Gerry Beckley, the illustrious singer, songwriter, performer and co-founder of the legendary group America, is about to release his fourth album for Blue Élan Records, Dawnon June 17, 2022. The first single, “Friends are Hard to Find”, is available today on all streaming services. Dawn is both a throwback to some of Beckley’s original influences – among them the Beatles’ triple Killer B’s, the Beach Boys, the Bee Gees, with Chicago thrown into the mix – as well as a fresh start, a clean slate to go forward coming on the heels of last year’s critically and fan acclaimed greatest hits album, Keeping the Light On: The Best of Gerry Beckley.
Recorded during the pandemic at Beckley’s two home studios at its dual bases in Sydney, Australia, and Venice, California, Dawn is an introspective album that takes stock of his life – past, present and future. The lead single, “Friends are Hard to Find”, seeks to relieve the isolation we’ve all felt for the past nearly two years, with a hopeful party atmosphere, cheers and crowds to offer. the respite that music can provide in times of stress. Gerry credits having channeled the spontaneous creativity of his good friend, prolific songwriter Jimmy Webb.
“It’s a moment of great reflection, whether we like it or not,” he says. “If we treat this pandemic as the lesson it could and should be, it could be a moment of great growth, because even with the immense challenges we face, there is still hope.”
As befits her simultaneous look back and forth, Aurora’s songs include “old and new”, unfinished demos and scratch recordings dating back to the mid-’70s, as well as “started from scratch” tracks. over the past two years. . The new song “Tickets to the Past” marks the first time Beckley has co-written a song with her longtime US partner Dewey Bunnell and it appears on a non-US album. With America, which still does over 100 live dates a year, unable to fully tour for the past two years, Beckley has turned to “my main hobby”, writing and recording nearly 40 tracks, reduced to the 11 included on the album.
Sequenced like a traditional vinyl album, with side 1 and 2, Aurora is the work of a lifelong performer who has never stopped growing, personally and creatively, with a beginning, middle and end.
“When you hold a mirror up to your life, it’s hard to control how much of your life is in that reflection,” he says. “I don’t want to say it’s about one thing in particular, I prefer to leave it more open.”
Dawn List of tracks:
1. Aurora
2. I fall
3. Never know why
4. Tickets to the past
5. Way to go
6. Friends are hard to find
7. Peace of mind
8. The Indy Gatho
9. Aerial
10. Superrange
11. Tears
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