Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul are heralding this Sunday’s start of a landmark live tour with today’s surprise release of Soulfire Live!, a 24-track collection recorded last year in North America and Europe during the legendary rock ‘n’ roller’s first tour in nearly two decades.
Soulfire Live! is available now at all digital music retailers and streaming services; physical 3-CD, Blu-ray, and vinyl editions will arrive this summer.
Soulfire Live! is an epic and electrifying journey through rock ‘n’ roll history led by one of its most passionate practitioners, showcasing Stevie Van Zandt’s limitless knowledge, talent, and sheer love for the genre in all its many shapes and guises. Among the album’s many highlights is the introduction made by the legendary Mike Stoller, who along with partner Jerry Leiber, are widely considered to be the first successful and the most enduring rock songwriters and producers of all time. Other highlights on the album are the original songs from throughout Little Steven’s illustrious career – including classics like “Standing In The Line Of Fire” and “I Don’t Want To Go Home” – alongside a number of favorite cover versions like The Electric Flag’s “Groovin’ Is Easy,” Etta James’ “Blues Is My Business,” and James Brown’s “Down And Out In New York City,” the latter two songs also featured on last year’s critically acclaimed Soulfire. In addition, Soulfire Live! includes Van Zandt’s inimitable introductions, detailing each song’s unique history and singular spot in his life and illustrious career.
Soulfire Live! was produced and arranged by Stevie Van Zandt; the album was mixed by Bob Clearmountain and mastered by Bob Ludwig.
Soulfire Live! arrives just as Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul prepare to embark on a major live tour benefitting TeachRock, the Rock and Roll Forever Foundation’s national initiative to bring music curriculum into middle and high schools across the country. At each stop of the tour, TeachRock will host workshops before the show to educate teachers on how to implement music education into their curriculum. For more information, please reach out to [email protected].
“This tour is a celebration of the teaching profession,” says Van Zandt. “It’s a show of solidarity for the most underpaid, underappreciated working class in our country.”
The dates – which mark the first-ever rock tour specifically geared to address to this crucial societal need – begin this Sunday, April 29 at New Brunswick, NJ’s historic State Theatre and then continue in May. Limited VIP packages – including merch bundles, meet-and-greets, and sound check entry – are also available. For complete details and ticket availability, please visit littlesteven.com.
Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul will also spend much of the summer traversing Europe, including headline shows and eagerly awaited festival performances in the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, Ireland, and Norway.
Little Steven Van Zandt is of course known around the world for his utterly personal songwriting and an ambitious adventurousness that has fueled much of his creative output these past four decades. In addition to his ongoing role as a touring and recording member of The E Street Band, he has also expanded his artistic parameters to include landmark work as an actor on The Sopranos and Lilyhammer as well as host, historian, and rock ‘n’ roll advocate on Sirius XM’s one-and-only “Little Steven’s Underground Garage” (not to mention creator of Sirius XM’s long-running “Outlaw Country” format). Van Zandt has also expanded his musical boundaries to include composing the score for all three seasons of Lilyhammer and additional work as producer and songwriter, lending his distinctive craft to records from an array of international garage rockers.
Track List:
Soulfire
I’m Coming Back
Blues Is My Business
Love On The Wrong Side of Town
Until The Good Is Gone
Angel Eyes
Some Things Just Don’t Change
Saint Valentine’s Day
Standing In The Line Of Fire
I Saw The Light
Salvation
The City Weeps Tonight
Down And Out In New York City
Princess of Little Italy
Solidarity
Leonard Peltier
I Am A Patriot
Groovin’ Is Easy
Ride The Night Away
Bitter Fruit
Forever
Checkpoint Charlie
I Don’t Want To Go Home
Out Of The Darkness
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