The already legendary partnership between Adrian Smith and Richie Kotzen will be officially immortalized through an album from the Smith/Kotzen , which will be released via BMG in exactly one month, the duo announced today, the 26th, and took the opportunity to release the music video for the project's first single, "Taking My Chances".
Recorded in the Turks and Caicos Islands last February, the album, which will feature influences from classic 70s rock to moments referencing blues and R&B, was produced by Richie and Adrian and mixed by Kevin “Caveman” Shirley . The nine-track work showcases the complementarity and harmony between the renowned artists who co-wrote all the songs and also share lead vocals, alternating between guitar and bass throughout the album. The album also includes collaborations with Nicko McBrain , Adrian's colleague from Iron Maiden , and Richie's touring partner, Tal Bergman .
“Richie and I started working together a few years ago. We’re friends and had been playing together for a few years before that,” says Adrian. “We both share a love for classic rock and blues rock, so we decided to get together and start writing some songs and went from there. Basically everything on the album was decided by me and Richie, including the production. We developed a strong idea of how we wanted the record to sound and I’m very happy with the result. It has many incredible songs that we are very excited about.”
“We had a very fluid songwriting process,” Richie adds. “Sometimes Adrian would send me a riff and I’d immediately come up with some kind of melody or idea for the vocals. And sometimes it was the other way around, so it was almost a circular process. We got together whenever we could to play around and create ideas and they evolved, which was great because there was no pressure, just the natural course of things, and I think the album really represents that.”
For more information about the launch, click here.
Smith/Kotzen : Smith/Kotzen
- Taking My Chances
- Running
- Scars
- Some People
- Glory Road
- Solar Fire
- You Don't Know Me
- I Wanna Stay
- 'Til Tomorrow