Long Distance by James Beckwith

James Beckwith released his debut album "Long Distance" on July 17th, 2020 to much anticipation. Inspired by the long-distance relationship between London and Montreal with his partner, the album travels space and time through a multiverse of musical styles and influences. Hancock-esque vocoder melodies permeate throughout the album, exploring lyrics relating to absence, yearning, and love. Acoustic piano and digital synthesizers move the listener from past to present to future. A tune that constantly accelerates with a pulsating Tanpura drone (SAAD), to drum 'n' bass breakbeats (With You), to an afrobeat-jazz cover of Pink Floyd's "Money"; this album reflects the influences and crossroads of a modern-day London, and a modern-day composer.

Collaborations are made with two of London's most dynamic saxophonists: Chelsea Carmichael and Alex Hitchcock, marking their signature sounds on their tracks. Bassist Joe Downard and drummer Harry Pope's effortless grooves over most tracks give the album a rock-solid foundation, while Zoe Kypri's haunting vocals melt over several songs. Tributes are paid to two artists which signify strong parts of James's upbringing: "Money" by Pink Floyd near where James was born and raised, to "All Yours" by Submotion Orchestra when James came of age in Leeds, England. Two singles were released from the record: "Long Distance" and "SAAD (Synthesizer, Accelerando And Drone)".

A graduate of Leeds College of Music and Trinity Laban Conservatoire, James is a sought after musician in the London music scene, and has performed and collaborated with musicians such as Nubya Garcia, Sharky, Yazmin Lacey, Judi Jackson, Alex Hitchcock, SEED Ensemble, Cherise and others. James films and edits many of his own music videos, and has created videos from parodies (Her Name Is Covid), to artistic time-lapses and animations. His Youtube channel features these, so subscribe for more content! And, hi! You made it this far :)

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Website: https://www.jamesbeckwith.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamesbeckwith
Bandcamp: https://jamesbeckwith.bandcamp.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamesbeckwithmusic

Tracklist

1.	Intro	1:00

2.	Topimpa	7:52

3.	Retro Machines	6:02

4.	Long Distance	6:24

5.	Things We Do (Interlude)	3:18

6.	With You	8:45

7.	Money	7:15

8.	Night City (Interlude)	2:34

9.	SAAD	5:31

10.	All Yours	7:01

11.	With You (Live Sesh)	4:51

12.	Long Distance (Remix)	5:39

Credits

released July 17, 2020

Artwork by Harmo: www.instagram.com/ha.rmo
All music & lyrics by James Beckwith except "Money" and "All Yours".
All tracks produced by James Beckwith.

James Beckwith - Piano/Rhodes/Hammond
Organ/Percussion/Synthesizer/Synth Bass/Vocoder (All tracks)
Zoe Kypri - Vocals (Tracks 2, 9 & 10)
Chelsea Carmichael - Tenor Saxophone (Track 6)
Alex Hitchcock - Tenor Saxophone (Tracks 3 & 10)
Joe Downard - Bass/Synth Bass (All tracks except 1, 5, 8 & 11)
AJ Brinkman - Synth Bass (Track 5)
Harry Pope - Drums/SPD (All tracks except 1, 5, 8, 11 & 12)
Will Harvey, Olivia Holland, Dan Oates - Violin (Track 4)
Lizzie Boyce, Pippa Bint - Viola (Track 4)
Greg Duggan - Cello (Track 4)

Recording engineer: Matt Jaggar (All tracks except 1, 5, 8, & 11)
Mixed by James Beckwith (Tracks 1, 8, 11 & 12)
Mixed by Guy Speakman (All tracks except 1, 8, 11 & 12)
Mastered by Paul Jones (All tracks)

Recorded at Fish Factory Studios & Royal Hill Studio
Produced at Royal Hill Studio
Mixed at Speakman Sound Studio & Royal Hill Studio
Mastered at Mutate Music

"Money" music by Roger Waters; originally performed by Pink Floyd
"All Yours" music by Tommy Evans, Ed Thomas & Taz Modi; originally performed by Submotion Orchestra

--------------

Thanks to Pippa Bint, Lizzie Boyce, AJ Brinkman, Chelsea Carmichael, Joe Downard, Greg Duggan, David Dyson, Fish Factory Studios, Simone Gallizio, Will Harvey, Alex Hitchcock, Olivia Holland, Harmonie Imperiale, Matt Jaggar, Paul Jones, Zoe Kypri, Dan Oates, Harry Pope, Kathleen Shah, Guy Speakman, Todd Speakman and Alex Watson.

License