Joe Walsh Previews New Music, Jams With Jeff Lynne And Ringo Starr During Private L.A. Performance
After previewing a bit of new music during his solo tour this past fall, Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh turned it up several notches during a private performance at the Troubadour in Los Angeles last week.
Walsh and his six-piece band unveiled four new songs from his forthcoming ‘Analog Man’ album during the Troubadour performance, including the title track, ‘Wrecking Ball’ (which we were lucky enough to see for ourselves here in Cleveland), ‘(I’m Just) Lucky That Way’ and an instrumental called ‘India.’
The show was a bit of a ‘Storytellers’-type evening, with Walsh sharing tales about his musical exploits both past and present. Speaking about ‘India,’ Walsh quipped, “I wanted to name it ‘The Sound of Irving’, like the ‘Sound of Music’ because he [Walsh's legendary manager Irving Azoff] said ‘you have to have an instrumental.’ I told him (the title) and he said ‘that’s stupid.’” And so that idea (if we’re to believe Walsh’s tale) became ‘India’ instead.
Album producer Jeff Lynne joined Walsh for two tracks during the set, which wrapped up with another guest – Walsh’s brother-in-law and famous Beatle, Ringo Starr, who came out to join in on ‘Rocky Mountain Way.’
In the midst of a crowd full of industry professionals that included a number of music supervisors and film and television executives, Walsh wisely catered his performance to fit the room. Billboard reports that he jokingly rattled off his lengthy list of credits – including a recent ESPN commercial — and pleaded “I’m starving, being in the Eagles,” no doubt making a strong case for ‘Turn To Stone’ to be featured in a future cement commercial.
Work on ‘Analog Man’ officially wrapped up last week when Walsh finished mastering the album. Once a distribution deal is finalized, it’s expected that the album will be released in May.
Walsh will make a high profile television appearance in the meantime, as he is a recently announced late addition to the parade of artists that will perform this weekend at the Grammy Awards.