Bill Champlin's latest album, "No Place Left To Fall," is available now via digital release from DreamMakers Music, iTunes, amazon.com and other digital download web sites. American CD release date to be announced, per http://www.billchamplin.net. Amazon shows Japan release on Sept. 24, but with a whopping $47.98 price tag.

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The domestic release has been pushed back to August 4, 2009. — Linda



Product Description
He's been called the best-known unknown singer in the world, a musician's musician, a full-tilt street poet. He's Bill Champlin, a founding member of the legendary San Francisco band Sons of Champlin, and songwriter with two GRAMMY® awards and six critically-acclaimed solo albums. Fed up with the music industry, he hasn't released a solo album in 10 years, leading fans to ask, "Where have you been?" This cult figure has been hiding in plain sight: playing in the band Chicago and singing some of its biggest hits, and penning a remarkable collection of songs, No Place Left To Fall. Includes bonus DVD featuring No Place Left To Fall Jam, Bill On The Beatles & Bob Dylan, Vignettes, Sons of Champlin Live, and more...

CD
1. Total Control
2. Tuggin' On Your Sleeve
3. Truth, The
4. No Place Left To Fall
5. Lover Like That
6. Lookin' For You
7. Never Been Afraid
8. Angelina
9. Look Away
10. I Want You To Stay
11. Never Let Go
12. Stone Cold Hollywood
13. All Along

DVD
1. Introduction
2. Bill Champlin Background
3. Old School
4. The Songs
5. Blood Heart
6. In Conclusion

Extras:
7. "No Place Left To Fall" Jam
8. Will Champlin
0. Bill on The Beatles & Bob Dylan
10. Bill Champlin Vignettes
11. Sons Of Champlin Live! "Gold Mine"

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002CVQ86U/?tag=imwan-20

this is bill champlin's 8th solo album, many people don't realize how long he has been around.

renny

In my opinion, Champlin rescued Chicago from potential demise after the death of Terry Kath. I was never lucky enough to hear the band with Kath and was not expecting great things the first time I went to hear them (in 1981 or 82.) I was pleasantly surprised by this new keyboardist/vocalist named Bill Champlin. Among other very familiar songs, they performed the entire "Ballet" and his interpretation of "Make Me Smile" and "Color My World" was as enjoyable to me as Kath's. Very different, but amazing in its own way.

I preordered this from CD Japan, but am hoping a U.S. release will be scheduled in the meantime.

http://www.zinkmusic.com

BILL CHAMPLIN - NO PLACE LEFT TO FALL

It is with great pride that Zink Music can present the European release of Chicago singer Bill Champlin's new solo album - his first in thirteen years!

The long anticipated new release from legendary singer songwriter Bill Champlin is here at last. No Place Left to Fall features the smooth, thoughtful song-writing you've come to expect from Bill. Soul infused grooves and undeniable hooks pave the way from start to finish, and songs like the title track are a reminder of why Mr. Champlin has been in the game so long. Bill and his band are joined by some very special guests including Peter Cetera, Steve Lukather, Bruce Gaitsch and Michael English - this album will not disappoint!

In the words of drummer, Billy Ward, “I became a Bill Champlin fan in the early seventies when he led, what was to me, a ground-breaking band, The Sons Of Champlin. He's written and sang on probably over 400 hit songs, the later ones with the band Chicago. His organ playing has him ranked on most peoples "A" list and he plays the heck out of the guitar as well! He is one of the finest musicians I've ever gotten the privilege to play with.” Dennis Cook, in Jambase and Relix Magazine adds, “Age has done nothing to diminish his powers, and in fact, brings nuances to the material that a young cat just can't muster.”

This special edition does not only consist of 13 new songs with a total length of 68 minutes, you are also treated with a 70 minute DVD (region free) featuring a lengthy documentary of the recording of the album plus some extra cool stuff - all nicely packed in a slipcase.

CD 01. Total Control 02. Tuggin' On Your Sleeve 03. The Truth04. No Place Left To Fall 05. Lover Like That 06. Lookin' For You 07. Never Been Afraid 08. Angelina 09. Look Away 10. I Want You To Stay 11. Never Let Go 12. Stone Cold Hollywood 13. All Along

DVD 01. Introduction 02. BC Background 03. Old School 04. The Songs 05. Blood Heart 06. In Conclusion 07. "No Place Left To Fall" Jam (Extras) 08. Will Champlin (Extras) 09. BC on The Beatles & Bob Dylan (Extras) 10. BC Vignettes (Extras) 11. Sons Of Champlin Live! "Gold Mine" (Extras).

The release date is set for December 10, 2008.

Currently $22.50 w/shipping to the U.S. per the website.

Here is another article about Bill's new album. I can't wait! (Well, I guess I can, or else I would buy the downloads or the exorbitantly-priced import disc.) Bill is one of my favorite musicians. I've got most of his solo albums, only missing the rare No Wasted Moments. I think he's a national treasure, and I hope others will discover him with this disc.

Jim

http://www.antimusic.com/news/09/may/07 ... mmer.shtml

Bill Champlin Will Have No Place Left to Fall This Summer

05/07/2009
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(PR) East Coast independent label DreamMakers Music will release Bill Champlin's No Place Left to Fall on August 4th. A founding member of the now legendary San Francisco band Sons of Champlin, and a masterful songwriter with two GRAMMY awards and six critically-acclaimed solo albums to his credit, Champlin has been called the best-known unknown singer in the world, a musician's musician, a full-tilt street poet. But fed up with the suits running the music business, he hadn't released a solo album in over 10 years, prompting many fans to ask, "Where have you been?"

This cult figure has been hiding in plain sight: playing in the band Chicago and singing some of its biggest hits, and all the while penning a remarkable collection of songs that showcase a decidedly different artistic sensibility. With No Place Left to Fall, Champlin has made the album he was born to make, a career-defining record with an honesty and immediacy that reflect his old-school approach to music. "It's not completely auto-tuned and processed like a lot of CDs are lately," observes Champlin. "It may not be dead-on perfect, but I think the dead-on perfect records are just that - dead."

No Place Left To Fall was recorded at The Barber Shop Studios in Hopatcong, NJ with a group of close friends - guitarist Bruce Gaitsch (Madonna), bassist George Hawkins, Jr. (John Fogerty) and drummer Billy Ward (B.B. King) - and produced by Champlin and Mark Eddinger, who also contributed on keyboards. The album kicks off in high gear with the first notes of Champlin's Hammond B3 organ on the fiery, funky "Total Control" followed by the bluesy, jammin' "Tuggin' on Your Sleeve," which features his wife Tamara Champlin (vocals) and their son, Will Champlin (vocals, Wurlitzer electric piano).

The heartbreaking title track, co-written with Tamara and Michael Caruso and the exquisite "Never Been Afraid" (co-written with Andreas Carlsson and featuring Champlin and Michael English on lead vocals, Peter Cetera on backing vocals and Steve Lukather on guitar) and lead single "Lookin' For You" demonstrate Champlin's gift for evoking the emotional subtleties of relationships while swampy numbers like "I Want You to Stay" and "Angelina" simply kick ass. "We were just jivin' around in my kitchen," says Champlin of the tongue-in-cheek "Angelina." "George started playing this little bass line that was so infectious we went, 'ok, let's go with that' and I just started singing, 'Take me Angelina...'" To those who might jump to the conclusion that the song was penned with a certain movie star in mind, he says: "Sorry to disappoint, but no, I'm not looking to be adopted."

The collection also includes a version of "Look Away," the Diane Warren-penned song that Bill and Chicago took to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100. Here the power ballad is stripped way down, similar to the way it was performed live. Keith Howland, lead guitarist for Chicago, guests on the track. Champlin is currently on the road with Chicago, but is already laying plans for a tour with his No Place Left to Fall band.

"A lot of times somebody from a band puts out a solo album and you realize it's just an extension of that band," says Champlin. "That ain't what this is." "I felt Bill deserved to make a record without having a set of rules," says Eddinger.

"Age has done nothing to diminish his powers, and in fact, brings nuances to the material that a young cat just can't muster," noted Dennis Cook in Jambase and Relix Magazine. Released earlier in Europe, No Place Left to Fall has received stellar reviews there. "Le grand retour de Mister Groove...Magique," raved crossrock.com, a French melodic rock website - a sentiment that was echoed from the Netherlands to Italy to Belgium.

Fans who purchase the physical CD in the States will receive a 70-minute bonus DVD with a documentary on the making of the album directed by news anchor and longtime fan Rod Simons and lots of other cool extras, including live footage of Champlin performing recently with the Sons. No Place Left to Fall comes on the heels of DreamMakers' digital release of four heretofore out-of-print Champlin solo albums - Burn Down The Night, Through It All, He Started To Sing and Mayday - and the two latest releases from Sons Of Champlin, Hip Li'l Dreams and SOC Secret Live.

The track listing for No Place Left to Fall is as follows:

1. Total Control
2. Tuggin' On Your Sleeve
3. The Truth
4. No Place Left to Fall
5. Lover Like That
6. Lookin' For You
7. Never Been Afraid
8. Angelina
9. Look Away
10. I Want You to Stay
11. Never Let Go
12. Stone Cold Hollywood
13. All Along

Bump: added cover image and DVD tracklisting to the first post.