DAYS BETWEEN STATIONS WITH: Peter Banks, Rick Wakeman, Billy Sherwood and Tony Levin

Today Sepand Samzadeh of Days Between Stations tells us about the song "Eggshell Man" from their brand new album "Extremis". Here is the story:

This is a track featuring the late Peter Banks, Rick Wakeman, Billy Sherwood and Tony Levin, and is the seventh track in our concept album 'In Extremis'. The concept being, the story of a man at the point of death (the Latin definition of 'In Extremis') with his memories whirling around him. The album, in not so chronological order, follows the story of this man, and by the time Eggshell Man appears, the protagonists empire has crumbled. As much he tries to persevere, he keeps falling down. The title comes from the neurotic obsession Oscar and I had developed, by this time, to finish the album… my wife kept saying she was walking on eggshells around us. It is also loosely based off of the Humpty Dumpty fable, which Paul Whitehead depicted in his own fashion in the album artwork.

As the guitarist for Days Between Stations, I wanted to record an acoustic guitar track for the first time. In addition, I was excited to play a Persian lute, named a Tar, on this song. This instrument was part of my many influences growing up and I had always dreamed of introducing it as a Rock worthy instrument to a Western audience. The Persians use this instrument in the classical genre of their music, namely Sonati. Ali Nouri lent his talent on the tar solo on this track, and we really had a great deal of fun recording this with him. The song really fell into place organically.

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Union (Standard DVD) DVD - £9.99

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Rock Of The 70's DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts DVD - £7.99

LINK: Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood – Conspiracy Live (2013)

Chris Squire and Billy Sherwood, it seemed, had an immediate spark. Only Yes, the band Squire co-founded in the late 1960s and one that Sherwood was associated with throughout the 1990s, just kept getting in the way.

Beginning in the run up to 1991′s Union, the pair had been writing songs together, but the fruits of those labors would be sprinkled over a series of Yes projects, and Sherwood himself wouldn’t become an official member of the group for years. After Sherwood’s eventual departure in 2000, they finally issued a pair of albums as Conspiracy, and recorded this private show in 2004, but there remained a star-crossed sense of unfinished business.

Take “The More We Live,” the only remaining remnant of a collaboration that predates Sherwood’s official tenure in Yes. The track, presented here as a twilit reminiscence, illustrates how quickly these two began to mesh. Not much became of that fast start, unfortunately, as Sherwood would get pushed out when the 1980s-era edition of Yes combined with some of its former members. “The More We Live” would appear on the resulting Union, but with additional vocals from founding Yes frontman Jon Anderson recorded over the original demo. It’s restored here, at long last, as a soaring vocal collaboration between Squire and Sherwood.

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CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM YES AT GONZO

Union (2CD) 2CD - £7.99

Rock Of The 70's DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts DVD - £7.99

‘I wish them luck’: Billy Sherwood pulls out of troubled Geoff Tate-led Queensryche project

Billy Sherwood won’t be remixing the new album from Geoff Tate’s Queensryche. Just days after it was announced that the 1990s Yes vet would get involved with that troubled project, he’s pulled out — citing a host of other obligations.

“I’ve withdrawn from mixing the Queensryche project,” Sherwood confirms, via Facebook. “Scheduling issues became a conflict.”

While that kind of comment is often bandied about by someone simply looking to pursue other things, Sherwood is, in fact, eye ball deep in work.

He’s still mixing the forthcoming Prog Collective 2, a highlight of which will be some of the final recordings from Peter Banks, the late Yes guitarist; even while producing William Shatner’s new solo effort. Sherwood is also set to tour with Eddie Jobson of UK fame, among other things. For instance, he says a Doors tribute album is in the works for Cleopatra.

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NEWS IN BRIEF: BILLY SHERWOOD TO "FIX" QUEENSRŸCHE ALBUM

Acclaimed musician, record producer and engineer Billy Sherwood has revealed via his Facebook page that he has landed "a new gig": remixing"Frequency Unknown", the new album from the Geoff Tate-fronted version of QUEENSRŸCHE. Sherwood writes: "[It] seems there are sonic issues with the previous versions and so I shall be fixing it for all to enjoy. [I am] starting on it [Wednesday] morning [March 27]."

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=188025

‘Very special stuff’: Billy Sherwood polishes up some final sessions by Peter Banks for Prog Collective 2

Producer Billy Sherwood is substantially finished with the star-flecked Prog Collective 2, which will include some of the final recordings of Peter Banks, the original Yes guitarist who passed earlier this month.

The track “Tomorrow Becomes Today” features Banks, keyboardist Larry Fast (Foreigner, Peter Gabriel) and vocalist Sonja Kristina (Curved Air), with Sherwood on bass, rhythm guitar, drums and synthesizers, Sherwood says, viaFacebook. Banks “delivered overdubs a few weeks before he tragically passed away,” Sherwood added.

Prog Collective 2, to be issued by Cleopatra Records, also includes guest appearances by Rick Wakeman, John Wetton, Allan Holdsworth, Chris Squire, Derek Sherinian, Colin Moulding, Roye Albrighton, Gary Green, Mel Collins, Steve Hillage, John Wesley, Steve Stevens, Tony Kaye, Jordan Rudress, Fee Waybill, Steve Morse, Patrick Moraz, and others.

Sherwood is performing songs from the original Prog Collective project this week on the Moody Blues Cruise, with members of his regular band Circa. He will also appear with Eddie Jobson of UK fame in April at the Baja Prog Festival.

Like Sherwood, Squire, Wakeman, Moraz and Kaye are current or former members of Yes. Sherwood co-leads Circa with Kaye, and previously was part of Conspiracy with Squire. He’s worked as a producer with Wetton (Asia, UK, King Crimson), and with Nektar’s Albrighton, as well.

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CURRENTLY AVAILABLE FROM YES AT GONZO

Union (Standard DVD) DVD - £9.99

Union (2CD) 2CD - £7.99

Rock Of The 70's DVD - £12.99

The Lost Broadcasts DVD - £7.99

IT' PROG JIM, BUT NOT AS WE KNOW IT

Bart Lancia gave me a head's up that this was likely to be happening a couple of days ago. I couldn't resist the headline

Billy Sherwood has been beamed on board for the newest album from swashbuckling Star Trek star James T. Kirk — er, William Shatner. Sherwood says he is providing the music, while Shatner writes the lyrics.

Shatner, who appeared as Kirk from 1966-69 on television and then in seven Star Trek motion pictures between 1979-94, started a tandem recording career in 1968, with The Transformed Man — featuring dramatic readings of works by William Shakespeare, as well as unique readings of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” and the Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.”

Shatner then released a pair of projects in the late 1970s, including a double live album, before returning in the 2000s with Has Been. His latest album was 2011′s Seeking Major Tom, which featured guest appearances by Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore, Asia’s John Wetton, Yes’ Steve Howe and Peter Frampton, among others.

Sherwood, most famous for a stint in the 1990s edition of Yes, says he started writing music in January, and began production on the as-yet-unnamed Shatner project last week.

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CHECK OUT YES AT GONZO

Union (Standard DVD) DVD - $13.99

Union (2CD) 2CD - $10.99

Rock Of The 70's DVD - $17.99

The Lost Broadcasts DVD - $10.99

Rock of the 70s DVD - $13.99