NEWS

Joe Bonamassa Celebrates The Release Of His Latest Studio Album "Blues Deluxe Vol. 2" Album With Epic Original Track, "Is It Safe To Go Home"

Published 12 months ago on October 7, 2023

By Guitar Interactive Magazine

Joe Bonamassa Celebrates The Release of His Latest Studio Album 'Blues Deluxe Vol. 2' With Epic Original Track, "Is It Safe To Go Home"

Long-awaited New Album Out Today Honours 20 Years of Iconic Blues Mastery

Order Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 and Collector’s Edition Blue Vinyl HERE
Watch The Official Music Video NOW
Stream/Listen To The NEW ALBUM

Order Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 from the UK and Europe HERE

Order Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 & Limited-Edition Box Set from the USA HERE

“It’s a bloody fine album, showing just how far Joe Bonamassa has come, and how well he treats great heritage songs. - Music News: 5 Stars

 “Joe Bonamassa is the king of modern blues.” – Guitarist Magazine: 9/10

“With quality like this, Joe Bonamassa can do no wrong.” 

- Powerplay Magazine, 10/10

Today, the 26x Billboard chart-topper Joe Bonamassa has released Blues Deluxe Vol. 2, his new studio album, out today via his own J&R Adventures. In celebration of this landmark release, which marks 20 years since his first independent album, Bonamassa has unveiled the project’s latest single "Is It Safe To Go Home,” a standout from the album, crafted by producer Josh Smith.

"I wrote 'Is It Safe To Go Home' specifically for this project and for Joe,” Smith recalls. “I can't believe what he did with it. The vocal and solo are some of his best work (in fact, he hits the highest vocal note he ever has on record), and it's just an absolutely epic performance and arrangement."

Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 revisits and pays homage to Bonamassa's musical roots, offering listeners fresh takes on classic blues tracks that have shaped his journey. The album boasts two new originals and eight covers, honoring legendary names in blues, from Bobby “Blue” Bland to Albert King. Both Vol. 2 and Blues Deluxe Remastered are available on 180 Gram vinyl, with the former as a gorgeous translucent blue color for collectors.

Reflecting on his growth as a musician, Bonamassa says, “Part of my approach to these new recordings was that I wanted to see if I had matured musically over the years, and if I had gotten better as a player. I’m happy to say that I am a much better singer than I was 20 years ago - though I still don’t really consider myself to be a legit ‘singer,’ I can now carry a tune a little better than I could back then.”

Among the album's treasures is "Hope You Realize It (Goodbye Again)," another original collaboration between Bonamassa and Tom Hambridge. "This is a song that I wrote with Tom Hambridge, and we did a real Tower Of Power treatment on it," Bonamassa recalls. "Twenty-Four Hour Blues," a fiery reinterpretation of Bobby “Blue” Bland’s iconic track from the Dreamer album, boasts one of Bonamassa’s most potent vocal and guitar performances to date, while "Well, I Done Got Over It” pays tribute to Guitar Slim's 1953 release, and "Lazy Poker Blues" rejuvenates the classic song originally performed by Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac.

Featuring Reese Wynans (keys), Calvin Turner (bass), Lamar Carter (drums), Kirk Fletcher (guitar), and Josh Smith (guitar), additional highlights from Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 include “I Want To Shout About It,” originally performed by Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters and “It’s Hard But It’s Fair” by Bobby Parker.

“I knew I wanted to push him really hard vocally,” Smith adds. “I'd heard him sing things just messing around or when we'd be producing for other artists that I'd never heard him do on record. So the songs were both chosen and written with that in mind. If you listen to the vocals on "Twenty-Four Hour Blues" and "Is It Safe To Go Home,” you'll hear Joe really going for it.”

Following an extensive summer run that included his debut appearance at the Hollywood Bowl, which was recorded for his next live concert film, the hardest working bluesman in show business will begin his U.S. Fall Tour on October 23rd at The Cannon Center in Memphis, TN, before crisscrossing the country and capping the year at the guitar-shaped Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, FL on December 2nd.

Bonamassa’s spring 2024 tour will include performances in historic venues like the Count Basie Center For The Arts in Red Bank, NJ on February 23rd and the Saenger Theatre in Pensacola, FL on March 7th, before culminating with the sold out Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea IX, set for March 18-24, departing from Miami, Florida to Cozumel, Mexico. The festival line-up includes Grace Potter, The Marshall Tucker Band, John Oates, Jimmy Vivino, King King, and a special performance by Black Country Communion, Bonamassa’s supergroup with Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH), Jason Bonham (LED ZEPPELIN) and Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER, ALICE COOPER, BILLY IDOL). KTBA at Sea is one of the largest fundraisers for Bonamassa’s Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation, aiding in its mission to promote music education by providing grants and resources to schools and musicians in need.

Cited by Guitar World as “arguably the world’s biggest blues guitarist,” Bonamassa is known for taking risks and venturing into uncharted territory throughout his wide-ranging career. His last recent full-length Time Clocks marked his most raw, rocking studio album yet, with American Songwriter sharing, “Bonamassa pushes into fresh territory while staying within a blues-based framework,” and “there is more than enough proof in this sprawling set that Bonamassa doesn’t intend to rest on his laurels or take his star status in the blues-rock genre for granted.”

 

Blues Deluxe Vol. 2 by Joe Bonamassa

1. Twenty-Four Hour Blues (originally performed by Bobby “Blue” Bland)

2. It’s Hard But It’s Fair (originally performed by Bobby Parker)

3. Well, I Done Got Over It (originally performed by Guitar Slim)

4. I Want to Shout About It (originally performed by Ronnie Earle & The Broadcasters)

5. Win-O (originally performed by Pee Wee Crayton)

6. Hope You Realize It (Goodbye Again) *original song written by Joe Bonamassa & Tom Hambridge

7. Lazy Poker Blues (originally performed by Fleetwood Mac)

8. You Sure Drive a Hard Bargain (originally performed by Albert King)

9. The Truth Hurts Feat Kirk Fletcher and Josh Smith (originally performed by Kenny Neal)

10. Is It Safe To Go Home *original song written by Josh Smith

 

Blues Deluxe Remastered by Joe Bonamassa

1. You Upset Me Baby

2. Burning Hell

3. Blues Deluxe

4. Man Of Many Words

5. Woke Up Dreaming

6. I Don’t Live Any Where

7. Wild About You Baby

8. Long Distance Blues

9. Pack It Up

10. Left Overs

11. Walking Blues

12. Mumbling Word

 

Fall 2023 U.S. Tour

October 23 – Memphis, TN – The Cannon Center                                

October 25 – Shreveport, LA – Shreveport Municipal Auditorium

October 27 – San Antonio, TX – Majestic Theatre                                          

October 28 – Sugar Land, TX – Smart Financial Centre At Sugar Land

October 29 – Austin, TX – ACL Live

November 1 – Fayetteville, AR – Walton Arts Center                                  

November 3 – Little Rock, AR – Robinson Performance Hall                               

November 4 – Grand Prairie, TX – Texas Trust CU Theatre

November 5 – Oklahoma City, OK – Civic Center Music Hall

November 8 – Tulsa, OK – Tulsa Theater

November 10 – Kansas City, MO – The Midland Theatre

November 11 – St. Louis, MO – The Fabulous Fox

November 12 – Cedar Rapids, IA – Paramount Theatre

November 14 – Rochester, MN – Mayo Civic Center         

November 15 – Rockford, IL – Coronado Performing Arts Center

November 17 – Fort Wayne, IN – Embassy Theatre

November 18 – Detroit, MI – Fox Theatre

November 19 – Columbus, OH – Palace Theatre

November 21 – Reading, PA – The Santander Performing Arts Center

November 22 – Providence, RI – Providence Performance Arts Center

November 24 – Springfield, MA – Symphony Hall

November 25 – Baltimore, MD – The Lyric

November 28 – Savannah, GA – Johnny Mercer Theatre

November 30 – Sarasota, FL – Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall

December 1 – Estero, FL – Hertz Arena

December 2 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live

Spring 2024 U.S. Tour

February 19 - Louisville, KY - The Louisville Palace

February 21 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre

February 23 - Red Bank, NJ - Count Basie Center For The Arts

February 24 - Oxon Hill, MD - The Theater at MGM National Harbor

February 25 - Durham, NC - DPAC

February 27 - Columbia, SC - Township Auditorium

February 29 - Virginia Beach, VA - The Sandler Center

March 1 - Roanoke, VA - Berglund Center

March 2 - Cincinnati, OH - Taft Theatre

March 4 - Richmond, VA - Altria Theater

March 5 - Knoxville, TN - Knoxville Civic Auditorium

March 7 - Pensacola, FL - Saenger Theatre

March 8 - Biloxi, MS - Beau Rivage

March 9 - Biloxi, MS - Beau Rivage

March 11 - Huntsville, AL - VBC Mark C. Smith Concert Hall

March 12 - Greenville, SC - Peace Center

March 14 - Macon, GA - Macon City Auditorium

March 15 - Orlando, FL - Dr. Phillips Center

March 16 - Clearwater, FL - The Sound

March 18-24 - Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea IX - Miami, FL to Cozumel, Mexico

April 2024 UK Concerts

April 4 – London, The Royal Albert Hall

April 5 – London, The Royal Albert Hall

Blues artist Joe Bonamassa
Photo by Christie Goodwin

 

ABOUT JOE BONAMASSA

Blues-rock superstar Joe Bonamassa is one of the most celebrated performing musicians of today. As a three-time GRAMMY-nominated artist and 13x Blues Music Award Nominee (4 wins), he achieved his 26th No. 1 album on the Billboard Blues Chart with Tales Of Time, a sprawling and expansive live concert film and album, shot at the breathtaking Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado in August 2022. Only in his mid-40s, Bonamassa has become a living legend with an astounding multi-genre catalog. He has released more than 40 albums, including studio and live recordings, as well as collaborative albums with his adventurous side projects: Black Country Communion and Rock Candy Funk Party.

A prolific writer who is always on the hunt to expand his eclectic musical horizons, Bonamassa has a limitless work ethic whether it’s in a studio, on the road, or working with other artists to spur new music. In recent years, he has produced an immense number of albums including Joanne Shaw Taylor, Marc Broussard, Larry McCray, Jimmy Hall and others for his independent label KTBA Records, and has also recently launched Journeyman LLC, a full-service artist management, record label, concert promotion, and marketing company that builds awareness for independent artists worldwide. Recent producing highlights include ‘Crown’ by the blues legend Eric Gales, which was nominated for “Best Contemporary Blues Album” at the 2023 GRAMMY Awards.

Bonamassa has been featured in several publications from Esquire, WSJ, and Parade to Rolling Stone and American Songwriter, as well as on the covers of Guitar World, Guitar Player, Vintage Guitar, Guitarist, and Classic Rock Magazine. His non-profit Keeping The Blues Alive provides funds and resources to schools and artists in need and has positively impacted more than 91k students to date while raising over 2 million in donations.


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