Joe Walsh’s ‘Prayers’: New Recordings Like You’ve Never Heard Him
by Best Classic Bands Staff
Joe Walsh (Photo: Myram Santos; used with permission)
Joe Walsh has released a three-song EP titled Prayers, featuring a collaboration with preeminent classical Sarod virtuoso and composer Amjad Ali Khan. The surprise release was issued on June 4, 2021, via Universal Music India.
From the announcement: The two first met while the multi-Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter and producer was visiting India. After playing together at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai (at the suggestion of Amjad’s son), Walsh invited them all, Amjad and his two sons, to come to Los Angeles and record with him to see what they could create together. The Prayers EP is the result of the second of those sessions, which took place in Walsh’s home studio in Los Angeles during 2020. In addition to the Khans – Amjad and his sons Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash – the recordings feature some of Walsh’s friends and members of the Los Angeles music community including Jim Keltner (percussion), Davey Johnstone (guitar), Michael Thompson (keyboards), Nathan East (bass), Stewart Copeland (percussion), Joe Vitale (keyboards), Abe Loboriel (bass) and Lee Sklar (bass).
Listen to “Hope (We Shall Overcome)”
“The time I spend in India is always transformative,” Walsh says. “My first visit delivered ‘India’ which was on Analog Man. [Listen to that below.] Subsequent visits stirred within me a deeper curiosity for Indian instruments and their music. In spending time with the maestro, himself, Amjad, I was excited to see how my instrument and his could work together. We were both blown away. It was one of my life’s most treasured experiences. It was as if our souls united in a symphony of shared love for music in its purest form. The music we created was stronger than our individual abilities. It was a spiritual experience to play with the Khans. Everyone there in those sessions was elevated as a result of this collaboration and that’s why we play music. It’s those moments we chase as musicians.”
More from the announcement: These three songs, “Healing Love”, “Goddess” and “Hope (We Shall Overcome)” are the discourse between their instruments, a kind of meditative exploration on the nature of sonoral divinity, drawing from the great unique treasures of their own artistic traditions, as well as finding common ground at both the cellular and cosmic levels of two musical traditions, which are often held to be radically different. Through this process of creating and recording, their aim was to preserve the essence of musical traditions that flow into each other without artistic compromise.
Listen to “Healing Love”
“By the time I got to work on these tracks in the studio we were in complete lockdown pandemic mode,” adds Walsh. “The more time I spent with this music the clearer it became that these tracks had healing properties and needed to be shared as a gift.”
Listen to “Goddess”
Walsh is donating his proceeds to IntraHealth International in honor of all the frontline workers who continue to offer incredible service and courage during these challenging times.
Listen to Walsh’s earlier recording, “India”
Related: Our interview with Walsh on paying it back to veterans
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3 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationAfter hearing the tracks, one understands why Joe Walsh got inspired to produce the songs. Transport you to another relaxed and peaceful level. Great ! it seems to me that Joe Walsh has a lot of new music inside him, The best might be yet to come.
True that!
Joe Walsh has always inspired me, he has no boundaries, Coming down, Barnstorm, fabulous ballad, Pretty Maids all in a row…Bob Dylan’s favorite song….Yes Mr. Walsh, luv u Man