TERRY MARSHALL SHARES NEW TRACK ‘VOODOO WOMAN’

Terry Marshall shares ‘Voodoo Woman’ from his upcoming debut album, ‘Living The Blues’. This soulful rendition of Chicago Blues singer Koko Taylor’s classic and a stirring take on a song steeped in metaphor and self-empowerment features some of Terry’s most powerful sax playing to date. This latest offering also features award-winning singer-songwriter Alice Armstrong on lead vocals.

‘Living The Blues’ will be released on Marshall Records on October 11, 2024, as a limited edition 180-gram heavyweight double LP set, CD and digitally on all streaming platforms.

Fans can stream the new single, pre-order the new album and find more info – HERE.

‘Living The Blues’ will transport listeners into the heart of the blues, returning to the pure, unadorned essence of the genre. Recorded live at The Marshall Studio, it captures rich moments of spontaneity and raw energy, perfectly embodying the spirit of the blues—perfectly showcased in Terry’s latest single, ‘Help Me’.

Boasting eleven classic blues songs, this album showcases performances by some of the UK’s top blues musicians. The lineup includes blues virtuoso Laurence Jones, award-winning singer/songwriters Alice Armstrong and Emma Wilson, and Deep Purple co-founder and bass player Nick Simper, among others.

Despite having never released an album prior to his upcoming debut, ‘Living The Blues’, Terry Marshall is one of the most ubiquitous and influential individuals in modern music. This, of course, comes from the amps that bear his name, which he and his father Jim invented in the early 60s for the emerging rock scene and are now used in every genre all around the world. But initially making his way as a session saxophonist, Terry’s career is equally defined by his passion for playing live. “My whole business has been love of music,” Terry says, “my whole life has been totally music. I just love playing.” ‘Living The Blues’, released through Marshall Records, is a testament to Terry’s dedication: eleven blues classics, played with some of the best blues musicians in the UK, and returning to a refreshingly uncomplicated version of a genre that has been reiterated endlessly. ‘Living The Blues’ is the distillation of a life spent doing just that and carries Terry Marshall’s inescapable commitment in every note played.

Terry’s life in music began earlier than most. “I started earning money as a musician when I was 14 and turned pro when I was 16,” he says. Music was an essential element in the Marshall house, with Terry quoting Count Basie and Little Richard as his earliest influences to play the saxophone. From his first recording session, produced by the legendary Joe Meek, Terry’s phonebook expanded to include some of the biggest names of the 1960s, from forming a band with Mitch Mitchell to friendships with guitarists like Eric Clapton, Ritchie Blackmore, and John Mayall. It was one such connection to Pete Townshend that led to the very first Marshall amp being made, which Terry chalks up to his own music experience. “Pete wanted something louder,” he says, “and being a sax player, I had no loyalty to Vox or Fender. I knew what these guys wanted, and it took a sax player’s ears to give it to them.” With the amps taking more and more of Terry’s time, he switched touring for London clubs but never let anything get in the way of playing live. “I still play whenever I can,” Terry says, “I still need my fix.”

Some may wonder why, after such a long career defined by playing live, Terry has chosen now to release his debut album, ‘Living The Blues’. But for Terry, the key is in catching that live energy. “Every musician on there, I’ve played with on stage,” he says, “so it was just like meeting with mates. I asked the singers what songs they’d like to sing on the day, and we’d make an arrangement on the spot and then get a take. We recorded all those tracks in four days – I didn’t want any rehearsals; I didn’t want to say what songs we were going to do. I wanted the singer to feel relaxed, and because all the people we had on there were jammers, I knew it would work.” This process, unconventional in today’s culture of studio perfection, has led to a record rich in moments of spontaneity and raw energy. The record opens with ‘Hoochie Coochie Man’, with Krissy Matthews and Alice Armstrong sharing vocal duties over a stomping riff that sets the intention of the album straight away. The song carries another meaning, too: both Krissy and Alice represent the newest wave of UK blues talent and are among the youngest guests on the record. “I’m so keen to promote the blues,” says Terry, “and I want to give back to young people. It’s where every guitarist starts; it’s part of the natural progression.”

The range of talent across the record is remarkable, with Terry pulling in players from across the entire span of his career. “I invited a whole blend of different artists,” he says, “and whoever turned up on whatever days were the ones who played.” At the core of the record are a few key players. “Nick Simper from Deep Purple played bass, and from (Deep Purple side project) Warhorse we had Peter Parks,” says Terry. “They were my basic two steady up at the back on all the tracks.” But with a constantly evolving cast of musicians, each calling different songs, the flavor of the music is constantly changing, too. Laurence Jones, one of the most exciting new voices in blues music, leads a supercharged take of the Fleetwood Mac classic ‘Long Grey Mare’, trading guitar lines with former Jimmy Page sideman Robin Bibi. But in sharp contrast is the soulful, organ-led ballad of ‘Doctor Feelgood’, which showcases Terry’s saxophone at its most poignant alongside vocalist Emma Wilson. “I invited a blend of different artists,” Terry says, “but all people I knew could jam together. It was so easy to get that result because there was no pressure.” And with such an organic record showing so many sides to the blues, Terry may well have captured a snapshot of the next generation of the blues, akin to other nascent supergroups like the Yardbirds or John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. “A lot of the blues has been diluted,” he says, “and I think we need to get back to basics to get it going again.”

‘Living The Blues’, like all the best blues records, gains its richness from reflecting on a full and storied life; in this case, Terry Marshall’s history as one of the central figures of UK music heritage imbues the album with an essential character. Other artists may imitate and interpolate the blues, but the sincerity and passion heard on this album can only come from a lifetime dedicated to the craft. “I am so lucky,” says Terry, “I’ve lived the crest of a wave, and I’m still doing it.” ‘Living The Blues’ carries on the precious traditions of playing live and conveying raw emotion and will surely be remembered as one of the genre’s most vital and essential albums of modern times.

‘Living The Blues’ will be released via Marshall Records on October 11, 2024. Fans can pre-order the new album and find more info – HERE.

‘Living The Blues’

Hoochie Coochie Man
Phone Booth
Voodoo Woman
Worried Dreams
I Got All You Need
Help Me
Dr Feelgood
Long Grey Mare
Me and my Gin
I’m Ready
Smokestack Lightning

Terry Marshall and Friends:

Terry Marshall – Saxophone,
Krissy Matthews – Guitar, Vocals,
Alice Armstrong – Vocals,
Robert Hokum – Guitar,
Nick Simper – Bass,
Paul Gordon White – Drums,
Emma Wilson – Vocals,
Peter Parks – Guitar,
Paul Long – Organ,
Kev Hickman – Drums,
Zoe Schwarz – Vocals,
Hugh Budden – Harmonica, Vocals,
Robin Bibi – Vocals, Guitar,
Laurence Jones – Guitar,
Oliver Brightman – Guitar

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