Expat classic rockers THE EXILES have joined forces with French label Bad Reputation Records for the release of their album ‘Turning Time’, which arrived yesterday on July 3.
Purchase the CD: https://badreputation.fr/THE-EXILES-TURNING-TIME
The album’s first single, ‘Rainmaker’, featuring Greg D’Angelo on drums, is streaming on the band’s Bandcamp page at https://theexilesuk.bandcamp.com/track/rainmaker-3
Formed by English guitarist Sean Manning, whose credits include stints with HURRICANE and QUIET RIOT offshoot, LITTLE WOMEN, and fellow Brit Paul Rafferty, the original vocalist for BONHAM, The Exiles were mainstays on the Southern California music scene in the early 1990s writing and recording a wealth of material and performing at venues such as the Troubadour, Whisky a Go Go, FM Station, and Club Lingerie.
After originally moving to Los Angeles, CA to accompany his close friend and newly minted DIO axeman, Rowan Robertson, and intending to study jazz, things changed when Manning was introduced to Rafferty by legendary local music journalist, Jon Sutherland. Discovering their mutual love for British blues rock and bands such as Free, Bad Company, Led Zeppelin, and Faces, the duo quickly formed a strong writing partnership and recruited Hollywood-based English bassist, Paul Andrew Stanley. After briefly utilizing the services of former WHITE LION/CITIES drummer, Greg D’Angelo, the line-up was completed with the addition of Terry Mascall, a young John Bonham-style pounder from Cambridge.
“The Exiles were quintessentially an English band, four English blokes living in Hollywood playing classic rock…. just as Nirvana and grunge hit the scene!”, laughs Manning. “Paul and I were writing constantly over the course of the year, often up at Franklin Canyon reservoir, which resulted in all these tunes on the ‘Turning Time’ album. It’s a pretty broad pallete from traditional rock to some soul and blues numbers. Heavy electric to acoustic and mandolin with orchestration. I was and still am a huge admirer of Jimmy Page’s use of light and shade in the Zeppelin compositions. That sort of approach was really inspirational to us.”
While the bulk of the material on ‘Turning Time’ was recorded by the classic Exiles line-up, engineered and mixed by brothers Ricky Delana (NAZARETH, KIX) and Eddie Delana (QUIET RIOT, RHINO BUCKET), Manning and Rafferty would also team up with PAT BENATAR alumni, drummer Myron Grombacher and bassist Frank Linx, on ‘Tearing Up A Storm’ and the album’s ferocious title track opener, helmed by Benatar guitarist, Neil Giraldo, at his Malibu studio. Album closers ‘High Old Times’ and ‘Carry You Home’, the latter with Richard Baker (SANTANA, GINO VANNELLI) on flute and keyboards, were cut with Roger Sommers (TESLA, RIVERDOGS) at Royaltone Studios in North Hollywood and feature Dave Salinas (KENNY LOGGINS, DON FELDER) on drums.
First released in a limited capacity in 1996 as SEAN MANNING & PAUL RAFFERTY – ‘The Exiles’, ‘Turning Time’ constitutes an extensive re-working of the original 10 songs and adds five previously unheard bonus tracks unearthed by Manning during the process of transferring old reels to digital, including the stirring ‘Soul Woman’, ‘Ain’t No Fool’, a hypnotic ROLLING STONES-esque number, and ‘Soul Has No Home’, conjuring shades of early ROD STEWART.
Working at Empire Sound studios in Dallas TX over the course of several months, Manning added guitars and backing vocals to most of the tracks and brought in veteran keyboardist, Jeff Jacobs, whose credits include FOREIGNER and BILLY JOEL, to add Hammond B3 organ, piano. as well as strings to the album’s majestic magnum opus, ‘Richmond Castle Walk’, a not so subtle nod to LED ZEPPELIN.
“I am extremely pleased with how everything turned out”, states Manning who produced the project and re-mixed the album, assisted by Empire Sound operator, Alex Gerst. “When we recorded these songs originally, they were just quality demos, but we really didn’t get the chance to fully flesh things out the way we would have under different circumstances. I am grateful ‘Turning Time’ has afforded me the opportunity to return to the studio one more time and create a whole new album in the process.”
‘Turning Time’ track list:
- Turning Time
- Rainmaker
- Soul Woman
- Tearing Up A Storm
- Ain’t No Fool
- Travelling Blues
- Friend
- Feminine Side
- Richmond Castle Walk
- Woman Let It Shine
- Mission Bell
- Soul Has No Home
- I’m The One
- High Old Times
- Carry You Home
Tracks 1, 4
Vocal – Paul Rafferty
All Guitars – Sean Manning
Harmonica – Sean Manning
Bass – Frank Linx
Drums – Myron Grombacher
Keys – Jeff Jacobs
Tracks 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
Vocal – Paul Rafferty
All Guitars – Sean Manning
Bass – Paul Andrew Stanley
Drums – Terry Mascall
Keys – Jeff Jacobs
Drums – Alex Gerst (“Ain’t No Fool”)
Harmonica – John Peyton (“T. Blues”)
Tracks 14, 15
Vocal – Paul Rafferty
All Guitars & Bass – Sean Manning
Drums – Dave Salinas
Keys – Richard Baker & Jeff Jacobs
Track 2
Vocal – Paul Rafferty
All Guitars – Sean Manning
Bass – Paul Andrew Stanley
Drums – Greg D’Angelo
Keys – Jeff Jacobs
Tracks 1 and 4 originally recorded by Neil Giraldo at Soul Kitchen in Malibu, CA. Additional guitar and keyboard tracks recorded by Alex Gerst ant Empire Sound in Dallas, TX.
Tracks 3, 5–13 originally recorded by Ricky & Eddie Delana at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA, and Cornerstone Recording, Chatsworth, CA. Additional guitar and keyboard tracks recorded by Alex Gerst at Empire Sound in Dallas, TX.
Tracks 14 and 15 originally recorded by Roger Sommers at Royaltone Studios, North Hollywood, CA. Additional guitar and keyboard tracks recorded by Alex Gerst at Empire Sound in Dallas, TX.
Track 2 originally recorded by Greg D’Angelo at D’Angelo Studios, Studio City, CA. Additional guitar and keyboard tracks recorded by Alex Gerst at Empire Sound in Dallas, TX
The Exiles online:
https://www.facebook.com/theexilesuk/
https://www.instagram.com/theexilesuk
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