Beth Hart and Joe Bonamassa colab on “Don’t Explain”

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Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Beth Hart, known for her raw and powerful blues-rock sound, wraps her expressive vocals around classic soul covers on Don’t Explain, an album that grew out of her friendship with the acclaimed Blues guitarist Joe Bonamassa. The album will be released in the UK and Europe on Monday 26th September by Provogue Records.

Produced by Kevin Shirley (Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Black Country Communion), Don’t Explain is an intimate collection of hand-picked soul cover versions, as performed by celebrated artists, such as Gil Scott-Heron, Tom Waits, Etta James and Aretha Franklin.

Don’t Explain perfectly combines Beth Hart’s raspy soulful vocal with Bonamassa’s unique guitar sound, Kevin Shirley, who has produced Bonamassa’s last five albums, reflects on what it was like working with Beth for the first time – “Beth’s got a pretty heady voice, very reminiscent of Janis Joplin, she’s also got a lot of Etta James in her, but hadn’t really accessed it. With this material, there is a gentleness to the way she delivers the most heartfelt tunes that she hasn’t shown before. It’s very cool, she’s done a fantastic job.”

Bonamassa and Hart had crossed paths on the road numerous times, and played many of the same festivals in Europe. In early 2010, Joe caught a show of hers in London – “It was killer,” says Bonamassa – and suggested they do a project together sometime.

“I was up late one night, I couldn’t sleep. I was playing songs on my iPod from the reissue of Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out, which included all the opening acts from that Stones show,” he recalls. “As soon as the Ike & Tina Turner tracks came on, I just said out loud, ‘Beth Hart.’ I emailed Kevin, saying, ‘Let’s do a soul covers record with Beth,’ and he replied back, ‘Actually, that’s a great idea.’”

Clearly humbled by the recording process, Beth Hart adds “Going into the studio with the level of players there, including Joe of course, I really had to rise to the occasion. I couldn’t do my best, I had to do better. That kind of focus was humbling, and it was great. We had such a good time making the record; I listened to all these songs over and over to learn them the best I could. I felt so much growth just by virtue of listening to these amazing singers. I hope some of those chops rubbed off.”

To back Hart up, Bonamassa assembled the ace band that was heard on his 2009 #1 Blues album The Ballad of John Henry: Anton Fig (drums, percussion), Blondie Chaplin (guitar), Carmine Rojas (bass), and Arlan Scheirbaum (keyboards). The sound evolved into a simmering mix of soul, jazz, rock, and blues, with Hart’s vocals confidently in the pocket of each and every groove. “Beth has been an absolute hidden gem,” says Bonamassa. “She has a beautiful voice. She’s a fantastic singer, a lovely person.”

So, who is Beth Hart?

Wikipedia says: Beth Hart (born January 24, 1972) is an American singer who became famous with the hit “LA Song (Out of This Town)”, which aired during Episode 17 of the 10th and final season of Beverly Hills, 90210. Her musical influences include rock, blues and gospel.

While playing the Los Angeles clubs, she enlisted bassist Tal Herzberg and guitarist Jimmy Khoury. In 1993, Hart appeared on Ed McMahon’s Star Search several times.

“Beth Hart and the Ocean of Souls” was recorded in 1993. It includes “Am I the One” (re-worked on later albums[citation needed]) and a pop-rock cover of the Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” Hart released her album Immortal with her band Beth Hart Band in 1996. Her next album, Screamin’ for My Supper (Atlantic, 1999), featured “LA Song (Out of This Town),” a top-5 Adult Contemporary Chart hit. At the same time, Hart was singing the lead role in “Love, Janis,” an Off-Broadway musical based on Joplin’s letters home to her mother. Hart’s Leave the Light On was released in 2003. European releases of the album include extras such as the ballad “Learning to Live” and a duet with Barry Hay, “I Don’t Want to Be.”

Hart released “Live at Paradiso” in 2005. The DVD version includes a bonus documentary covering “a day in the life” of Hart. She has also recorded with Born (“It Hurts”), Les Paul and Neal Schon (“I Wanna Know You”), and released a number of music video singles not available on CD, including “Shine,” “Boogeyman,” and “Setting Me Free.” Beth Hart’s album 37 Days was released in Europe July 2007. Hart did a song with Slash called “Mother Maria.” That song is on the iTunes version of Slash’s solo album, Slash.

Beth Hart is married and currently resides in Los Angeles. Her band includes lead guitarist Jon Nichols, bassist Tom Lilly, and drummer Todd Wolf. Her manager is David Wolff. Beth’s new single was released in May 2010, the track, “Learning to Live,” is from an upcoming album of the same name and will be used as the theme song to “Losing It with Jillian” on NBC. this album marks Beth’s first new American studio release since 2003.

2011 finds her working with Joe Bonamassa. First providing vocals for the track “No Love On The Street” on his forthcoming album DUST BOWL (March 2011) They are also reported to be working on entire album together of soul classics