Willie Nile Delivers Dynamic New Album, 'Children of Paradise,' due July 27th

“The unofficial poet laureate of New York City.”—UNCUT
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“One of the most brilliant singer-songwriters of the past 30 years.”
—THE NEW YORKER

Billboard premiered a track from the new album: http://bit.ly/2L7hoiv

NEW YORK, N.Y. — “I made this album because I needed a pick-me-up from the blues that’s all around us,” Willie Nile says of his new album Children of Paradise, out on July 27, 2018 on the artist's own River House label through Virtual Label. “The music always lifts my spirits, and that’s what these songs do for me and it’s why I wrote them. Hopefully they can lift others’ spirits as well.”
 
With 12 bracing new originals and an immediate sound that reflects the artist’s deep affinity for rock ’n’ roll’s gritty roots, Children of Paradise ranks with Nile’s most distinctive and resonant work. Co-produced by Nile and Grammy-winner and longtime collaborator Stewart Lerman (Elvis Costello/Patti Smith/Norah Jones), the album features such timely compositions as “Seeds of a Revolution,” “All Dressed Up and No Place to Go,” “Don’t,” "Earth Blues,” and “Gettin’ Ugly Out There.” The heartfelt “Lookin’ for Someone” was co-written with longtime friend Andrew Dorff, a seasoned songwriting pro who wrote country hits for the likes of Blake Shelton, Tim McGraw, Dierks Bentley and Kenny Chesney. Dorff died unexpectedly shortly after the song was written, and Nile has dedicated Children of Paradise to him.

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Along with Nile on acoustic and electric guitars and piano, the record features Nile’s longstanding live band: guitarist Matt Hogan, bassist Johnny Pisano, and drummer Jon Weber. The sessions also featured renowned guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Steuart Smith (Eagles/Rosanne Cash/Rodney Crowell), in-demand keyboardist Andy Burton (John Mayer/Rufus Wainwright/Ian Hunter) and backing vocals by renowned singer-songwriter James Maddock, Leslie Mendelson (Bob Weir), and Frankie Lee.
 
Nile’s enthusiasm for Children of Paradise is infectious — and impressive, considering how many records he’s made. “It’s one of my personal favorites for sure,” he states. “I thought from the time I started putting this album together that it was going to be something special. It’s full of fire and passion and spirit, and it feels like real life to me. The songs come out of the box roaring and rocking, yet there are also songs of intimacy and tenderness. It’s got all the power and promise of what I love best about rock ’n ’ roll. It’s heartfelt, pissed off, in love, on fire and out of its mind all at the same time. A perfect recipe for a good party and a great album.”
 
The haunting photographic portraits that grace the album’s cover and booklet, Nile explains, “are of people in my Greenwich Village neighborhood, by the great Italian photographer Cristina Arrigoni.Some are homeless, some are not. They are on the outside fringes of society but they’re all the children of paradise, as are all of us. Cristina Arrigoni brings out a dignity in them that is beautiful, deep and moving.”
 
The photographs convey the same emotional urgency that’s contained in the album’s title track, a song he wrote with Martin Briley and recorded years ago. It was inspired by the great 1943 Marcel Carné film Children of Paradise, which takes place in Paris on the Boulevard of Dreams. Nile explains, “It's always been one of my favorite songs, and I started playing it again with my band in the past year. There’s a theme of redemption and salvation in it that always appealed to me. What I always loved most about rock ’n’ roll was that it offered light and a sense of hope in an often dark and difficult world, and that still holds true for me to this day. The song reflects that, and it also seemed relevant to the overall themes on this album, so I decided to re-record it.” 
 
The album's topical leanings are further reflected on the ironically playful “Getting’ Ugly Out There.” “That was my reaction to the ugliness around the world that’s on TV 24 hours a day,” Niles notes, adding, “It’s so utterly disheartening to people of good will everywhere, and there comes a time to stand up and fight back. Writing these songs was my way of doing that. There are plenty of decent people everywhere, but with all the lies and distortions told by so many in power it gets confusing and it’s hard to know who to believe and which end is up. But I believe in the basic goodness of most people, and that's where these songs come from.”
 
Tour dates:
Sat., May 26  ALBANY, NY The Linda
Sun., May 27  WARWICK, NY Warwick Valley Winery
Sat., June 2  MAMARONECK, NY  The Emelin Theatre
Sun., June 3  NEW YORK CITY  Bowery Electric Listening Party / Performance
Sat., June 9  ASBURY PARK, NJ  House of Independents (Willie Nile’s Rock ’N’ Roll Birthday Bash!)
Fri., June 15  NEW HAVEN, CT  Cafe Nine
Sat., June 16 CROTON POINT PARK, NY  Clearwater's Great Hudson River Revival
Thurs. June 28th LOS ANGELES, CA Grammy Museum at L.A. Live 
Sat., June 30  SANTA MONICA, CA McCabe's
Sun., July 1  AGOURA HILLS, CA  Peter Strauss Ranch
Fri.-Sun., July 6-8  ATLIN, BC, Canada Atlin Arts & Music Festival 
Sun., July 29  FRANCAVILLA AL MARE, Italy Blubar Festival