ROCK & ROLL LEGEND IAN HUNTER ASSEMBLES HISTORIC LINEUP FOR NEW STAR-STUDDED ALBUM – “DEFIANCE PART 1”

Rock ‘n’ roll legend Ian Hunter has announced the release of his landmark new album, DEFIANCE PART 1, arriving via the Sun Records label on Friday, April 21, 2023. Pre-orders are available now HERE.

Easily among the most star-studded original albums ever recorded, DEFIANCE PART 1 sees Hunter joined by the late, great Jeff Beck, Johnny Depp, Joe Elliott (Def Leppard), Billy F Gibbons (ZZ Top), Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters), Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses), Todd Rundgren, Slash (Guns N’ Roses), Jeff Tweedy (Wilco), Robert Trujillo (Metallica), Waddy Wachtel (Stevie Nicks, Keith Richards), Brad Whitford (Aerosmith), Dane Clark (John Mellencamp), Billy Bob Thornton & J.D. Andrew (The Boxmasters) and Dean DeLeo, Robert De Leo & Eric Kretz (Stone Temple Pilots).   DEFIANCE PART 1 is heralded by today’s premiere of the nostalgic first single, “Bed Of Roses,” featuring guitarist Mike Campbell (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Fleetwood Mac) and drums by Ringo Starr, available today at all DSPs and streaming services. An official music video for “Bed Of Roses” premieres today on YouTube.

“It was a fluke,” Ian Hunter says. “This was not planned. Really, I’m serious. I really couldn’t believe some of them. I mean, it’s amazing what’s happened. It’s been such a buzz.”

Now in its seventh decade, Ian Hunter’s illustrious career has long been marked by collaboration, from the golden age of Mott the Hoople to his fabled partnership with Mick Ronson and 21^st century renaissance with his crack backing combo, the Rant Band. Now, with DEFIANCE PART 1, the legendary singer-songwriter, author, and rock ‘n’ roll star takes creative solidarity to an unprecedented new level with spectacular accompaniment from a truly awe-inspiring roster of special guests, famous fans, and lifelong friends.

The album first came together in early 2020 with the dawn of the pandemic era. An inveterate hard worker, Hunter took the lockdown as a creative opportunity, writing a series of new songs which he tracked in his Connecticut basement alongside his longtime collaborator, guitarist/producer/multi-instrumentalist Andy York. Working with little more than a computer, guitar, V5 piano, and “a very small keyboard,” Hunter and York created a collection of bare bones demos but with quarantine rules still in effect, were unable to flesh them out further by hitting the studio with the Rant Band. Manager Mike Kobayashi and renowned rock ‘n’ roll photographer Ross Halfin suggested reaching out to some of Hunter’s fellow legends who might perhaps use some of their own lockdown to contribute a track or two. To Hunter’s delight, the project quickly escalated, with a galaxy of stars clamoring to be involved. With time on their hands due the pandemic, his fellow musicians took the demos and stems that Hunter and York put together in his basement and added unforeseen power and creativity through their own trademark talents.

“Everybody’s sitting around,” says Hunter. “It’s Covid. Nobody’s going anywhere. We started sending them out. Slash started doing something. Robert Trujillo from Metallica. Ringo Starr, Mike Campbell. Joe Elliott is on a few tracks. Johnny Depp said ‘Jeff Beck’s with me and we’d like to do a couple of songs.’ I know Todd Rundgren, I toured with Todd way back, he’s done an amazing job. Billy Gibbons. Billy Bob Thornton and JD Andrew from The Boxmasters. It’s never ending. I mean, every day we’d get a phone call, this guy wants to do it, that guy wants to do it. It was like, I can’t believe this.”

Despite its genesis during the pandemic, DEFIANCE PART 1 is remarkably upbeat, ablaze with the life-affirming energy and unbridled passion that has marked Hunter’s music since the start. Indeed, “Pavlov’s Dog” is Hunter at his ferocious best, a snarling rocker featuring the surviving members of Stone Temple Pilots – brothers Dean DeLeo (guitar) and Robert DeLeo (bass) and Eric Kretz (drums). Songs like “I Hate Hate” and the album’s rebellious title track – the latter showcasing the one and only Slash on guitar with Metallica’s Robert Trujillo carrying the groove using the late Jaco Pastorius’ signature fretless bass, the same instrument played by the legendary jazz musician on Hunter’s groundbreaking second solo album, 1975’s ALL AMERICAN ALIEN BOY – offer indisputable evidence that Hunter’s voice remains as uncompromising and provocative as ever before.

Having spent the better part of two years on the project, Hunter isn’t done yet. As its title promises, DEFIANCE PART 1 will be followed by the arrival of DEFIANCE PART 2. The second chapter will feature an equally stunning range of special guests while projecting an entirely different thematic approach and songwriting aesthetic.

With the wind at his back, Ian Hunter has somehow managed to pull off something impossible. DEFIANCE PART 1 is a full-speed-ahead rock ‘n’ roll record rarely heard in this day and age, recorded with a crew of irrefutable rock ‘n’ roll all-stars and released on the definitive rock ‘n’ roll label.

“There are a lot of reasons for calling this album DEFIANCE,” says Ian Hunter. “It’s like, people my age shouldn’t be making records, blah, blah, blah. But we’ve still got a bit left.”

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IAN HUNTER

DEFIANCE PART 1

(Sun Records)

Release Date: Friday, April 21

TRACKLIST

1. Defiance

Dane Clark: Drums

Robert Trujillo: Bass

Slash: Electric, Rhythm and Lead Guitars

Dennis Dibrizzi: Background Vocal

Andy York: Background Vocal

Ian Hunter: Electric Guitar

2. Bed Of Roses

Ringo Starr: Drums

Tony Shanahan: Bass

Mike Campbell: Acoustic and Electric Rhythm Guitars, Slide Guitar, Mandolin

Andy Burton: Organ

Rich Pagano: Tambourine

Andy York: Background Vocals

Ian Hunter: Piano

3. No Hard Feelings

Dane Clark: Drums and Percussion

Johnny Depp: Acoustic and Electric Rhythm Guitars, Slide Guitar, Background Vocals

Jeff Beck: Lead Guitar

Andy York: Electric Guitar, Bass

Ian Hunter: Piano

4. Pavlov’s Dog

Eric Kretz: Drums

Dean DeLeo: Electric Rhythm and Lead Guitars, Acoustic Guitar, Slide Guitar

Robert DeLeo: Bass

Dennis Dibrizzi: Background Vocal

Andy York: Background Vocal, Maracas

Ian Hunter: Piano

5. Don’t Tread On Me

Rich Pagano: Drums, Congas, Percussion

Todd Rundgren: Rhythm and Lead Electric Guitars, Background Vocals

Andy Burton: Organ

Andy York: Bass

Ian Hunter: Piano

6. Guernica

Dane Clark: Drums and Percussion

Mike Campbell: Electric Rhythm and Lead Guitars

Joe Elliott: Background Vocals

Andy Burton: Harmonium

Andy York: Bass, Baritone Guitar, Background Vocal

Ian Hunter: Piano

7. I Hate Hate

Dane Clark: Drums

Andy Burton: Keyboards

Dennis Dibrizzi: Background Vocals

Andy York: Baritone Guitar, Tambourine, Background Vocals

Ian Hunter: Piano

8. Angel

Taylor Hawkins: Drums, Electric Guitars, Electric Piano, Background Vocals

Duff McKagan: Bass

Brad Whitford: Slide Guitar

Waddy Wachtel: 12-String Acoustic Guitar, Lead Electric Guitars

Ian Hunter: Piano

9. Kiss N’Make Up

Taylor Hawkins: Drums

Billy Bob Thornton: Percussion, Lead and Backup Vocals

Billy F Gibbons: Electric, Rhythm and Lead Guitars

J.D. Andrew: Bass

James Mastro: Electric Guitar

Rich Pagano: Congas

Andy Burton: Keyboards, Vibes

10. This Is What I’m Here For

Taylor Hawkins: Drums

Waddy Wachtel: Electric Rhythm and Lead Guitars

Joe Elliott: Background Vocals

Paul Page: Bass

Andy Burton: Organ

Andy York: Baritone Guitar

Ian Hunter: Piano

11. I Hate Hate (Alternate Version)

Dane Clark: Drums

Jeff Tweedy: Electric Guitars and Bass

Andy Burton: Keyboard

Dennis Dibrizzi: Background Vocal

Andy Burton: Organ

Andy York: Tambourine and Background Vocal

Ian Hunter: Piano

All Songs Written By Ian Hunter

Produced By Andy York and Ian Hunter

Mixed By James Frazee

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