OLD DAN PROJECT

Description

"My Old Dan," as he was known back then... Recorded in London at the Marquee Studio in 1978 with ROD STEWART's musicians, as well as at the CBS studio in Paris with talented young musicians who were just starting out, such as YAN BENOIST (future guitarist for RENAUD, CABREL, and BÉCAUD) and Léonard RAPONI (future bassist for BÉCAUD), not to mention his brother Gazelle on some guitars and his little brother Bûche on backing vocals – family always comes first, of course... It turns out that these English tracks, considered "demos" for a future album, remained unreleased. Indeed, it was while tidying his attic (a true story) three years ago that Jean stumbled upon a series of old analog tapes containing a large part of today's album. Listening to these tapes, still in good condition after more than 35 years, and on the advice of his sound engineer, Jean decided to share these unreleased tracks with us (and it's a real joy for me personally). So, in his "L'Hacienda" studio, he decided to digitize the tracks, remix them as they were, and master them, sometimes revisiting them with his current "touch." One can sometimes find the influence of his "masters" of that era, namely "Billy JOEL" (whom he met at his first concert in PARIS), not forgetting Randy NEWMAN, and who still remain influential. For my part, the lyrics I wrote at the time were inspired precisely by that era, meaning a rather carefree and calm period in the 70s/80s, thus simple everyday stories. But no matter what, when I listen to the album, I am often very moved and obviously very happy to have been a part of this whole story and adventure. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, My Old Dan, and as you so aptly put it in the last song you composed for your brother Gazelle (who is surely listening to us from above with his big smile): I miss you every day... Jacques ROUX (Author and brother)