Ben Poole - Anytime You Need Me (2018)

International Blues/Rock/Soul guitarist, singer and songwriter Ben Poole will release his brand new studio album Anytime You Need Me on Friday 14th September via Manhaton Records. The new album follows Ben’s critically acclaimed albums Time Has Come (2016) and Live At The Royal Albert Hall (Recorded by the BBC in 2014). Anytime You Need Me was recorded at Superfly Studios in Ollerton, Nottinghamshire produced by Wayne Proctor. “It was an absolute joy to work again with Wayne,” says Ben. “He has a great ear and knows me well as an artist, and the result is amazing.”

To celebrate the release Ben will embark on a 14-date UK tour in November and December 2018.

The new studio album marks a point in Ben’s career where he feels he’s really found himself as an all-round guitarist, singer and song-writer. The best representation on a studio record so far of the attitude, energy and excitement that he brings to his live shows. The album is a melting pot of rock, blues and soul but with a pop sensibility in the songwriting allowing it to feel accessible throughout. The overall sound showcases a lot of grit and a swagger, with special emphasis on guitar tones and instrumental performances from everyone who played on the album.

On Anytime You Need Me, Ben was ready to do something harder hitting and more guitar based than his previous album, Time Has Come. The main focus was still on writing great songs but with far more focus on Ben as an artist. He kept the team small and avoided having too much outside influence on the direction of the music. Ben co-wrote the album with his two writing partners, Wayne Proctor and Steve Wright.

“We basically locked ourselves away regularly over a period of around six months at a studio in the hills of North Wales writing and demoing the majority of the tunes on this album from scratch”, says Ben. “It’s the first time I’ve worked in this way and, though it was challenging to force myself to conjure a creative mind-set on cue when in a room with two other songwriters whom I’d never written with before, I think the results are really rewarding. I’m extremely proud of this album. This is who I am.”

Drum, bass, guitar and vocal melodies were crafted carefully at the North Wales studio with the idea that if the songs sounded interesting and exciting in a basic three-piece format then the overdubs would be minimised and would merely be the icing on the cake. Says Ben, “Rather than having multiple layers of guitar parts, one of our main aims was to always try and just have one big sounding guitar part to run through the whole song…which in turn would give it a performance element and a live feel.”



Track List:
01 - Anytime You Need Me (00:04:08)
02 - Take It No More (00:04:33)
03 - You Could Say (00:04:36)
04 - Found Out The Hard Way (00:05:53)
05 - Further On Down The Line (00:03:54)
06 - Dirty Laundry (00:05:38)
07 - Start The Car (00:04:41)
08 - Don't Cry For Me (00:05:58)
09 - Let Me Be (00:05:58)
10 - Holding On (00:05:30)

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