John Smith

Turning Pirate Presents :

JOHN SMITH + friends

October 22nd, 2022

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John Smith Reimagines Songs From His Critically-Acclaimed Album The Fray With The Help Of Composer Steven Price On The Fray Variations

EP out March 18th; Hear The Fray Variations version of “To The Shore” today

February 25, 2022 - Nashville, TN - When John Smith assembled his most recent album The Fray, his guiding principle of “less is more” took over, leading the singer/songwriter and revered guitarist to leave a few very special ideas on the cutting room floor. The end result was stunning, capturing the perfect intimacy for which Smith was aiming. However, it meant recording strings with Emmy, BAFTA, and Academy Award-winning film composer Steven Price was shelved - and would remain a dream. “When the album was mixed and mastered, I couldn’t help but imagine a set of recordings presented even more intimately, as chamber pieces for string quartet. No backing vocals, no lead guitar overdubs. It kept me up at night,” recalls Smith.

Following the muse, Smith, Price, and a string quartet entered the famed Abbey Road Studios to reimagine five songs from The Fray—including “Star-Crossed Lovers” with Lisa Hannigan—and a sixth, new track, “Dartmouth Ferry,” dedicated to Smith’s father. “[Price] took [the songs] and pulled them apart, stitching them back together in ways I could not have,” says Smith about their time at Abbey Road. “What an experience, to collaborate with someone at his level working purely for the love of the song. It blew me away.”

Today, Smith released “To The Shore” from the upcoming, aptly-titled EP The Fray Variations. Trading rolling drum parts and lush stacks of harmony vocals for warm string melodies and chords. Fans can hear “To The Shore” from The Fray Variations now at this link and pre-order or pre-save the EP ahead of its March 18th release right here.

The Fray Variations session wasn’t the first time Smith and Price found themselves in a recording studio together. “Steven Price is someone I have admired for a long time,” says Smith. “I have been fortunate to work with him on several of his film scores, lending vocals and guitars to such films as Fury and Ophelia.” He is a beautiful arranger whose taste and phrasing evokes George Martin & Robert Kirby. There is a profound Englishness at work there. I am aware of him conjuring the sensation we musicians most strive for: a connection to the unknown, the intangible. That blurred layer of unreality in which music plays upon our most primal sensibilities.”

Smith just finished up a run of U.S. tour dates but will be heading out again for a run through Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and more before heading back to the UK in March. For more information, including a full list of tour dates and how to purchase tickets, please visit johnsmithjohnsmith.com.

The Fray Variations Tracklist:

One Day at a Time

The Fray

To The Shore

Star-Crossed Lovers (feat. Lisa Hannigan)

Sanctuary

Dartmouth Ferry

About The Fray: On John Smith’s sixth studio album The Fray, his vulnerability is unadorned. “It’s been a hell of a year, but I feel I’ve created my most honest work as a result, and as a necessity,” he says. “A lot of these songs are about accepting that life is hard, but just holding on and trying to enjoy it anyway.” Smith’s stubborn optimism in tough circumstances shines through on the title track, in which he sings “Holding onto hope / I don’t need a decent reason / Yes and though it disappears sometimes / It returns with every season.”

With 2 UK Americana Award Nominations, placements in the UK and International year end Folk Charts, 10 weeks on the US Americana Top 50 chart, strong coverage by the Associated Press, Mojo, Sunday Times, No Depression, Guitar Magazine, and The Fretboard Journal, and over 6.8 million streams on Spotify so far, The Fray is one of John’s most successful and critically acclaimed albums.

Smith co-produced The Fray with long-time friend and producer Sam Lakeman. They recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studio, with pianist Jason Rebello (Sting, John Mayer), bass player Ben Nicholls (Seth Lakeman, Nadine Shah), Drummer Jay Sikora (Paolo Nutini), and Jessica Staveley-Taylor of The Staves. The album is a true reflection of the times, with American collaborators Sarah Jarosz, Courtney Hartman, The Milk Carton Kids, and Bill Frisell recording remotely and sending contributions over international borders. Lisa Hannigan contributed via a virtual studio session in Dublin. Smith co-wrote a couple of songs for the album whilst on tour before the pandemic. Driving a rental car from Asheville to Nashville, John stopped to write the standout track ‘Eye to Eye’ with North Carolina-based Sarah Siskind. The Americana influence is a thread throughout the album that beautifully complements Smith’s unmistakable British Folk roots.

About John Smith: John Smith was born in Essex and raised on the Devon seaside. Known for his intimate songwriting, his honey-on-gravel voice, and pioneering guitar playing, he has spent the last fifteen years touring internationally and has amassed over 40 million streams on Spotify. As a session musician, he has played guitar with artists as diverse as Joan Baez, David Gray, Joe Henry, Lianne La Havas, and Tom Jones.

### Media Contact: IVPR/Maria Ivey, maria@ivpr.com