Bonnie Raitt and her band return to NZ in April 2013
Slipstream, released in 2012, is the 9-time Grammy Award winning artist’s 19th Album that marked her return to the studio for the first time in 7 years and a 2-year break from touring. Currently near the end of her 80+ Date Tour of North America the multi award winning master of rock and blues looks forward to returning to NZ for the first time since 2007, with four concerts in April 2013.
Christchurch - Friday April 5 CBS Arena (Part of the NZ Jazz & Blues Festival)
Matakana - Sunday April 7 Ascension Wine Estate
Wellington - Wednesday April 10 TSB Bank Arena
Hamilton - Friday April 12 Claudelands Arena
There's no doubt that Raitt is re-energized. Yahoo! Music proclaimed "the hippest thing an artist can do these days is cover Bonnie Raitt,". She has become a touchstone for young artists. Adele released a cover of 'I Can't Make You Love Me' in 2011 and Bon Iver's Justin Vernon called her "one of our greatest" artists during his medley of 'I Can't Make You Love Me' and 'Nick of Time' (on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.) In 2012 Rolling Stone Magazine affirmed Raitt's impact, highlighting the 'sheer verve and skill' that made her one of only two women among the '100 Greatest Guitarists' and also named Slipstream, one of the best albums released in 2012.
“The veteran singer-guitarist rocks a New York City crowd with classics, covers and plenty of new songs from her first album in years… “ - Hollywood Reporter June 21, 2012
"I’m as excited about playing these songs on the road as I was in the studio,” Raitt said. “And to have the jewels of these Dylan songs and the Joe Henry songs, is just a thrill for me, and reignited the passion I’ve always had for music and reinforced that connection I have with my band and how much I was born to do this. I’m as excited about this tour as I was the time I had my first album.”
“Raitt’s guitar playing, with a bit of sexy swagger, was exemplary. And her vocals are still emotionally powerful … as demonstrated by 'I Can’t Make You Love Me' that somehow sounded as if she was singing it for the first time…" - New York Post, June 21, 2012
Bonnie Raitt is more than a best-selling artist, respected guitarist, expressive singer, and accomplished songwriter, the 9-time Grammy winner is an American institution. A Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, has sold tens of millions of albums worldwide and undeniably changed the landscape of soul, rock, and blues. She is also a passionate activist and supporter of causes ranging from the anti-nuclear movement to youth music programs.
Slipstream is a very significant album for Raitt, who notes: "I'm so inspired and so proud to continue these traditions, whether it's reggae or soul or blues. I'm in the slipstream of those who came before me, and I'm leaving one for those behind me."
Slipstream, mostly self-produced by Raitt also includes four tracks produced by Grammy Award winning producer, Joe Henry. Her 16th studio album and the first released on her own independent label, Redwing Records, Slipstream marks the singer, songwriter and musician's return to the studio since 2005's Souls Alike.
The album was recorded with her longtime touring band and other top musicians such as Bill Frisell and features 12 tracks, including covers of Bob Dylan’s "Million Miles" and "Standing In The Doorway" and the first single "Right Down the Line," a cover of the hit song by the late Gerry Rafferty a Scottish singer- songwriter best known for his solo hits "Baker Street" and "Right Down the Line".
Born to a musical family, the album also represents her return to the music scene following the deaths of her parents, the celebrated Broadway singer John Raitt (Carousel, Oklahoma!, The Pajama Game) and accomplished pianist/singer Marge Goddard, as well as the loss of her late brother Steve.
“Raitt's gift for expressing emotions on a real, human scale is what makes her so beloved. On Slipstream, she takes on some of the hardest, and she doesn't fail us now.” - NPR
Rolling Stone Magazine’s Will Hermes wrote of Slipstream (April 10, 2012):
"Bonnie Raitt is such a class act it's easy to forget she's kind of a badass: Harvard African Studies major-turned-world-class-blueswoman, slide-guitar master, platinum pop star and a singer songwriter with interpretive skills so sharp she once turned 'Baby Mine,' the maternal lullaby from Dumbo, into a seduction. Slipstream, her first album in seven years and the first she has self released, is a loose and adventurous reminder of everything she does well”.
Tickets On Sale 9 a.m. Wednesday November 7 from Ticketek
