Thin Lizzy is out here pulling a Static-X with their new record, Acoustic Sessions. The album is all-acoustic renditions of Thin Lizzy classics, and features original vocals from the late and great Phil Lynott paired with guitar parts from founding member Eric Bell. Acoustic Sessions is out January 24, and you can pre-order it here. The record runs as follows:
- "Mama Nature Said"
- "A Song For While I’m Away"
- "Eire"
- "Slow Blues"
- "Dublin"
- "Whiskey In The Jar"
- "Here I Go Again"
- "Shades Of A Blue Orphanage"
- "Remembering Pt. 2"
- "Slow Blues G.M (Gary Moore)"
Lynott died in 1983, while Bell exited the band in 1973. The odd part about Acoustic Sessions is that on paper, Thin Lizzy still exists and has played shows as recently as 2019. Thin Lizzy features guitarists and vocalists Scott Gorham, Ricky Warwick, and Damon Johnson alongside keyboardist Darren Wharton, bassist Troy Sanders, and drummer Scott Travis. So it's super clear on why any of those guys didn't participate in Acoustic Sessions and Bell – not a current member of the band – did.
"I remember recording 'Eire' from our debut album Thin Lizzy in 1971," wrote Bell of Acoustic Sessions. "I wrote the main guitar part first on acoustic and then we built it up from there. I played the 12-string acoustic throughout the track and introduced the electric on top.
"This was useful in the studio in Belfast recently where we recorded fresh guitar parts to allow us to create new Thin Lizzy acoustic versions of some of our favourite songs, by recreating those original acoustic parts and adding the vocals which Philip laid down on the day and those original drum parts which Brian came up with in the original recording sessions".
Producer and mixer Richard Whittaker added: "Traditionally, song writers and bands have used acoustic 'polyrhythmic' instruments such as piano or guitar to demo or sketch out their ideas. In most cases these parts are replaced as the production process develops but occasionally, these core elements survive and remain intact.
"I encountered this during the Vagabonds project. After sifting through all the Decca recordings, I presented a list of ideas however, in most cases additional development and material was required. So the guys at the label approached Eric [Bell] who was happy to get involved with the project and between us, I think we've made something really quite unique and special."
