Legendary Yes singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee
Jon Anderson has released "
First Born Leaders", the fourth and final single off of his highly-anticipated new solo album
1000 Hands, an album nearly 30 years in the making. You can listen to “First Born Leaders” here:
http://lnk.blueelanrecords.com/jonanderson-firstbornleaders
1000 Hands will be Anderson’s first release via his new partnership with Blue Élan Records. The album will be available digitally as well as on CD and a deluxe 180-gram double vinyl package on July 31 and can be pre-ordered here:
http://lnk.blueelanrecords.com/jonanderson-1000hands
"'First Born Leaders' is about waking up once more to 'dream the big dream,' just like in the 60's when our world changed for the better," said Anderson. "We're now entering into the next phase of enlightenment. I hope that we can see how the world is connected through the human experience, and that we continue to follow the correct path."
Anderson began working on
1000 Hands (originally called
Uzlot – “it means a lot of us”) nearly 30 years ago, working with a group of musicians that included Yes drummer Alan White and bassist Chris Squire. However, due to his heavy touring commitments with Yes, Anderson had to put the record on the back burner. “Before you knew it, I started getting involved in other projects and tours, and years went by,” he explains. “I would listen to the tapes from time to time and think, 'This could have been a great album! One day I’ll finish it.’”
Setting up shop in Franklin’s Solar Studios in Orlando, Florida, Anderson laid down backing vocals to his original lead tracks, and Franklin called in an astonishing array of rock and jazz luminaries to fill out the songs: fellow Yes alum Steve Howe, Ian Anderson, Jean-Luc Ponty, Billy Cobham, Chick Corea, Steve Morse, Rick Derringer, Jonathan Cain, and the Tower of Power Horns are just a few of the guests on
1000 Hands.
“That’s where the title
1000 Hands comes from, all of the brilliant musicians who played a part in making the record,” Anderson says. “Michael acted like something of a casting director, bringing so many great players. It was really exciting to hear the record open up and become what I had always envisioned.”
Anderson’s celestial voice – one of the most recognizable sounds in rock – is in stunning form throughout 1000 Hands, an album that features some of his most breathtaking compositions. Bookended by the starkly beautiful acoustic ballads “Now” and “Now and Again,” the record features electrifying new prog masterpieces (“Activate,” “Come Up”), glorious poly-rhythmic wonders (“WDMCF”) and delightful reggae pop (“First Born Leaders”). Listeners will be mesmerized by the cavalcade of sumptuous vocal harmonies on the frisky “Ramalama,” and they’ll be singing along merrily to the horn-driven funk of the aptly named “Makes Me Happy.”
For more information, please visit:
https://www.jonanderson.com/ 
