With the sort of news you have re-read a few times to make sure you’ve got it right, Joel Plaskett announced today that he’d be releasing the conceptual follow-up to his JUNO-award triple record, Three, with 44, a quadruple record consisting of 11 songs each, recorded in 4 cities (Dartmouth, Memphis, Nashville and Toronto), crafted over the last 4 years with 33 musicians. Along with the news came the release of the first single, “Head Over Heels Into Heaven.”
A story in four parts, the albums within the set are titled 41: Carried Away, 42: Just Passing Through, 43: If There’s Another Road, and finally 44: The Window Inn. As might be surmised by the titles, Plaskett is taking us along for a metaphorical and lyrical journey.
“Head Over Heels Into Heaven,” fits tidily into that theme. Co-written with Mo Kenney and backed by The Emergency (Dave Marsh & Chris Pennell), it’s song about loyalty, love, and trust with Plaskett vowing to journey to the ends of the earth and beyond. It’s the sort of thing that would have done Samwise Gamgee proud, with a horn section t’boot.
“Making a record has always felt to me like trying to put a frame around a group of songs,” says Plaskett. “In going through my songs from the last four years, it dawned on me that I’d need more than one frame to contain what I’ve been writing about. Hence four panes within a frame, four records in one box. Synchronicity and numbers have always been a fascination, and I saw this project as an opportunity to create something to mark my 44th year on this mystifying planet.”
Joel Plaskett has the slated release of 44 for April 17, 2020, the day before his 45th birthday.
Tour Dates:
04.16.20 – Truro, NS @ Marigold Cultural Centre
04.23.20 – Campbell River, BC @ Tidemark Theatre
04.24.20 – Victoria, BC @ Capital Ballroom
04.25.20 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
04.28.20 – Calgary, AB @ Taylor Centre for the Performing Arts/The Bella Concert Hall
04.30.20 – Edmonton, AB @ Myer Horowitz Theatre
05.01.20 – Saskatoon, SK @ Broadway Theatre
05.02.20 – Regina, SK @ The Exchange
05.04.20 – Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre
05.06.20 – Thunder Bay, ON @ Crocks
05.08.20 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
05.09.20 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
05.12.20 – London, ON @ Aeolian Hall
05.13.20 – London, ON @ Aeolian Hall
05.14.20 – Kingston, ON @ Grand Theatre
05.15.20 – Ottawa, ON @ National Arts Centre – Babs Asper Theatre
05.16.20 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
05.24.20 – St. Johns, NL @ St. John’s Arts & Culture Centre
05.26.20 – Labrador City, NL @Labrador West Arts & Culture Centre
05.28.20 – Grand Falls, Windsor, NL @ Gordon Pinsent Arts and Culture Centre
05.29.20 – Gander, NL @ Joseph R Smallwood Arts & Culture Centre
05.30.20 – Stephenville, NL @ Stephenville Arts & Culture Centre
05.31.20 – Corner Brook, NL @ Corner Brook Arts & Culture Centre