American father and an English mother. He began playing the piano at age 3 and the guitar a few years later. By 1962 he was playing guitar in The Vanguards an instrumental surf music band in Virginia. He spent every summer in England and soon discovered British invasion music. In 1967 Beckley’s father became the commander at the U.S. Air Force Base at West Ruislip, near London. Gerry attended Central High School in Hartfordshire where he played in various school bands and met his soon to be band members, Dewey Bunnell and Dan Peek. Gerry has worked with a wide variety of musicians on many projects. One of the most notable is the recording Like a Brother done with Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys and Robert Lamm of Chicago. Beckley-Lamm-Wilson released Like a Brother in 2001.
Above: Gerry Beckley, Credit Joe Beckley
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