COLIN HAY
''NEXT YEAR PEOPLE''
FEBRUARY 17 2015
43:08
1 Trying to Get to You 02:53
2 If I Had Been a Better Man 03:18
3 Did You Just Take the Long Way Home 03:39
4 I Want You Back 02:53
5 Next Year People 04:15
6 Lived in Vain 03:39
7 Scattered in the Sand 03:58
8 To There from Here 03:33
9 Mr. Grogan 03:32
10 Waiting in the Rain 04:02
11 Are We There Yet 03:47
12 Lament for Whisky McManus 03:31
ABOUT THE ALBUM
By compassrecords.com
Colin Hay's voice and visage are familiar to millions as front-man, songwriter, and vocalist of pop sensation Men at Work (“Down Under,” “Overkill,” “Who Can it Be Now?”). But over the past 15 years he has reinvented himself as a solo artist, regularly selling out theaters and listening rooms across the US and around the world and introducing himself to a new generation of fans in the process. The frequent use of his music in TV and film—including hit shows such as Scrubs (on which he has made several cameo appearances) Army Wives and Modern Family, the hit soundtrack to the film Garden State and the recently released Words and Pictures—has proven the timeless appeal of his songs.
NEXT YEAR PEOPLE is the work of an artist who is a true master of his craft. The album is full of quizzical, curious, cynical yet open hearted songs with catchy melodic hooks that underscore deeply insightful lyrics. Some of the songs are based on Colin’s personal experiences such as “Waiting in the Rain” written about his parents and the almost mystical experience he had growing up in a music shop in Scotland, surrounded by instruments and a constant stream of 50’s and 60’s radio hits. Others, according to Colin, “just appear from somewhere” such as “Mr. Grogan”, a dark study of a fictional character whom he has been developing over the years. The album’s title track, “Next Year People,” is a stand out composition—a stark but beautiful homage to the depression-era farmers who kept going by holding on to hope that next year would be better. “They kept doing the same thing and expecting a different result,” explains Colin. “I can relate, although their situation was so much more bleak.” The album was produced by Hay and mixed by Chad Fischer (Chasing Mavericks, Ice Age 3, Lisa Loeb) and includes contributions from two young Cuban musicians, San Miguel Perez and Yosmel Montejo as well Larry Goldings on piano, Jeff Babko (Jimmy Kimmel) on B3, and as Colin’s wife, vocalist Cecilia Noël.
“Hay has been attracting new fans with gentle, ruminative acoustic songs.” The New York Times
BIOGRAPHY
by Greg Prato/AMG
As the singer, guitarist, and main songwriter of Australia's Men at Work, Colin Hay was responsible for penning several of the quirkiest pop hits of the early '80s. Although he and his former band will forever be associated with "the land down under," Hay originally hailed from Scotland, where he was born in the town of Kilwinning on June 29, 1953. Hay relocated to Australia in 1967, by which time he had begun playing guitar and singing. Although the country is probably best known for spawning hard rock bands (AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, Radio Birdman, etc.), Hay sought to form a band that was more in line with the burgeoning new wave style, but one that also embraced pop. Shortly after joining up with guitarist Ron Strykert in 1978, Hay's master plan was realized, as Men at Work were formed. Rounding out the band was saxophonist/flutist Greg Ham, bassist John Rees, and drummer Jerry Speiser, who in 1982 issued their debut full-length, Business as Usual. Earning quite a few comparisons to then-reigning chart kings the Police, Men at Work quickly became MTV favorites (during the station's early days). Since he was the group's main singer and songwriter, Hay quickly became the focal point of the band, as such humorous videos for "Who Can It Be Now" and "Down Under" pushed the debut album to the top of the U.S. charts -- making Men at Work an overnight sensation. Perhaps sensing that they should strike again while they were still fresh in people's minds, Men at Work went directly back in the studio to work on another album. Issued in 1983, Cargo was another sizable hit, but did not fare nearly as well as its predecessor -- commercially or artistically.
Taking an extended break, Hay and company did not resurface again until 1985's Two Hearts, an unfocused recording that saw almost half of the band replaced. With the album's disappointing showing, Men at Work split up shortly thereafter. Hay embarked on a solo career, debuting in 1987 with Looking for Jack (the title of which supposedly referred to a brief encounter Hay had with actor Jack Nicholson), which once more failed to match the success of his early work with Men at Work. Hay continued to release solo material with regularity throughout the '90s, including such titles as 1990's Wayfaring Sons, 1992's Peaks & Valleys, 1994's Topanga, and 1998's Transcendental Highway. The same decade, Hay also launched his own record label, Lazy Eye Records, and sporadically acted in cult movies (which he had began doing the previous decade) and TV shows, including parts on such series as JAG, The Larry Sanders Show, and The Mick Molloy Show, among others. Hay continues to release albums and tour to this day. The first few years of the 21st century saw the release of a pair of recordings -- a new studio album in 2001, Going Somewhere, and a collection of re-recorded Men at Work and solo tracks in 2003 (Man at Work). Hay also toured with Ringo Starr in the summer of 2003, as part of the former Beatles drummer's annual All Starr Band. He issued Are You Lookin' at Me? in 2007 and American Sunshine in 2009, both of which were released on the Compass label. Two years later, Hay released his eleventh album Gathering Mercury.
OFFICIAL SITE
2 If I Had Been a Better Man 03:18
3 Did You Just Take the Long Way Home 03:39
4 I Want You Back 02:53
5 Next Year People 04:15
6 Lived in Vain 03:39
7 Scattered in the Sand 03:58
8 To There from Here 03:33
9 Mr. Grogan 03:32
10 Waiting in the Rain 04:02
11 Are We There Yet 03:47
12 Lament for Whisky McManus 03:31
ABOUT THE ALBUM
By compassrecords.com
Colin Hay's voice and visage are familiar to millions as front-man, songwriter, and vocalist of pop sensation Men at Work (“Down Under,” “Overkill,” “Who Can it Be Now?”). But over the past 15 years he has reinvented himself as a solo artist, regularly selling out theaters and listening rooms across the US and around the world and introducing himself to a new generation of fans in the process. The frequent use of his music in TV and film—including hit shows such as Scrubs (on which he has made several cameo appearances) Army Wives and Modern Family, the hit soundtrack to the film Garden State and the recently released Words and Pictures—has proven the timeless appeal of his songs.
NEXT YEAR PEOPLE is the work of an artist who is a true master of his craft. The album is full of quizzical, curious, cynical yet open hearted songs with catchy melodic hooks that underscore deeply insightful lyrics. Some of the songs are based on Colin’s personal experiences such as “Waiting in the Rain” written about his parents and the almost mystical experience he had growing up in a music shop in Scotland, surrounded by instruments and a constant stream of 50’s and 60’s radio hits. Others, according to Colin, “just appear from somewhere” such as “Mr. Grogan”, a dark study of a fictional character whom he has been developing over the years. The album’s title track, “Next Year People,” is a stand out composition—a stark but beautiful homage to the depression-era farmers who kept going by holding on to hope that next year would be better. “They kept doing the same thing and expecting a different result,” explains Colin. “I can relate, although their situation was so much more bleak.” The album was produced by Hay and mixed by Chad Fischer (Chasing Mavericks, Ice Age 3, Lisa Loeb) and includes contributions from two young Cuban musicians, San Miguel Perez and Yosmel Montejo as well Larry Goldings on piano, Jeff Babko (Jimmy Kimmel) on B3, and as Colin’s wife, vocalist Cecilia Noël.
“Hay has been attracting new fans with gentle, ruminative acoustic songs.” The New York Times
BIOGRAPHY
by Greg Prato/AMG
As the singer, guitarist, and main songwriter of Australia's Men at Work, Colin Hay was responsible for penning several of the quirkiest pop hits of the early '80s. Although he and his former band will forever be associated with "the land down under," Hay originally hailed from Scotland, where he was born in the town of Kilwinning on June 29, 1953. Hay relocated to Australia in 1967, by which time he had begun playing guitar and singing. Although the country is probably best known for spawning hard rock bands (AC/DC, Rose Tattoo, Radio Birdman, etc.), Hay sought to form a band that was more in line with the burgeoning new wave style, but one that also embraced pop. Shortly after joining up with guitarist Ron Strykert in 1978, Hay's master plan was realized, as Men at Work were formed. Rounding out the band was saxophonist/flutist Greg Ham, bassist John Rees, and drummer Jerry Speiser, who in 1982 issued their debut full-length, Business as Usual. Earning quite a few comparisons to then-reigning chart kings the Police, Men at Work quickly became MTV favorites (during the station's early days). Since he was the group's main singer and songwriter, Hay quickly became the focal point of the band, as such humorous videos for "Who Can It Be Now" and "Down Under" pushed the debut album to the top of the U.S. charts -- making Men at Work an overnight sensation. Perhaps sensing that they should strike again while they were still fresh in people's minds, Men at Work went directly back in the studio to work on another album. Issued in 1983, Cargo was another sizable hit, but did not fare nearly as well as its predecessor -- commercially or artistically.
Taking an extended break, Hay and company did not resurface again until 1985's Two Hearts, an unfocused recording that saw almost half of the band replaced. With the album's disappointing showing, Men at Work split up shortly thereafter. Hay embarked on a solo career, debuting in 1987 with Looking for Jack (the title of which supposedly referred to a brief encounter Hay had with actor Jack Nicholson), which once more failed to match the success of his early work with Men at Work. Hay continued to release solo material with regularity throughout the '90s, including such titles as 1990's Wayfaring Sons, 1992's Peaks & Valleys, 1994's Topanga, and 1998's Transcendental Highway. The same decade, Hay also launched his own record label, Lazy Eye Records, and sporadically acted in cult movies (which he had began doing the previous decade) and TV shows, including parts on such series as JAG, The Larry Sanders Show, and The Mick Molloy Show, among others. Hay continues to release albums and tour to this day. The first few years of the 21st century saw the release of a pair of recordings -- a new studio album in 2001, Going Somewhere, and a collection of re-recorded Men at Work and solo tracks in 2003 (Man at Work). Hay also toured with Ringo Starr in the summer of 2003, as part of the former Beatles drummer's annual All Starr Band. He issued Are You Lookin' at Me? in 2007 and American Sunshine in 2009, both of which were released on the Compass label. Two years later, Hay released his eleventh album Gathering Mercury.
OFFICIAL SITE