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MIKE COLLABORATES WITH THE TOWN OF HUNTLY Mike Scott is involved in a project for the Scottish town of Huntly, birthplace of Scottish novelist George MacDonald. Twenty years ago Mike set MacDonald’s poem Room To Roam to music and used it as the title of the 1990 Waterboys’ album. A few months ago Huntly artist-in-residence Jacques Coetzer asked Mike to help turn Room To Roam into the town’s anthem. Mike has been working with local musicians and singers on a communal version of the song to be performed at the Huntly Entertainment On The Square concert, Sunday 1st June (time tbc). We asked Mike how it sounds and he replied: “Room To Roam is amazing with a choir and a big band, like a mad carousel of music, and it’s great fun doing it with MacDonald’s own townspeople”. The project is being run in connection with Deveron Arts and Huntly Council.
EXTRA CURRICULAR ACTIVITY BY STEVE Steve Wickham will join Sligo writer Dermot Healy in a recitation and performance in Teach Ban Nua Art Gallery, by Drumcliffe Church, Sligo, on Saturday May 10th at 2.30pm, as part of the Bealtaine Festival.
KISS THE WIND TRACKS NOW AVAILABLE INDIVIDUALLY As of this morning, Monday 5th May, all the tracks on the exclusive Waterboys download album KISS THE WIND are available for individual download. You can link to the album here
KISS THE WIND RELEASED TODAY & ONLINE STORE NOW OPEN Our new website store is live NOW, set up and run in collaboration with top online retailer Townsend Records. The new download-only album, KISS THE WIND, exclusive to our store, is released today and can be purchased here. Plus, all Waterboys CDs from the first album through to 2007’s Book Of Lightning are available from our store. KISS THE WIND features 16 rare or previously unreleased tracks selected by Mike Scott. Highlights include many never before heard songs plus Mike's demo of On My Way To The Big Light, an alternative Let It Happen, live versions of The Stolen Child and Jagger/Richards' Wild Horses and many many more. For the first week only Kiss The Wind is available bundled with extra track-by-track notes by Mike. From next Monday, May 5th, it will be available by individual track or bundled, but without the extra notes. The album costs £7.99. Individual tracks will retail for 79p. Samples of three tracks can be heard now on our myspace page. Kiss The Wind will not be available on physical CD and can not be purchased from any other digital or high street retailer. For full tracklisting see below the cover artwork.
1.
Kiss The Wind Click here for the store front page We have opened a blog thread on our myspace page where you can give feedback about the album. Check it out here.
TWO NORWEGIAN SHOWS IN AUGUST The Waterboys have added two shows in Norway in August. These are full band performances like all the shows this Summer except Pickering Folk Festival. 21 Aug: Union Scene, DRAMMEN. Tickets from Union Scene Café and www.unionscene.no Price: NOK 375 + box office fee NOK 10 22 Aug: Parkenfestivalen, BODø. This is a headline and tickets are available from www.parkenfestivalen.no or +47 75549010 (Bodø Kulturhus). One day passes cost NOK 650.
MIKE HAS AN ARTICLE IN NEW ISSUE OF KINDRED SPIRIT MAGAZINE Mike has contributed an article to the May/June edition of UK holistic magazine, Kindred Spirit. The piece is titled Early Morning Meditation, and the issue goes on sale Thursday 24th April.
CALI - WHAT HAPPENED Mike and Steve guested with their friend, top French singer Cali, at Zenith, Paris, 15 & 16 April. For a full account check out Mike’s blog here
STRANGE BOAT IN THE IRISH CHARTS The new version of Strange Boat, recorded by Mike Scott, singer Eleanor Shanley and various friends peaked in the Irish singles charts at number 16. Meanwhile former Waterboy Sharon Shannon, as well as playing on Strange Boat, is number one in Ireland for the second week with Galway Girl, her collaboration with Mundy. Congratulations Sharon!
STRANGE BOAT SINGLE - NOW ON ITUNES The new version of Strange Boat, sung by Eleanor Shanley with backing by Mike Scott, Sharon Shannon and others, was released in Ireland on Friday 4th April. The version of the Waterboys classic features Mike on guitar, keyboards and sound effects. The single is available from Irish record shops and also from iTunes - click ‘power search’ and enter ‘Strange Boat’ in the title box and ‘Shanley’ in the artist box and the single will appear, available for immediate download. The single is also available here
WATERBOYS CONFIRMED FOR ELECTRIC PICNIC, IRELAND The Waterboys have been added to the bill of the Electric Picnic, Stradbally, Co Laois, Ireland, and will perform at 7.30pm on Friday 29th August. Tickets are available here
PICKERING FESTIVAL TICKETS Tickets for the Pickering Festival, at which Mike, Steve and Richard will give an acoustic performance on Friday 8th August, are available now from here
UK AUGUST FESTIVALS: PICKERING AND TARTAN HEART The Waterboys have been confirmed for two UK festivals in August: Fri 8 Aug: Pickering Folk Festival, Pickering Showground, Yorkshire. This is an acoustic 3-man show, featuring Mike Scott, Steve Wickham & Richard Naiff. Tickets not on sale yet. As soon as we receive details of how to purchase, we’ll let you know. Sat 9 August: Belladrum Festival, Tartan Heart 2008, by Beauly, Inverness-shire. This, like all the other previously announced 2008 Waterboys shows, is a full-band performance. Tickets: £80.00 (weekend), £50.00 (Saturday) from: www.ticketmaster.co.uk or www.tartanheartfestival.co.uk
MIKE ON IRISH TV THIS FRIDAY EVENING Mike will appear on The Late Late Show, RTE Ireland, broadcast Friday evening April 4th at 9.30pm, playing guitar with vocalist Eleanor Shanley plus Sharon Shannon and Alec Finn. The ensemble will perform the Waterboys’ classic Strange Boat in aid of the Organ Donation project of the same name. The show will be archived here
RETURN TO PEACE AND LOVE FESTIVAL, SWEDEN The Waterboys will play again this year at the Peace And Love Festival in Borlange, Sweden, on the evening of June 27th, after their successful appearance last year. Other artists performing include The Sex Pistols, Humanzi and Hanoi Rocks. Tickets cost 1195 SEK (no camping) for the whole 3 day event or 1295 SEK (with camping). For more info on the festival and how to get tickets, click here.
FISHERMAN’S BLUES IN SCOTTISH TOURIST ADVERT Fisherman’s Blues features in a new advert for the Scottish Tourist Board, currently being shown at cinemas in England. It’s very unusual for a Waterboys song to be approved for use in an advert and Mike Scott said yes to this one because the advert is for Scotland. Watch it here.
MULTI-ARTIST VERSION OF STRANGE BOAT FOR IRISH CHARITY SINGLE A new version of the Waterboys classic Strange Boat will be released in Ireland on April 4 to raise funds for organ donation. The record, on the Daisydiscs label, features Mike Scott on guitar, keyboards & effects (but not vocals), singers Eleanor Shanley and Eddi Reader, bouzouki player Alec Finn, who guested on the Fisherman’s Blues album, and former Waterboy Sharon Shannon on accordion & whistle. The record will be available from www.daisydiscs.com and the ensemble, including Mike, will perform Strange Boat on Irish TV’s Late Late Show on Friday, 4th April. On the same date a new website www.strangeboat.org will be launched to promote organ donation.
SHE TRIED TO HOLD ME (ACOUSTIC) AVAILABLE ON NEW WXPN ALBUM The Waterboys’ acoustic version of She Tried To Hold Me, from an August radio session in Philadelphia, is included on WXPN’s album Live At The World Cafe, Vol 25: Quarter Notes. The CD can be bought at Philadelphia record shops or by pledging a donation to help fund the radio station. For details visit www.xpn.org Other artists on the album include Suzanne Vega, Josh Ritter & Flight Of The Conchords.
TICKET INFO FOR CANALSTREET FESTIVAL, NORWAY, JULY 24 Tickets for The Waterboys appearance on July 24 at the Canalstreet Festival, Arendal Norway are 540 NK available from: www.arendalkulturhus.no or by telephone from +47 37006060. For more info click: www.canalstreet.no
WATERBOYS PLAY FESTIVAL IN SOUTH-EAST SPAIN The Waterboys will headline at The Mediatic Festival in LA NUCIA, Alicante, Spain on 17 May 2008. Tickets, price €30 (one day) or €50 (two days) are available from www.mediaticfestival.com
DATE FOR CANALSTREET FESTIVAL, NORWAY We can now confirm that the date for the Waterboys’ previously announced headline appearance at the Canalstreet Jazz and Blues Festival in Arendal, Norway is Thursday July 24. Other acts including Jeff Healey and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. Tickets are available from www.canalstreet.no
NEW BLOGS CONTAINING UNPUBLISHED WRITINGS Mike has been uploading some of his unpublished writings from the 1980s and 90s in his blog on myspace. These include previously unseen poems and unused lyrics to some of the Waterboys’ greatest songs. Click here to check ‘em out
CALI’S ‘L’ESPOIRE IS NUMBER ONE IN FRANCE Cali’s new album L’Espoire, including collaborations with Mike Scott, is number one in the French albums chart. We congratulate Cali on his success! One of the Cali and Mike collaborative tracks, List Of Lies, available only on the special edition version of L’Espoire, is currently rocking on The Waterboys myspace player. To hear it click here
WATERBOYS RETURN TO SWEDEN’S PEACE AND LOVE FESTIVAL The Waterboys will play again this year at the Peace & Love Festival in Borlange, Sweden. The festival is held this year from 23-28 June and other acts include the Sex Pistols and Suzanne Vega. We don’t have a date yet for the Waterboys appearance, but will announce it as soon as we receive details. For more info on the festival, visit www.peaceandlove.se
NEW DATES IN PORTUGAL AND GERMANY The Waterboys are confirmed for the following full band shows:
CALI ALBUM 'L'ESPOIR' RELEASED TODAY Waterboys' friend Bruno 'Cali' Caliciuri releases his new album, 'L'Espoir' today, on Virgin France. Mike Scott features on two songs: 'Pas Le Guerre' and - on the first edition of the CD only - 'A List Of Lies', both co-written by Cali and Mike. For further info on Cali and the album visit here
MIKE SCOTT CONTRIBUTES TO NEW ALBUM BY FRENCH SINGER CALI Mike has contributed vocals to two tracks on L’Espoir, the new album by top French singer Cali, released by EMI/Virgin France on 4th February. Both Mike and Steve Wickham have been friends with Cali for several years, and Steve played fiddle on his last album, Menteur. On L’Espoir Mike contributes a spoken word section (in English) to the song Pas De Guerre, and sings co-lead vocals on the bonus track A List Of Lies, available only with the first pressing of the album. Both songs were written by Cali and Mike. Says Mike: “Cali is a true rock and roller, a troubadour, a chansonnier. It’s a thrill to contribute to his album.” For further info visit: here
ROOM TO ROAM - REMASTERED VERSION IS COMING The fifth Waterboys’ album, 1990’s Room To Roam, is being prepared for remastering and reissue by EMI during 2008. Like the recent remasters of This Is The Sea and Fisherman’s Blues, it will be issued as a 2CD set, the second CD comprising previously unissued material recorded during the same era as the original album. Mike Scott is currently selecting tracks for inclusion. As soon as we have more details and a release date we’ll let you know.
CELTIC CONNECTIONS - WHAT HAPPENED Mike appeared at the gala opening of the Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow on 16th January, sharing the stage with Julie Fowlis, Sharon Shannon, Luka Bloom, Karine Polwart, Kate Rusby, John McCusker, Karan Casey, Damien Dempsey and many other artists. The sold out concert, titled Common Ground and held at the Royal Concert Hall, included Mike’s performance of two unreleased songs, The Wedding and The Wyndy Wyndy Road (a new lyric to a tune by Scottish musician Phil Cunningham). For the encore the whole ensemble performed Sunny Sailor Boy, with lead vocals by Luka Bloom and Mike, and Mike’s rearrangement of the Scottish classic Will Ye No’ Come Back Again?, set to the air of the great Irish song Mo Gile Mear. To read reviews click here and here.
STEVE WICKHAM GUESTS ON NEW THEA GILMORE ALBUM Steve plays fiddle on The Lower Road, the closing track on Thea Gilmore’s new album Liejacker, released March 31st on Fulfill Records. Thea is an old friend of The Waterboys; she supported on the band’s 2006 UK tour and two songs on her last album, Harpo’s Ghost, were co-written with Mike Scott. As well as featuring Steve, The Lower Road has guest vocals by Joan Baez. For further info visit: here
HAPPY CHRISTMASWATERPEOPLE! - 'HIGHERBOUND' DOWNLOAD ON MYSPACE NOW As a Christmas gift to Waterpeople everywhere we've added the legendary but never released song Higherbound to our myspace player. It will be available there for download till January 1st. The version was recorded live at an acoustic Waterboys show in Ireland a few years ago, and you can listen to it and download now. Click here to access, and Happy Christmas / holidays / Hannukah / Solstice / season to you!
NEW BLOG/FICTION STORY ON MYSPACE Mike has posted a new blog on the Waterboys myspace page which links to a humorous fictional story, edited from the Waterboys forum. To access click here
WATERBOYS SPANISH FESTIVAL SHOW IN JANUARY The Waterboys will play at Actuel 08, held in Logrono, Spain, on Sunday Jan 6th. The concert is held at Palacio de Deportes, Logrono, at 7.30pm with support from American band Devotchka. The Waterboys will be onstage at 9.30pm. Drummer Jeremy Stacey, who played on the Waterboys’ albums A Rock In The Weary Land and Book Of Lightning, will stand in for Damon Wilson who is on holiday in Australia. Tickets are available on 22 December from: (+34) 902 33 22 11 or www.servicaixa.com or in person at Oficina de Turismo de El Espolón. Further information here
FIRST SUMMER 2008 FESTIVAL SHOW CONFIRMED The first Waterboys festival appearance for Summer 2008 has been confirmed. It is a show at the Canalstreet Festival in Arendal, south Norway, held between 23-26 July. We don’t know which date The Waterboys will play on, but as soon as get more info we’ll let you know.
SHE TRIED TO HOLD ME - ON WXPN COMPILATION Philadelphia radio station WXPN will include the band's acoustic version of She Tried To Hold Me on their compilation CD XPN: Live AT The World Cafe - Vol #25, to be released in February 2008. Copies will be able direct from the radio station during on air fundraisers, and also from www.xpn.org. Other artists featured include Cold War Kids, Fionn Regan, Martin Sexton, Thurston Moore, Jose Gonzalez, Sea Wolf.
MIKE’S NORWEGIAN TV PERFORMANCE ON MYSPACE A seven minute film of Mike performing In The Beginning Was Love and You In The Sky with the One People band on the TV show Good Morning Norway has just been uploaded to our myspace page. Click here to view
NEW MIKE SCOTT WEBLOGS ON MYSPACE Mike has written a couple more blogs since the end of the Waterboys’ tour - Early Morning Meditation (23 Nov) and A Dream (3 Dec) and they are available to read here, along with all the blogs from the tour itself. You can subscribe to Mike’s blog from here. (Note: you must be a myspace member to subscribe)
NEW PHOTOS UPLOADED ON MYSPACE We’ve recently uploaded over twenty additional photos and cartoons to the band’s myspace page, including shots from the just finished European and North American tour. Click here to view
COVERS WATCH Some recent covers of Waterboys songs include: Fisherman's Blues by Jaime RT (Canada) on 'Spark' (Dog My Cat Records)
www.jaimert.com
MIKE TO PLAY AT CELTIC CONNECTIONS FESTIVAL, GLASGOW, JAN 16th Mike is one the special guests at the all-star opening concert at 2008's Celtic Connections in Glasgow on January 16th. A veteran of four out of the previous fourteen Celtic Connections festivals, Mike will be joined on the bill by fellow Scots singers Kris Drever, Karine Polwart and Julie Fowlis, Scottish musicians including John McCusker, James Mackintosh and Ewan Vernel, Irish artists including Sharon Shannon, Luka Bloom, Damien Dempsey and Michael McGoldrick, and English singer Kate Rusby and other guests to be announced on the night. Mike has played with several of the other musicians before, including John McCusker, Michael McGoldrick and former Waterboy Sharon Shannon at the 2007 Cambridge Folk Festival, so expect some exciting ensemble performances. The concert will be held at the Main Auditorium, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. Tickets are on sale now, price £20 & £28 from www.celticconnections.com
WOODSTOCK ACOUSTIC SHOW BROADCAST DATE The 3-man Waterboys show recorded at the Colony Café in Woodstock, New York on August 31st will be broadcast on WDST Radio on Thursday 22 November at 10PM EST. To listen visit: www.wdst.com and click ‘Listen Online’ at the top of the page.
CONCERT ANNOUNCED FOR 16 NOVEMBER ISN'T HAPPENING A show at Westminster Central Hall, London on Friday November 16th, apparently featuring The Waterboys, has been announced in this week's edition of Time Out, the London what's on guide. We can confirm this concert will NOT be happening. A concert on this date, as part of the Be The Change international conference, was under discussion, but was not finalised. The Waterboys have just finished their North American tour and will be playing no more shows in 2007.
WATERBOYS LIVE AT CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL ON BBC4 TONIGHT The Waterboys feature tonight in the first of a series of BBC4 programs on the 2007 Cambridge Folk Festival. An interview with Mike Scott will be shown, and the band's live performance of 'Raggle Taggle Gypsy' featuring guest Sharon Shannon on accordion. The program airs on BBC4 at 8:30pm, Friday 2nd November. The fourth program in the series will feature the band's version of 'This Land Is Your Land' with Steve Earle and other guests, to be shown on 23rd November. More details can be found here.
IN THE BEGINNING WAS LOVE - FREE DOWNLOAD Mike's Norwegian single with One People, the beautiful In The Beginning Was Love, is available as a free download now from the Norwegian daily newspaper Dagbladet. Click here
VIEW TV PERFORMANCES OF 'IN THE BEGINNING WAS LOVE' & 'YOU IN THE SKY' The film of Mike’s live performance on Norwegian TV of In The Beginning Was Love, with Noora Noor and the One People band, and You In The Sky with keyboard player Anders Hunstad, can be accessed online. Click here. Then click on the ‘God Morning Norge’ (’Good Morning Norway’) icon at the foot of the page. Next click on ‘Musikk’ and a selection of recent [performances will appear in a scrollbar. Mike’s performances of both In The Beginning Was Love and You In The Sky will appear as thumbnails.
MIKE’S INTERVIEW WITH AMPLIFIER An interview with Mike has just been published by online indie magazine Amplifier. Access it here
NEW VIDEO UPLOADED AT OUR MYSPACE PAGE We've just uploaded a new video, GLASTONBURY FRAGMENTS, shot by and featuring new music by Waterboys fiddler Steve Wickham. The video is a collage of images filmed by Steve while driving through the Glastonbury Festival this summer. It is accompanied by Steve's recording of a classical music piece - Arvo Part's great 'Spiegel Im Spiegel', re-arranged for the unlikely but beautiful pairing of banjo and harmonica. It's available for viewing now, click here.
SPANISH TOUR TICKET DETAILS Here are details of how to purchase tickets for The Waterboys Spanish concerts: BILBAO 23 Oct. Online: www.teatroarriaga.com MADRID 24 Oct. www.ticktackticket.com Call center: 902 15 00 25 VALENCIA 26 Oct. Box Offices: Amsterdam, Harmony, Tiendas Tipo, Mercado La Pulga. No online sales for this show HUESCA (Periferias Festival) 27 Oct. Box office: cash machines of CAI (Caja De Ahorros Inmaculada). Online: www.cai.es GUADFALAJARA 28 Oct. Call center: 902 30 38 88. Online: www.cajaguadalajara.biz. Box office: Teatro Buero Vallejo
MIKE'S SINGLE WITH ONE PEOPLE IS OUT Mike's single in collaboration with Norwegian organisation One People, In The Beginning Was Love, was released on Friday. You can hear it on our myspace page here and it can be purchased online here. Mike will perform the song with One People and singer Noora Noor on the Norwegian TV show God Morgen Norge (Good Morning Norway) around 9am on Wednesday October 10th.
MIKE'S INTERVIEW WITH BABBLE AND BEAT Mike has recently been interviewed by online music zine Babble and Beat who write: "Mike spoke with us about his new album & upcoming North American tour, his 1970s fanzine and who he interviewed, his relationship with coffee & more. He even shared his favorite photo of himself with us! To check it out click here
BELGIAN FESTIVAL SHOW ADDED, 20TH OCTOBER The Waterboys will play at Neerpelt Festival, Belgium during their European tour, on the evening of 20th October. Like all shos on their Autumn tour, this will feature the full band. Tickets are available from +32 11 821 661 and www.ticket4u.be Ticket prices: 28 EUR and (under 18) 15 EUR. For further info visit: www.neerpeltopenair.be
FULL NORTH AMERICAN TICKET DETAILS All the shows in the band's November tour of the USA and Canada are now on sale, and are available either from www.ticketmaster.com or from the
indidivual theatre box offices:
ADDITIONAL DUTCH SHOW, OCTOBER 18TH A show has been added at: MC Frits Philips, EINDHOVEN, Holland on October 18th. Tickets go on sale Thursday 13 September (today), price 37 Euro plus service charge, from: www.ticketservice.nl
MIKE’S COLLABORATION WITH ONE PEOPLE - NEW SINGLE
MIKE AND ONE PEOPLE ON NORWEGIAN TV Mike, Noora Noor and the One People band will perform In The Beginning Was Love on the Norwegian TV show, God Morgen Norge (Good Morning Norway) on October 10. The programme runs from 6.25-10.30am, and the Mike/One People section is expected to be around 9am.
WATERBOYS SPANISH TOUR, OCTOBER 2007 The Waterboys’ European tour will continue with a series for shows in Spain, the band’s first full tour there since 2002. Here are the dates. Full ticket details will be announced as soon as we receive them:
NORTH AMERICAN CONCERT TICKETS - MORE INFO
In addition to the shows in Philadelphia, New York, Toronto, Vancouver BC and Portland, Tickets for the following shows are now on sale:
Nov 1: Berklee Performance Center, Boston, MA
Nov 13: Fillmore, San Francisco, CA
Tickets for all seven shows are available here
WORLD CAFE RADIO SESSION BROADCAST DATE The band’s 3-man radio session for World Cafe, at WXPN Philadelphia will be broadcast on Wednesday 19th Sept between 2.00pm and 4.00pm Eastern Time (7-9pm UK). The session features versions of Everybody Takes A Tumble, Strange Arrangement and several other songs from Book Of Lightning, plus an interview with the band. You can stream the show by going to: www.xpn.org It will also be available on 200 stations nationwide; US residents can find their local one by going to: http://worldcafe.org.
EUROPEAN SUPPORT ACTS Norwegian singer/songwriter Vidar Vang will open for The Waterboys at their upcoming shows in Bergen, Stavanger and Haugesund (8, 10 & 11 October). There will be no opening
act in Trondheim on 6 Oct. German 3-piece band Planeausters, who recently covered The Waterboys’ classic Red Army Blues, will open at all three german shows in October (Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne, 13, 15 & 16 October). Irish singer/songwriter Roesy will
open the Dutch shows in Amsterdam and Eindhoven (17 & 18 October). You can find more info about all these artists here:
PORTLAND AND VANCOUVER TICKETS ON SALE Tickets for the Waterboys show at the Aladdin Theatre, Portland on Sunday 11th November are on sale now. Tickets for the show at Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver on Saturday 10th November, will go onsale 10am this Friday, Sept 7th. Tickets for both shows are available from here
MIKE SCOTT INTERVIEW WITH COLIN MELOY IS OUT The transcript of Mike being interviewed by Colin Meloy of The Decemberists is published in September's issue of Believer, the alternative American arts magazine, out now. Believer is available from alternative bookstores, magazine stands and from: www.believermag.com 
NEW PHOTOS ON OUR MYSPACE PAGE We've uploaded a lot of new photos to the Waterboys' myspace page over the last few weeks, including shots from Cambridge Folk Festival (featuring Steve Earle, Sharon Shannon and others), Midlands Festival, Ireland, and the band's recent jaunt round American radio stations. To view, visit here and click on "view my pics".
BOSTON LIVE RADIO SESSION STREAMED The band's live acoustic session on WMFO Boston's "Paddy-Whacked Radio" is available online. Visit: here - and click on Paddy-Whacked Radio ˜last show" 9-11am Friday. The Waterboys session is in the last half hour of the two-hour show and features versions of The Man With The Wind At His Heels, It's Gonna Rain and When Ye Go Away, as well as interview fragments and even some tuning up. We are awaiting broadcast details of the several other radio sessions which the band pre-recorded in the States and will announce them as soon as we get info.
NEW YORK LIVE RADIO SESSION BROADCAST DATE The band's recent pre-recorded live session with WFUV New York will be aired on Thursday 13th September on ‘Take Five’ with Darren DeVivo at 8:15am and 4:45pm- and also on ‘Words And Music From Studio A’ at 9pm (US Eastern Time- five hours behind UK) You can listen here to purchase.
NORTH AMERICAN SHOWS - FIRST TICKET INFO Tickets for the Waterboys shows in New York (Nov 2), Glenside/Philadelphia (Nov 3) and Toronto (Nov 5) are on sale NOW from Ticketmaster in the USA. Click here to purchase.
US RADIO SHOWS - WHAT HAPPENED Mike, Steve and Richard played three successful shows in Minneapolis, Boston and Woodstock this week for lucky fans who bought tickets or procured them via radio stations or www.mikescottwaterboys.com. The shows featured many songs from the new album, Book Of Lightning, plus some old favourites and a new cover version of Willie Nelson's classic country song, Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground. The Minneapolis concert will be broadcast by Cities 97.1 on September 10th at 8.30pm (US Central Time, 6 hours behind UK). As soon as we receive info on broadcast dates for the other shows, we'll let you know.
OTHER BROADCAST SESSIONS/INTERVIEWS IN THE USA Mike, Steve and Richard will be recording live music sessions for two more American radio stations this week: WFUV (New York) and WXPN World Cafe (Philadelphia). Both these sessions are pre-records, and as soon as we receive broadcast dates we'll let you know. The trio will also be playing live on air on DJ Shawn Fitzsimmons' final show for WMFO Boston on Friday morning, August 31st.
MINNEAPOLIS SHOW, AUG 29TH, MORE INFO Wednesday night's radio broadcast concert in Minneapolis will be at The Hollow, not "The Hallow" as mistakenly announced on our website last week.
BOSTON RADIO SHOW ADDED Mike, Steve and Richard will play another small show for radio broadcast in Boston on Thursday August 30th. The show is at First Act Guitar Studios at 6.30pm, and is promoted by WBOS 92.9 who will be giving away tickets on air. Audience number is limited to 100 people. We also have 6 pairs of tickets to give away to the first 6 people to email us at mswbs@comcast.net. If you miss this show you can still come and see the full band play at the Berklee Theatre on November 1st.
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES - NOVEMBER 2-13 The Waterboys will play a short Book Of Lightning tour of North America in November. These will be full band shows, featuring the same line-up as at all this year’s European concerts: Mike Scott, Steve Wickham, Richard Naiff, Mark Smith & Damon Wilson. This is the first Waterboys tour of North America since 2003, and their first full band shows since 2001. Tickets are not on sale yet, but the moment we have the box office details we’ll let you know. The dates are:
BOOK OF LIGHTNING IS RELEASED THIS WEEK IN THE USA The new Waterboys album Book Of Lightning was released yesterday in the USA, on W14/Decca Records (through Universal).
MINNEAPOLIS RADIO BROADCAST CONCERT, AUGUST 29 Mike, Steve and Richard play another three-man show at The Hallow, Minneapolis, USA on the evening of August 29th. This show is for broadcast on Twin Cities radio station Cities 97, and tickets are only available by listening to the radio station and entering their on-air contest. Further info from www.cities97.com
SALAMANCA, SPAIN - CONCERT DETAILS Here are the full details for the previously announced Waterboys show in Salamanca:
GENEVA SHOW ADDED A show in Geneva, Switzerland has been added to the band's European Tour: 21st October: The Alhambra, GENEVA Box office: 0900 800 800 or 0041 900 800 www.ticketcorner.ch & www.fnac.ch Price: CHF 35 (including booking fee)
NORWEGIAN SHOW ADDED IN STAVANGER A fourth Norwegian date has been added to the band's October tour: Wed Oct 10: Folken, STAVANGER. Box office: +47 51564444 Online: www.folken.no Tickets: NOK 380 / 360 / 340 + box office fee NOK 20 On sale August 15
SPECIAL THREE-MAN SHOW IN WOODSTOCK, NEW YORK, 31 AUG Mike, Steve and Richard will play a three-man show at the Colony Cafe, Woodstock, New York, USA at 9pm on August 31st. Tickets are available from here. This is a special show for broadcast on Woodstock radio station WDST. We understand the three-piece will play another couple of similar US shows the same week, and as soon as we get details we'll post them here.
OCTOBER DATES IN NORWAY AND GERMANY
The Waterboys will play a series of extra tour dates in Norway and Germany in October. Like the rest of this year's concerts, these will be full band shows. Dates are:
MIKE ON YEATS Mike has chosen a favourite poem of his by WB Yeats for the Poets Corner section of actress/singer Jacqui Mackenzie's website. Mike has picked The Song Of Wandering Aengus and has contributed an introduction to the poem. To read click here
WATERBOYS CAMBRIDGE LIVE TRACKS PLAYED ON RADIO 3 songs from The Waterboys performance at this year's Cambridge Folk Festival in England were broadcast tonight on BBC Radio 2's Radcliffe And Maconie Show. The songs were Everybody Takes A Tumble, The Raggle Taggle Gypsy and When Will We Be Married? You can access them via the BBC's 'listen again' facility here
NEW VIDEO UPLOADED ON MYSPACE A short film of Steve Wickham's 'rustic irishman' alter-ego Gobnait O'Gallagher singing Walk On The Wild Side has been posted on our myspace page. The film was shot by drummer Damon Wilson backstage before the band's Midlands Festival show in Ireland on 28th July. To view click here
LIVE SESSION ON JANICE LONG SHOW, BBC RADIO 2, TUESDAY NIGHT The Waterboys will play 3 songs live on BBC Radio 2's Janice Long show which runs from 12.30am to 3.00am. There will also be an opportunity to send in questions for Janice to ask the band. For further info, and to access the BBC's 'replay' feature, click here: www.bbc.co.uk
CRASH OF ANGEL WINGS - SINGLE DOWNLOAD INFO The new Waterboys single mix of The Crash Of Angel Wings, plus 'b' side - Mike's home
demo of the same song - is available for download from today, Monday 30th July. The
track, originally on the band's current album Book Of Lightning, has been specially
remixed for the single by Ren Swan and features additional electric guitar by Mike Scott.
It was recently picked as Radcliffe & Maconie's Single Of The Week on BBC Radio 2. You
can download the single at the following stores:
CAMBRIDGE AND MIDLANDS - WHAT HAPPENED
The Waterboys played two eventful shows this weekend at the Cambridge Folk Festival in
England and the Midlands Music Festival in Ireland. At Cambridge on Friday night, Mike
opened the show with a solo version of the venerable folk song Barbara Allen. A few
songs later the band was joined by Sharon Shannon on accordion for The Raggle Taggle
Gypsy, and at the end of the show by Steve Earle, Sharon Shannon, fiddler John McCusker
and flute player Michael McGoldrick for a hootenanny-style finale of This Land Is Your
Land, with Mike and Steve Earle trading verses.
SHOW IN SALAMANCA, SPAIN We've just heard the band will play a show in Salamanca, Spain on 7th September. We understand this is a festival date, not part of a tour. As soon as we get more details we'll let you know.
MIKE AND WIKIPEDIA - RADIO INTERVIEW Mike has been interviewed for The Wikipedia Story, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 tomorrow, Tuesday 24th July, at 11.30am. Tune into 92-95 fm or 198 long wave.
CRASH OF ANGEL WINGS DEMO FOR 'B' SIDE We've just heard that the extra track with the new Waterboys single will be Mike's home demo of Crash Of Angel Wings itself. As previously stated, the single is download-only, all is released on Monday 30th July. We don't know whether this extra track will come bundled, or whether you will be able to download the two tracks individually. Different online retailers may offer the tracks in different ways. The two songs previously announced on a few websites as 'b' sides for this single, Higherbound and The Wedding, have been held back for future releases.
MIKE INTERVIEW ON JOHNNIE WALKER SHOW, RADIO 2, THIS SUNDAY Mike has been interviewed by BBC Radio 2's Johnnie Walker, to be broadcast during Johnnie's show this Sunday, July 22nd, 4.30pm-6.30pm.
WATERBOYS TO PLAY ON MACONIE SHOW, RADIO 2 The Waterboys will play some acoustic songs and will be interviewed by Stuart Maconie for his show from the Cambridge Folk Festival, broadcast on BBC Radio 2 between 2pm and 4.30pm on Saturday 28th July.
MIKE SCOTT INTERVIEWED BY COLIN MELOY OF THE DECEMBERISTS Mike has been interviewed by long-term Waterboys fan, Colin Meloy, singer with top American alternative band The Decemberists. The interview will appear in an upcoming issue of the American underground magazine Believer. We will announce full details as soon as we receive them.
NEW WATERBOYS SINGLE - THE CRASH OF ANGEL WINGS, JULY 30 A remixed version of The Crash Of Angel Wings will be issued as the second single from Book Of Lightning on July 30th in the UK. The single will be available by download only, and recent reports on the web of it being issued as a 3 track CD single were premature. We have no information yet on what, if any, 'b' sides are to included. The version of Crash Of Angel Wings also features newly recorded additional electric guitar by Mike Scott and was fabulously remixed by Ren Swan, who worked on many of the tracks on Book Of Lightning. We've heard the track and it sounds great! As soon as we have more info we'll let you know.
WATERBOYS ARE SINGLE OF THE WEEK ON RADCLIFFE & MACONIE SHOW, RADIO 2 We've just heard that Crash Of Angel Wings will be Single Of The Week on Radio 2's Radcliffe And Maconie Show, and will be played every evening from Monday 16 to Thursday 19 July. The show runs from 8pm to 10pm. Crash Of Angel Wings was voted single of the week by listeners to the show. The band also played a session for Mark Radcliffe's late night show earlier this year.
THE THREE DAYS OF GLASTONBURY Mike has written a blog about the Waterboys' experiences over their three shows in three days at this year's Glastonbury Festival in England. To read the whole epic saga of mud, magic, Pyramid stages, Taff and the tabard, Killer Conroy, a stovepipe hat, music, mermaids, madness, Tipi Fields and visions of Avalon, click here.
WATERBOYS LIVE BLUES IN NORWAY The Waterboys will headline on the evening of Thursday 5th July at the Skaanevik Blues Festival, Skaanevik, Norway Tickets are available from: www.skaanevik-blues.com. Prices start at NK 375.00 for Thursday Only
BOOK OF LIGHTNING - US RELEASE DATE AUG 21 Waterboys' new album BOOK OF LIGHTNING receives its USA release on August 21st on W14/Decca through Universal Records. Catalogue number is: 0-06025-1741433-4. The album's tracklist remains the same as the European version, but a new remix of Crash Of Angel Wings by engineer Ren Swan (also featuring an additional electric guitar part by Mike) replaces the original mix. The band plan to play some dates in the US this fall, and will also be doing interviews etc. As soon as we receive details we will let you know.
AMSTERDAM SHOW CONFIRMED FOR OCTOBER The band will play a show on Wednesday 17th October at the Carre Theatre, Amsterdam, Holland. Tickets are available at Ticket Service Post Offices, Free Record Shops, GWK offices and the VVV's. Tickets can also be ordered by phone, from within Holland only, from 0900 3001250. People outside Holland can order tickets from www.theatercarre.nl or www.ticketservice.nl
WATERBOYS GREENPEACE SHIP FILM FROM 1987 A nine minute film of The Waterboys live on the deck of the Greenpeace
ship Sirius in 1987 has just been uploaded to our myspace page. It
features clips of the band playing Savage Earth Heart and On My Way To Heaven. Our film editor Mick Puck says: 'Folks, this is probably the
worst shot piece of film in the history of rock - filmed by a bystander
who must have never held a camera before. I've done what I can with
it. Still, it captures something of the magic of the day, and the
spirit of the times. I hope you enjoy.'
LYRICS PAGE UPDATED We've updated The Waterboys lyrics page to include all the songs on Book Of Lightning and the bonus CDs on the recent remastered editions of This Is The Sea and Fisherman's Blues. To access these and all other Waterboys/Mike Scott lyrics, click here
SUMMER FESTIVALS - NORWAY & GERMANY The Waterboys are confirmed for two more Summer festivals:
ATTENTION SEATTLE AREA WATERBOYS FANS
MIKE'S INTERVIEW WITH BOWIEZONE Mike has been interviewed for the latest issue of David Bowie online magazine Bowiezone. In the interview he talks about Bowie's influence on his music, and his experience playing Bowie songs in his earliest bands, as well as many other topics. To read the interview, visit Bowiezone here
20th ANNIVERSARY OF GREENPEACE SHIP GIG Today is the 20th anniversary of The Waterboys' legendary 1987 concert on the deck of the Greenpeace ship Sirius, which took place while the vessel was moored in the Dublin docks. The band played a fifty minute set including Savage Earth Heart and many other tracks. To celebrate this anniversary, we will shortly be uploading a rare video clip of this event, filmed by a passer-by, and newly edited for viewing by Mike Scott. We understand the filming is rough but good enough to savour the spirit of the event and the times., Mike hasn't has time to edit it while on the Waterboys UK tour, but we're told it will be edited within the next week. As soon as it goes live we'll let you know! In the meantime, to see photos of the gig, click here
PEACE AND LOVE FESTIVAL, SWEDEN - TICKET DETAILS As previously announced, the Waterboys are performing on Sat 30 June at the PEACE AND LOVE FESTIVAL, Borlange, Sweden For full festival details visit: www.peaceandlove.se Tickets cost SKR 1,025.00 (aprox £75) from: (Swedish site) www.ticnet.se
LIVE FILM OF IT'S GONNA RAIN UPLOADED A short film of The Waterboys performing It's Gonna Rain during their show at York Opera House on 13th May has just been uploaded to our myspace page. The film was shot informally from the side of the stage by the band's Tour Manager Dave Conroy, and affords an unusually close up view of Mike and Steve in full performance flight. To view click here and then 'view my videos'.
NEW WATERBOYS PICS ON MYSPACE We've just uploaded some fabulous new photos, including several from the Albert Hall, on www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys - click on 'view my pics' to see them
GREEK DATES FLIP ROUND The band's shows in Athens and Thessaloniki have been flipped. The schedule of Greek shows is now:
MIKE BLOGS ON BOWIE AND WATERBOYS TOUR Mike has uploaded two new blogs, one about David Bowie and one about the Waterboys tour, at the band's myspace page. To view, visit www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
WATERBOYS MAKE LOVE AND PEACE AT SWEDISH FESTIVAL The band are confirmed for the Love And Peace Festival in Sweden on June 30th. Other acts include Waterboys' favourites Iggy And The Stooges. As soon as we have ticket details they will appear here
RETURN TO THE LAND OF PAN The Waterboys will play 4 shows in Greece, their first since last year’s successful visit:
NORWEGIAN WOOD - TICKET DETAILS The Waterboys headline the Norwegian Wood Festival, outside Oslo, on 16th June. Tickets cost NK 425.00 from: www.norwegianwood.no or by phone from Billettservice: (+47) 815 33 133
CHECK OUT THE TOM ROBINSON SESSION To hear the band’s performance of Strange Arrangement and Sustain on BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson Show, click here
MIKE’S JOOLS HOLLAND DATE CHANGED This show, featuring an interview with Mike and live performance of The Whole Of The Moon with Jools’ band will now be broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on Monday 7th May, from 21.30 - 22.30.
BOOK OF LIGHTNING - GERMAN RELEASE DATE Book Of Lightning will be released by Universal Germany on 18th May.
THE WORD IS OUT
WEB-PAGES OF LIGHTNING Don’t miss our new BOOK OF LIGHTNING section here on www.thewaterboys.com, which includes an interview with Mike Scott about the album, cartoons by Steve Wickham, the short story The Archivist’s Tale from the CD booklet and a compendium of some of the great reviews the album has received so far and recent magazine interviews with Mike. To access click here
NORWEGIAN WOOD - ISN’T IT GOOD! The Waterboys are confirmed as headliners on Saturday night June 16th at the Norwegian Wood festival in Norway. As soon as we receive more details and info on how to purchase tickets, we’ll let you know.
MIKE’S EILEEN CADDY ARTICLES
COVERS WATCH UPDATE Several excellent new covers of Waterboys songs have been spotted. Here are details:
WATERBOYS DIGITAL DOWNLOADS - EXTRA TRACKS An extra new Waterboys song, THE PLAYER, is available as a download from iTunes as a Book Of Lightning extra. To access it go to Book Of Lightning on iTunes. It is listed as track eleven and can be downloaded as part of the album or on its own. The live acoustic version of RED ARMY BLUES is available as the download-only ‘b’ side of Everybody Takes A Tumble from 7digital.com. Go to: www.7digital.com
BOOK OF LIGHTNING WITH ‘TRAVELS’ DVD - HURRY BEFORE THEY ARE ALL GONE Only 10,000 copies of the new Waterboys’ album Book Of Lightning have been issued with the bonus hour-long on-tour DVD, THE TRAVELS OF THE WATERBOYS. We hear these are going like hot cakes and may all be gone by the end of this week. So if you want to make sure you get a copy with the DVD, get one now while they are still on the shelves!
MIKE ON THE JOOLS HOLLAND RADIO SHOW Mike’s recently recorded guest appearance on the BBC Radio 2’s Jools Holland Show will be broadcast on Monday 23rd April between 21.30 and 22.30 UK time. The show features several of Mike’s favourite classic pop singles as well as a special live performance of Mike’s own classic The Whole Of The Moon with Jools’ band. The broadcast will be available in the UK on 88-91Fm and around the world at www.bbc.co.uk/radio2
WATERBOYS CONFIRMED FOR CACTUS FESTIVAL, BELGIUM The Waterboys have been confirmed for the Cactus Festival in Bruges, Belgium on Friday 6th July. Other acts include The Flaming Lips. Further details from: www.cactusfestival.be/ Tickets are available from: www.cactusmusic.be
BOOK OF LIGHTNING - OUT TODAY
The Waterboys' new album BOOK OF LIGHTNING is released today in Europe on W14/Universal Records. Containing ten fabulous tracks, and already receiving great reviews, the album and accompanying DVD 'The Travels Of The Waterboys'can be purchased here or here. And check out our new BOOK OF LIGHTNING web-pages here
WATERBOYS LIVE TONIGHT ON MARK RADCLIFFE RADIO SHOW The Waterboys will play a live set plus interview on tonight's Mark Radcliffe Show, Tuesday 27th March, on BBC Radio 2 (UK), between 10pm and midnight.
SUMMER FESTIVAL ADDITIONS The Waterboys are confirmed for the following additional Summer festivals: 7 July: CORNBURY FESTIVAL, ENGLAND. Tickets from £45.00. More info and tickets from: www.cornburypark.co.uk/ 27 July: CAMBRIDGE FOLK FESTIVAL, ENGLAND Tickets become available from May 6th. More info: www.cambridgefolkfestival.co.uk/ 28 July: MIDLANDS FESTIVAL, IRELAND. Tickets from 80 Euros. More info and tickets from: www.midlandsmusicfestival.com And don't forget the band's brilliant new album BOOK OF LIGHTNING is out on W14 Records/Universal next Monday 2nd of April with bonus DVD 'The Travels Of The Waterboys'. New single EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE is out now. Live broadcast video of EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE is available for viewing at www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys Having completed a series of successful shows in Holland, Belgium and Ireland, the band's tour continues with shows in Scandinavia, beginning in Bergen on Thursday. For full tour dates see www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
MIKE'S ARTICLE IN THE GUARDIAN Mike Scott has written an article on his experience with The Waterboys' wikipedia page for the Guardian newspaper in the UK. It is published in today's (Friday 23 March) Film and Music supplement. You can read it here on The Guardian website.
WATERBOYS 'TUMBLE' TV PERFORMANCE VIDEO UPLOADED ON MYSPACE The film of the band's recent Irish TV performance of their new single Everybody Takes A Tumble has just been uploaded on The Waterboys' myspace page. The clip is from the show Tubridy Tonight and was broadcast live during February. The single will be released in the UK on 19th March and is already out and receiving heavy airplay in Ireland. To view the clip click here
WATERBOYS CONFIRMED FOR DUTCH BOSPOP FESTIVAL The band will return this Summer to Holland's Bospop Festival after last year's successful show. They will play on Sunday 8th July. Ticvkets and info are available from: www.bospop.nl
EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE - LISTEN, SINGLE FORMATS A 2 minute extract of the new Waterboys single EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE has been uploaded to the band’s Myspace page and is now available for your listening pleasure. The single is released on Monday March 19th in the following formats: * CD single with extra tracks Killing My Heart (live) and a cover of George Harrison's song All Things Must Pass (live acoustic version) * 7 inch vinyl single with 'b' side, a cover of the blues oldie Ain't Doin’ Too Bad (studio) * Download with 'b' side, Red Army Blues (live acoustic version) The CD and 7” can be pre-ordered together from Townsends The CD version can be pre-ordered from Amazon
IRISH RELEASE DATES FOR NEW ALBUM/SINGLE BOOK OF LIGHTNING will be released early in Ireland to coincide with the Waterboys’ Irish tour. Release date there is Friday March 16th. The single Everybody Takes A Tumble was released in Ireland last Friday, March 2.
RADIO SESSIONS IRELAND: The band will play a live session on 2FM’s Gerry Ryan Show on March 15th UK: The band will play a live session on Radio 2’s Mark Radcliffe Show on March 27th
SUPPORT BANDS FOR UK AND IRISH TOURS The Waterboys have invited several different acts to support them on sections of their upcoming UK and Irish tours. HY BRASIL, a young band from Wicklow in Ireland, will play support on the 8 Irish dates from 16-25 March. ST JUDE, a British rock band, featuring former Waterboy Jo Wadeson on bass, will play the first 8 UK dates, from Bristol (20 April) to Leicester (29th). DAVID BOVA, a strong young singer/songwriter from near Glasgow, also known as Acousticbug, will open on all the shows from Oxford (1 May) to Wavendon (6 May) HAIGHT ASHBURY, a new band from Glasgow, fronted by two girl singers, and featuring former members of psychedelic girl group Acoustic Love Experience, will support on the final run of dates from Inverness (15 May) to the last night of the tour in Gateshead (21 May). You can check them all out by clicking on their boxes in the Waterboys’ top friends selection at www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys The opening act for the dates between Portsmouth and York (8-15 May), including the Royal Albert Hall, is yet to be announced.
SWEDISH CONCERTS - TICKET/VENUE DETAILS The band's Stockholm show has been moved to the BERNS THEATRE. The date remains the same: April 3rd. Tickets for this show, and for the 1st April show at Storans Theatre, Gothenburg, are available from: www.ticnet.se - or by telephone from + 46 77 170 70 70
UPCOMING RADIO BROADCASTS * Mike will be featured on the DAVE FANNING SHOW, on Ireland's 2FM, at 7pm, Wednesday 28th February. Mike and Dave will discuss the new Waterboys album Book Of Lightning, play some tracks, and will also talk about a classic album of the past chosen by Mike, Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones. * Mike, Steve and Richard have recorded a session for TodayFM in Ireland, to be broadcast on TOM DUNNE'S PET SOUNDS, date yet to be confirmed. They played acoustic versions of two tracks from Book Of Lightning and were joined by Dublin accordion player Sean Garvey for a cover of The Rolling Stones' country-rock classic Dead Flowers. * The full band will give a live Irish radio performance on 2FM's GERRY RYAN SHOW on Thursday March 15th. * On the same day, 15th March, at 11.30am BBC Radio Scotland are running a special on The Waterboys’ classic This Is The Sea album. The special includes an interview with Mike Scott, and will also be broadcast online at www.bbc.co.uk/radioscotland * The band will perform live on British Radio 2's MARK RADCLIFFE SHOW, on Tuesday March 27th. * Mike has recorded an interview and performance for British Radio 2's JOOLS HOLLAND SHOW. The show features tracks from Book Of Lightning, plus some of Mike's favourite records and a stomping live version of The Whole Of The Moon performed by Mike with Jools' band. Broadcast date yet to be confirmed.
NEW WATERBOYS DRUMMER The Waterboys have a new drummer, DAMON WILSON, who replaces the American sticksman Brady Blade. Brady played on the band's new album Book Of Lightning and was expected to do the tour but has had to pull out. After a series of auditions in London, the band have picked Damon, described by Mike as a 'grooving Aussie'.
WATERBOYS TO PLAY THIS YEAR'S GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL The Waterboys will play an unprecedented three shows at this year's Glastonbury Festival in England, one show on each of the festival's three days, with each show on a different stage. Anyone wishing to purchase tickets for the festival needs to first register at www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk before 28 February (Wednesday).
WATERBOYS IRISH TV BROADCAST Mike and the band are in the middle of an Irish promotional trip. Those of you in Ireland can see them performing EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE on Tubridy Tonight (televised), Irish RTE1 (TV), 10.30pm Saturday 17th Feb. We will shortly give you broadcast times (and webcast details) of several radio sessions coming up in the next few weeks.
MIKE PLAYS ONSTAGE WITH DECEMBERISTS Mike Scott made a guest appearance with top up and coming US band The Decemberists during the encore of their London show on Thursday February 8th at Shepherds Bush Empire. Mike was invited to play by the band's singer Colin Meloy, a long-time Waterboys fan. They performed a rollicking Fisherman's Blues, with Decemberists' multi-instrumentalist Lisa playing the fiddle parts on viola. A fan who was in attendence has posted a clip which you can view here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwNqwGYuG48
'BOOK OF LIGHTNING' COVER + BONUS DVD 'THE TRAVELS OF THE WATERBOYS' The cover of the new Waterboys album, BOOK OF LIGHTNING, which comes out 2nd April, has just been uploaded on www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys where you can have an early peek at it. We've also uploaded a sample of one of the album tracks, the brand new meisterwork NOBODY'S BABY ANYMORE. And we have terrific news that the first 10,000 copies of BOOK OF LIGHTNING will come in a special edition featuring a fabulous bonus DVD titled THE TRAVELS OF THE WATERBOYS. This hour-long film was specially edited by Mike Scott and contains clips from the band's on-tour home movies, shot between 2001 and 2006. THE TRAVELS OF THE WATERBOYS is the band's first-ever film or DVD, and as well as including footage of performances of many of their most popular songs, it gives a unique and in-depth look at the magical life of Mike, Steve, Richard and co. on the road. A few of the clips have already been shown on the band's myspace page, but most of THE TRAVELS OF THE WATERBOYS is new and previously unseen. You can pre-order the album with this bonus DVD from various internet stockists, including amazon.co.uk and townsend-records.co.uk.
NEW WATERBOYS ALBUM - BOOK OF LIGHTNING - OUT APRIL 2 The new Waterboys album BOOK OF LIGHTNING is released in Europe on April 2 by W14/Universal Records. The album contains ten tracks, produced by Mike Scott and Philip Tennant, with musical contributions from Steve Wickham (fiddle), Richard Naiff (keyboards), Brady Blade (drums), Mark Smith (bass), Leo Abrahams (lead guitar), Jeremy Stacey (drums) plus long-time Waterboys alumni Roddy Lorimer (trumpet), Chris Bruce (lead guitar) and Thighpaulsandra (keyboards). BOOK OF LIGHTNING was recorded in London with the exception of one song recorded in Vancouver with members of Canadian art-pop band Great Aunt Ida, and another in Mike's home studio. The album features the live favourites The Crash Of Angel Wings and Everybody Takes A Tumble, plus a new recording of You In The Sky, which appeared for the first time on last year's "Fisherman's Blues" remaster set. Some fans will recognise Sustain and Strange Arrangement from the band's 2004 acoustic tour. Mike has described the album as 'a beauty' on the band's myspace page and we understand it has a psychedelic sleeve and the booklet features a short story. As we receive more details we'll let you know. The full tracklist is:
NEW WATERBOYS SINGLE - EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE A special single edit of EVERYBODY TAKES A TUMBLE will be released two weeks before the album, on March 19th. It will be available as a CD single, 7" single and download single, with a variety of previously unissued 'b' sides. As soon as we have details of these we will let you know. Radio will be serviced with copies several weeks in advance so listen out for an acoustic guitar intro, a shake of bells and then Steve's unmistakeable fiddle rushing in.
MIKE'S ARTICLE IN WORD MAGAZINE Mike has contributed a short article on his days working in a record shop during his early musical days to a feature running in the current issue of the UK magazine Word. Available now. For info on how to order a copy visit www.wordmagazine.co.uk
WATERBOYS SPIDDAL SESSION VIDEO NOW UP ON MYSPACE If you ever wanted to hang out with the Waterboys in an old-fashioned and magical bar in the west of Ireland, and enjoy an impromptu music session in the most perfect atmosphere imaginable, then log on to our myspace page and check out the new Waterboys video, Spiddal Session. It shows the band enjoying a rip roaring music session in Hughes' Bar with their friends Sharon Shannon and Charlie Lennon, filmed during a day off on their 2004 Irish tour.
STEVE ON IRISH RADIO, CHRISTMAS EVE Steve Wickham will be performing a special Christmas radio show with his Sligo-based band No Crows on RTE Radio One, Ireland, at 8pm on December 24th. A splendid time is guaranteed for all!
NORWEGIAN DATES ANNOUNCED 3 shows in Norway have been added to the Waterboys Spring 2007 tour. Tickets go on sale for Stavanger and Oslo on Saturday Nov 4. Bergen tickets go on sale Wednesday Nov 8. Full details:
WATERBOYS SIGN TO UNIVERSAL/WEST 14 - NEW ALBUM NEARLY COMPLETED The Waterboys have signed to West 14, part of Universal Records, who will release the new Waterboys album in Spring 2007. West 14 is run by John Williams, who worked with the Waterboys during their time at Chrysalis Records, and who also produced a classic mid 1980s radio session for the band, later included on the album 'The Secret Life Of The Waterboys'. It is a return to a major label for the Waterboys, whose last two albums, 'Universal Hall' and 'Karma To Burn' were on their own Puck Records. Mike Scott and co-producer (and Waterboys manager) Philip Tennant are currently close to finishing the new Waterboys album, which features ten songs, including "Everybody Takes A Tumble" and 'The Crash Of Angel Wings" both of which have featured on the band's recent concert tours. The album is as yet untitled. Musicians include Steve Wickham, Richard Naiff, drummers Brady Blade and Jeremy Stacey, bassman Mark Smith, electric guitarist Leo Abrahams, long-time Waterboys alumni Roddy Lorimer (trumpet) and Chris Bruce (electric guitar), and members of Vancouver band Great Aunt Ida. Mike Scott has recently written some blogs about the recording of the album. To read them visit: www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
WATERBOYS TRACK ON ARAN LIFEBOAT COLLECTION CD
MARCH 2007 DUTCH DATES ANNOUNCED The Waterboys will begin their 2007 tour with the following shows in
Holland, preceding the dates already announced in Ireland and UK.
Tickets go on sale Saturday 7th October, priced 25 Euros.
2 NEW WATERBOYS FILMS ON MYSPACE We are delighted to announce that two new films have just been uploaded to the Waterboys myspace page, and are now available for viewing. They are: MARVELLOUS MR NAIFF, a collage of clips of Waterboys keyboard player Richard Naiff, filmed on and offstage over the last 5 years, and including several in concert clips of the band; and BELGIAN BUS, a 7 minute clip of an impromptu music session on a tour bus, featuring Mike Scott and Steve Wickham singing and playing with members of top Irish folk bands Kila and Dervish. Both films were edited by Mike Scott, and are exclusive to The Waterboys' myspace page.
MORE WATERBOYS SPRING 07 SHOWS The following shows have been added to the Waterboys Spring tour. We don't yet have full box office details, and we advise you to check with venues. As soon as we receive details we will post them here. Further shows will soon be added.
THEA GILMORE ALBUM OUT TODAY WITH TWO MIKE CO-WRITES Thea Gilmore's album 'Harpo's Ghost' is released today on Sanctuary Records. It features two songs co-written with Mike Scott. Titles are We Built A Monster and Whistle And Steam. The album has been receiving very good reviews. For further info visit www.theagilmore.com
THREE NEW WATERBOYS VIDEOS ON MYSPACE Three further Waterboys films have been uploaded to our myspace page and are now available for viewing. The first is SWEET THING ‘06, a blistering live performance from the band’s midsummer shows at Findhorn’s Universal Hall. The other two continue our series of home movies from the Fisherman’s Blues era and are: HONKY TONKIN’, a funny home-made video of Mike Scott, Steve Wickham and Anto Thistlethwaite performing the Hank Williams classic; and MASKED BAND, a collage of clips from a band holiday in 1986, full of music and mischief. To view all three visit www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
SPANISH FESTIVAL SHOW ADDED, 31 AUGUST The Waterboys have been confirmed for one more Summer festival, The Azkena Rock Festival, Vitoria, near Bilbao, Spain, on Thursday 31st August. The Waterboys will headline the second stage, and will performan an acoustic set. The line-up will be the three-piece of Mike, Steve and Richard. Other artists appearing at the 3 day festival include: Pearl Jam, Iggy Pop and The Stooges, the New York Dolls and Green On Red. Further details at: www.azkenarockfestival.com Tickets from: www.ticktackticket.com, by telephone from (Spain) 902 1500 25
WATERBOYS BEGIN RECORDING NEW ALBUM The Waterboys have begun recording their new album, and the main sessions will take place in London in September, with Mike Scott and Philip Tennant producing. A few tracks have already been recorded, including 'The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn', at Findhorn during the Midsummer's Eve Stramash, and a song recorded in Canada with members of Vancouver band Great Aunt Ida. We have no information on the song selecrtion, except that 'The Crash Of Angel Wings' and several other new songs are included. The album, as yet untitled, is projected for a February/March 2007 release, in advance of the band's 2007 tour.
4 EXCLUSIVE WATERBOYS LIVE TRACKS ON MYSPACE 4 fabulous tracks recorded during the Waterboys' acoustic midsummer shows at Findhorn's Universal Hall will be available on our myspace page for the limited period of two weeks, commencing 18th July. Songs included are: Red Army Blues, The Raggle Taggle Gypsy, When Will We Be Married? and Wild Mountain Thyme, all featuring Mike Scott, Steve Wickham and Richard Naiff in blistering form. These recordings are not available anywhere else, and no commercial release of them is planned. They have been specially recorded for myspace by Chris Madden and mixed by Mike Scott. You are cordially invited to listen to them by visiting us at www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
WATERBOYS SPRING 2007 TOUR - FIRST UK DATES ON SALE Tickets go on sale today (July 14th) for the first ten shows to be announced of the Waterboys' Spring 2007 UK tour. Tickets for all the following shows are available from:
These shows consitute part of a fuller tour of the UK and Ireland, to be announced very soon.
WATERBOYS ACOUSTIC IN SLIGO, IRELAND, AUGUST 18TH Mike, Steve and Richard will play a 40 minute set as part of a special benefit concert at the Hawkswell Theatre, Sligo on Friday 18th August.
All proceeds will go to raise funds to improve the childrens'
playground at Yekatite 23 Primary School in Addis Abbaba, Ethiopia, where Steve recently toured with a group of Irish musicians. Other artists appearing will be: Declan O Rourke, Liam O'Maonlai and The Ethiopian Crew (Brian Sweeney, Connie Murray & James Wickham). Tickets are €35 each from the Hawkswell box office, tel 00353 71965 0828
MIKE CO-WRITES TWO SONGS ON NEW THEA GILMORE ALBUM Mike has co-written two songs, 'Whistle And Steam' and 'We Built A Monster', for the forthcoming Thea Gilmore album, 'Harpo's Ghost', which will be released by Sanctuary Records on 21st August. Mike composed the music for 'Monster' and some of the music for 'Whistle And Steam' during a period of collaboration-by-correspondence with Thea during 2005. Thea guested as opening act on the Waterboys recent UK tour, during which she premiered 'Whistle And Steam'. She and her band begin a 15-date UK tour in mid September. For further info visit: www.theagilmore.com
CORNBURY SHOW - WATERBOYS DELAYED AND WON'T BE THERE The Waterboys flight from Lisbon was cancelled and despite the heroic efforts of tour manager Jim Parsons to reorganise flights, the band haven't been able to get to Cornbury in time to play at tonight's festival, and are currently awaiting a flight in Madrid to where they were diverted. Our apologies to any fans who have purchased tickets for Cornbury. The band's performance tomorrow in Meert, Holland will go ahead as scheduled.
WATERBOYS ACOUSTIC SET CONFIRMED FOR LOKERSE, BELGIUM, 6TH AUG Mike, Steve and Richard will play an acoustic set at the LOKERSE FESTIVAL, Belgium on August 6th. Tickets are Euro 11.30 from: www.lokersefeesten.be/2005/en/home.php Other artists playing include Jackson Browne We can also confirm ticket details for the following shows:
NEW WATERBOYS VIDEOS ON MYSPACE - MAGIC MR WICKHAM AND 'MOON OVER CLIFDEN 87' Two new Waterboys videos have just been uploaded to our myspace page and are now available for viewing. Come visit us at www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys. Both films are exclusive to the Waterboys myspace page and have never been seen before. They are: MAGIC MR WICKHAM - a collage of clips of fiddler extraordinaire Steve Wickham filmed during the Waterboys tours of 2001, including several glimpses into the magical backstage and on-tour life of the band, edited and filmed by Mike Scott. MOON OVER CLIFDEN - continuing our series of 'Fisherman's Blues' era home movies, this is a unique film of Mike performing 'The Whole Of The Moon' for the pupils of a school in Clifden, a small town in the west of Ireland, in 1987. And if you missed our previous films, BERGEN 06 and GALWAY 86, both are still available for viewing on the same page.
WATERBOYS FILMS ON MYSPACE We are pleased to announce our technical team has uploaded the first two videos onto the Waterboys myspace page, and both are now available for viewing at www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys. Only members of myspace will be able to access these. We don't have a facility on our main website yet to show videos, so apologies to those of you who are not myspace members. Myspace is of course open to all who wish to join. The films are: 1) BERGEN 2006 - a short compendium of performance and intervierw clips from the band's recent show at the Bergen Festival 2) GALWAY 1986 - to celebrate the release of the remastered Fisherman's Blues album, we've raided Mike Scott's old Hi-8 video camera and found some clips of the band in Ireland during the Fisherman's Blues years. The first of these is a film of Mike, Steve and Trevor Hutchinson making an impromptu appearance at the Galway 'Lark In The Park' festival in 1986, at which they play Fisherman's Blues and Meet Me At The Station. We'll be adding more films - both current and archive - soon. Enjoy!
ANOTHER WICKHAM SHOW ADDED Steve will play a show in Dublin, opening for French singer Cali at 7.30pm, 23rd May at The Village, 26 Wexford Street. Tickets cost €25 (incl booking fee) from: www.thevillagevenue.com Cali is the top French rock singer who guested with the Waterboys at their Brussels show a week ago. His latest album is 'Menteur' and he is on the web at www.caliciuri.com
'STOLEN CHILD' LIVE PERFORMANCE RECORDING ON MYSPACE A beautiful live recording of 'The Stolen Child' as performed by Mike Scott and Richard Naiff at the Waterboys show last week in Utrecht has been uploaded to the band's myspace page. The track will only be on the page for a limited time. Visit The Waterboys on myspace www.myspace.com/mikescottwaterboys
WATERBOYS CONFIRMED FOR BOSPOP FESTIVAL, HOLLAND IN JULY The band will play at the BOSPOP Festival, Weert, Holland on Sunday July 9th. Festival tickets are available priced 50 Euros on the from: www.bospop.nl - or by phone at: +31 (0) 900-3001250
A MIDSUMMER'S EVE STRAMASH - ACOUSTIC FINDHORN SHOWS, JUNE 24 & 25 Mike, Steve and Richard will play two special acoustic shows under the title of "A Midsummer's Eve Stramash" at Universal Hall, Findhorn, on Saturday and Sunday 24 & 25 June. Tickets go one sale Monday May 22nd from: www.thebooth.co.uk or by phone from: 01309 690954, 9.30am - 2pm, or by person from: Phoenix Box Office (opposite the Phoenix shop in Findhorn), 9.30am - 2pm. Tickets are NOT reservable before the box office opens on May 22nd.
STEVE WICKHAM SHOWS On Thur |
Mike has joined with Norwegian organisation One People for a single titled IN THE
BEGINNING WAS LOVE, which will be released in Norway on 5th October. The song was
written by Mike and his friend, American author David Spangler, and some people may
remember it from the Waterboys’ Midsummer 2006 acoustic shows. The single version has a
new arrangement featuring Mike on lead vocals, with supporting vocals by Norway-based
Somalian singer Noora Noor and instrumentation by top Norwegian musicians. Mike
describes it as “exquisite spiritual funk”. Production is by Rune “Two Sticks” Lamøy and
Åsmund Gylder.
Personalised items signed by Mike and other Waterboys will be available at a special fund-raising auction held by the Lorian Association - a holistic spiritual group of which Mike is a friend - in Seattle on June 9.
Check out the May edition of Word Magazine (UK) for an interview with Mike, giving a track-by-track account of the songs on Book Of Lightning, and also a glowing review of the album by Graeme Thomson.
Mike has contributed two articles on his former neighbour, the mystic and spiritual teacher Eileen Caddy, who died last December, to the Spring issue of the UK holistic magazine Caduceus (issue 71). The articles are: Mornings With Eileen in which Mike describes going to meditate with Eileen on winter mornings in Findhorn; and Mike’s 2,500 word obituary telling Eileen’s life story. For info on how to obtain a copy, click 
The Waterboys have contributed a track to the Irish 2CD compilation
'The Aran Lifeboat Collection", compiled by Waterboys alumnus Vinnie
Kilduff, and featuring well-known Irish artists as well as musicians
and singers from the Aran Islands. The Waterboys track is Mike's
English-language version of the great Irish song 'Women Of Ireland'.
The album, catalogue no. Aran Recordings 01, is distributed in Ireland
by Gael Linn. It was released on 27th October and copies are available
online from