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Season 49

  • S49E01 Kings of Leon, Jack White, Sting, Banks, M83

    • September 13, 2016
    • BBC Two

    Later... With Jools Holland returns for its 49th series with the sort of exclusives that makes it the key taste-making destination in music television. Nashville's Kings of Leon return to Jools's theatre of dreams with their first album in three years, Walls, which finds them re-energised and returning to the anthemic sound and classic songwriting of their best work, thanks in part to producer Markus Dravs. Jack White has appeared on the show with the White Stripes, The Raconteurs, Dead Weather, and recently toured and fronted not one but two bands of different genders, but now he makes his solo acoustic debut, re-interpreting songs from his back catalogue, many of which are previously unreleased, ahead of a whole album collecting acoustic work from 1988-2016. Multi-Grammy award-winning Sting has sold over 100 million albums and has been touring the past two years with both Paul Simon and Peter Gabriel, but he has also found time to make his first straight-ahead rock 'n' roll album in many a year. 57th & 9th refers to the street he crossed on his way to the New York studio where he recorded this thirteenth solo work, showcasing Sting at his canniest and most direct as displayed in new single I Can't Stop Thinking About You, which echoes his work with The Police. Stir into that the dark R&B of LA's Banks, who is about to release her second album The Altar, and Antibes-grown LA-based Frenchman Anthony Gonzalez's band M83, with the delightful 80s inflected disco dream pop of seventh studio album Junk, and you've got the kind of mix that only Jools can provide - all quality, no filler. Nashville born-and-bred singer, pianist and songwriter Kandace Springs performs a track from her sparkling full-length Blue Note Records debut, Soul Eyes, a winning fusion of jazz and soul. And legendary guitarist and founder of Led Zeppelin Jimmy Page makes a trip to chat to Jools.

  • S49E02 Madness, Jamie T, Beth Orton, Gallant, Rag'n'Bone Man

    • September 20, 2016
    • BBC Two

    It is week two and Jools invites another eclectic mix of music into his quadrangle of quality, including national treasures Madness fresh from the festival stage, now in their 40th year and about to release their 12th studio album Can't Touch Us Now, which features new single Mr Apples and the trademark blend of jaunty music-hall, ska rhythm and bitter-sweet lyrics. Squaring up to Camden's nutty boys is a son of Wimbledon - Jamie Alexander Treays, better known as Jamie T, with Trick, his second album in two years, making up for a long period of silence with a roughshod jangle of tunes that recall The Clash of the Sandinista era. Calming things down is singer-songwriter Beth Orton, who has dramatically reinvented the folktronica of her earliest work with the electronica of sixth album Kidsticks, which was recorded in the US and features Beth's plaintive voice floating on some great grooves and ambient soundscapes. Introducing the commanding falsetto of new US R&B leading man Gallant. Christopher Gallant hails from Maryland and recorded his debut album Ology on the West Coast, blending slow beats with some alt-rock influences. He got a standing ovation when making his US tv debut on Jimmy Fallon's chat show. Also introducing Rag'n'Bone Man, a big bruiser of a man from Uckfield near Brighton, with his debut single, the tender Human, a piano ballad which manages to be both vulnerable and threatening at the same time. And more acts to be announced.

  • S49E03 Barry Gibb, Norah Jones, Slaves, Declan McKenna, Lisa Hannigan

    • September 27, 2016
    • BBC Two

  • S49E04 Twin Atlantic, James Vincent McMorrow, Blackberry Smoke, Madeleine Peyroux, Tom Chaplin

    • October 4, 2016
    • BBC Two

  • S49E05 The Pretenders, Samm Henshaw, Ray BLK, Empire of the Sun, Paul Rodgers

    • October 14, 2016
    • BBC Two

  • S49E06 KT Tunstall, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Haley Bonar, Let's Eat Grandma, The Temptations, Teleman

    • October 18, 2016
    • BBC Two

  • S49E07 Emile Sande, M0, Wilco, Regina Spektor, Warpaint, Anoushka Shankar

    • October 25, 2016
    • BBC Two

  • S49E08 Chase and Status, Glass Animals, Jose Feliciano, Nick Waterhouse, Joseph, Sleigh Bells

    • November 1, 2016
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools in his music box for the last show in the series are London's electronic music production duo Chase and Status, aka Saul Milton and Will Kennard, who are about to tour the UK and continue to straddle the UK's dance, urban and grime scenes. They bring some of their recent collaborators, including singer Tom Grennan and Manchester grime MC Bugzy Malone. Oxford's Glass Animals continue that city's fine tradition of indie rock morphing into funkier territory and make their debut on the show performing songs from their second and breakthrough album How to Be a Human Being. First appearing on the BBC in 1967, the legendary Puerto Rican guitarist and singer Jose Feliciano makes his debut on the show almost 50 years later. Blind since he was born, Feliciano was raised in the Bronx and became an international star in 1968 with his interpretation of The Doors's Light My Fire. He continues to record in Spanish and English and performs a couple of his classics and a new song from his forthcoming album. Joseph, aka sisters Natalie, Allison and Meegan Closner, possess stunning sibling harmonies, hail from Oregon, and make their UK television debut with White Flag from their second album I Am Alone, No You're Not. Another American debutante is Californian Nick Waterhouse, whose intimate feel for the retro dance styles of 50s R&B, rock 'n' roll and even boogaloo shines through on his third album Never Twice. Brooklyn 'noise pop' duo Sleigh Bells shake the studio with songs from their fourth album Jessica Rabbit. Alexis Krauss and Derek Edward Miller know how to stalk a stage, blending blockrocking beats, distorted guitars and Krauss's troubled but commanding presence with a sound that suggests a Garbage for today

Season 50

Season 51

  • S51E01 Liam Gallagher, Benjamin Clementine, Elise LeGrow, Jorja Smith,Nadia Reid, LCD Soundsystem

    • September 26, 2017
    • BBC Two

    Hot on the heels of a swanky evening at the Royal Albert Hall celebrating 25 years on BBC2, Jools returns to Maidstone and to the regular Tuesday live slot with the first programme of the autumn series. Joining Jools is the now solo Liam Gallagher, who has been reminding the world of his indomitable rock 'n' roll spirit and how to rock a parka since his comeback at Glastonbury this summer. Gallagher and his band perform songs from his debut solo album As You Were, including lead track Wall of Glass. Of course Liam has been on Later a few times with Oasis and Beady Eye - while north-London-raised Benjamin Clementine only appeared once, back in 2013, sandwiched between Paul McCartney and Arctic Monkeys, but it launched his solo career, which culminated in a 2015 Mercury Prize triumph for his debut album At Least for Now. Now he is back, stepping out from behind the piano and asking us what it means to be human with songs from his forthcoming second album I Tell a Fly. Meanwhile, you may have seen Jorja Smith on the Albert Hall show, but here is Walsall's finest making her studio debut with her band, performing the new garage-flavoured track On My Mind after her 2016 anthem Blue Lights brought her to the attention of Drake and placed her on the BBC's Sound of 2017 list. The acerbic but eminently danceable LCD Soundsystem debuted on Later in 2007. Since then James Murphy's Brooklyn-based group have split up and reformed, but now they are back with songs from their fourth album, the chart-topping American Dream. The self-possessed and quietly powerful New Zealand singer-songwriter Nadia Reid performs one of the songs from her second album Preservation, which all seems to quietly nail a moment that profoundly matters without sentimentality or fuss. Also joining Jools at the piano is Canadian singer-songwriter Elise LeGrow, who performs her stripped-down rendition of the Chuck Berry classic You Never Can Tell This number features on her upcoming album Playing C

  • S51E02 The National, Morrisey, Jessie Ware, Josh Homme & Dean Fertita, Khalid, Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives

    • October 3, 2017
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools for this week's musical merry-go-round are Brooklyn's The National, who made their debut on the show back in 2005 and have just scored their first number one album with their seventh collection Sleep Well Beast, with songs like Day I Die and The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness, that find the band tackling oncoming middle age and the state of the world with their customary inventive melancholy. Morrissey appeared on Later's first series back in 1992 and returns for the sixth time with songs like Spent the Day in Bed from Low in High School, his eleventh studio album and his first in three years. The album was produced by Joe Chiccarelli, who has worked with everyone from Frank Zappa to Beck. Queens of the Stone Age recently scored a number one UK album with their swaggering seventh studio album Villains, and frontman Josh Homme is in crooning mode to offer a unique performance of the closing track, Villains of Circumstance, accompanied by a string quartet and bandmate Dean Fertita. Alongside these veterans, prepare to meet 19-year-old American pop R&B singer Khalid and his breakout anthem Young Dumb and Broke from his debut album American Teen. Then make way for the returning Jessie Ware and songs from her third album Glasshouse, which adds a confessional, noir-ish feel to her 80s-influenced soul stylings on songs like Midnight and Selfish Love. Last but not least, please welcome the inventive keeper of classic country's flame, Marty Stuart, who started out as a 13-year-old with bluegrass legend Lester Flatt and is touring the UK to promote his album Way out West with his band The Fabulous Superlatives. They are performing acoustically in the high lonesome tradition of close harmony.

  • S51E03 Robert Plant & Sensational Space Shifters, Beck, Kelela, John Moreland, Nick Mulvey, St. Vincent

    • October 10, 2017
    • BBC Two

    Robert Plant returns to the studio to perform songs from his 11th studio album Carry Fire, which he will be touring in the UK in November. Album and tour find Plant teamed up again with his band The Sensational Shape Shifters, in a set of songs that combines some haunting tribal rhythms with Plant's customary inventive flair and sense of urgency. US singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist St Vincent performs her lovelorn track New York solo at the piano from her upcoming and much-anticipated fifth album Masseduction. Also in the studio to perform a number or two from his recently released uplifting second album, Wake Up Now, is Wiltshire-based Nick Mulvey. Making their UK TV debuts are two very different artists. Rising spectral R&B star Kelela is a second-generation Ethiopian-American who was raised in Maryland and is now based in Los Angeles. She has spent time this year on the road with Gorillaz and The xx but is now on the cusp of releasing her debut studio album Take Me Apart. The second, also from the US, is John Moreland, a heartland singer-songwriter who was born in Texas, raised in Kentucky and is now based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Moreland mines the same territory as James McMurtry and early Bob Seger and on his latest LP, Big Bad Luv, continues his style of gruff vocals with tales of broken dreams and stubborn streaks in a broken America. Also on the show and returning to the Later... studio for the fourth time is singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer extraordinaire Beck with songs from his upcoming 13th studio album Colors, his first new album in three years and the follow-up to his Grammy Award-winning Morning Phase LP. He has described it as 'simple, uplifting and galvanising' and includes tracks co-written and produced with the man of the moment Greg Kurstin, who has recently worked with the likes of Foo Fighters and Liam Gallagher.

  • S51E04 Wolf Alice, Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott, SZA, Grizzly Bear, R.L.Boyce, King Krule

    • October 17, 2017
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools for his musical buffet this week are north London's grunge shapeshifters Wolf Alice, with tracks from their new album Visions of a Life - the follow-up to their Mercury- and Grammy-nominated Top 10 debut My Love Is Cool. The band describe their new album, recorded in LA, as 'stylistically broad' because it flits between dreampop and rage-filled punk tracks featuring frontwoman Ellie Roswell's distinctive screaming vocal. Also making a welcome return from Brooklyn with their first material in five years are indie rockers Grizzly Bear, with a number or two from their latest LP Painted Ruins, which sees the band move away from their dark, moody material for more pop-oriented stylings, demonstrated on their lead single Mourning Sound. Making her debut on the show is America's breakthrough R&B singer Solana Rowe, aka SZA. Endorsed by the likes of Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar to name a few, and having co-written for pop royalty including Nicki Minaj and Rihanna, the singer from St Louis performs in her own right with intoxicating songs from her long-awaited debut album Ctrl. Contrastingly, another debutant this week, but at the age of 62, most certainly not new to the game, is a true master of the hill country blues, RL Boyce. Bringing a flavour of the pure, distilled essence of the blues from the deep south to the Later studio, Boyce performs songs from his new album Roll and Tumble, which he wrote on his front porch in Como, Mississippi. Also now added to the show are former members of The Beautiful South, Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, who perform a couple of tracks from their third album together, Crooked Calypso, which reached number two in the album charts in July. Completing the line-up is 23-year-old King Krule, who sometimes releases music under his birth name Archy Marshall. He makes his debut on the show and, along with his band, runs through a track or two from his upcoming new album The Ooz, including the track Dum Surfer, which con

  • S51E05 Stereophonics, Hurray for the Riff Raff, Richard Thompson, Zara McFarlane, Hiromi, The White Buffalo, Moses Sumney

    • October 24, 2017
    • BBC Two

  • S51E06 Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Dua Lipa, José Feliciano & Rita Wilson, Amadou & Mariam, Aimee Mann, Superorganism, Saz'Iso

    • October 31, 2017
    • BBC Two

    On the last show of this series, which began with Liam Gallagher's solo debut, we welcome back Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, who debut songs from their new long-player Who Built the Moon? This new album, inspired by French psychedelic pop, is the follow-up to 2015's Chasing Yesterday. Making her Later... debut is British-Albanian singer Dua Lipa, who performs a couple of songs from her Top 10 self-titled debut album. The new pop icon is riding high, having had huge success with her chart-topping summer anthem New Rules and attracting one of the biggest crowds at Glastonbury this June. Also from Albania, and making their debut but with a completely different sound, are Saz'iso, a collection of southern Albania's finest folk musicians, who have been put together by legendary producer Joe Boyd and who offer a thrilling introduction to Saze, one of Europe's richest but most overlooked music genres. They perform tunes from their collection of mesmerizing arabesques and heartbreaking laments from the album At Least Wave Your Handkerchief At Me: The Joys and Sorrows of Southern Albanian Song. Making their TV debut is east London-based eight-piece Superorganism, whose members prefer to keep their identities anonymous and hail from many corners of the earth, having originally met on music forums years ago. With just a handful of songs released, this mysterious new band perform one or two of their catchy, hook-laden pop songs in their groundbreaking choreographed style, which has already got tongues wagging. Returning to the show for the first time in 15 years is LA-based Aimee Mann, who has rightly been named one of the world's best living songwriters. She performs a couple of numbers from her latest and ninth solo record Mental Illness, which Mann describes as her 'saddest, slowest and most acoustic' album to date.

Season 52

  • S52E01 Snow Patrol, Plan B, Tower of Power, Jade Bird, shame, Bettye LaVette

    • May 8, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Jools Holland and his magic fingers unite a unique cast in a single room for one night only, new and older artists playing completely live! Who'd have thought it? Seven years after their last album and 20 years on from their debut, the anthemic Snow Patrol are back in business with songs from their seventh studio album Wildness, that finds frontman and songwriter Gary Lightbody wrestling with the light and the dark with edge, drama and that familiar melodic flair. Step forward south London's Shame, hot after a national tour which is surely pushing them towards becoming the most exciting British guitar band since the emergence of Arctic Monkeys and they perform songs from their debut album Songs of Praise, released in January, including the rabble rousing One Rizla. No one sounds quite like veteran Detroit-raised soul singer Bettye Lavette - she made her debut as a 16-year-old in the early 60s. She performs a Bob Dylan song from her album of Dylan covers Things Have Changed, accompanied by Jools. Plan B or Ben Drew performs songs from his fourth album since his debut back in 2006, Heaven Before All Hell Breaks Loose, that mixes soul and ragga influences in a vital stew. Now in their 50th year on the road, step forward the Bay Area's mighty Tower of Power, who finally make their BBC TV debut with their soul-funk brass attack mixing 70s classics and songs from a new album, Soul Side of Town. Introducing teenage British singer-songwriter Jade Bird from Hexham, Northumberland, who captured hearts and minds at music industry festival SXSW earlier this year and makes her TV debut performing solo. Performing totally live in the circle of dreams for one night only, Jools brings the magic.

  • S52E02 Manic Street Preachers, Boy Azooga, Gwenno, Melissa Laveaux, Ray Lamontagne, Ben Howard

    • May 15, 2018
    • BBC Two

  • S52E03 Bjork, The Breeders, Les Amazones D'Afrique, Deva Mahal, Hailey Tuck

    • May 22, 2018
    • BBC Two

  • S52E04 Forence + The Machine, Femi Kuti, Lily Allen, Lady Leshurr, Young Fathers and Starcrawler

    • May 29, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Jools Holland hosts another musical melange in his theatre of dreams, aka Maidstone Studios, featuring Florence + The Machine, Femi Kuti, Lily Allen, Lady Leshurr, Young Fathers and Starcrawler.

  • S52E05 Christine & The Queens, Kamasi Washington, St Vincent and Daniel Blumberg

    • June 5, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Stepping back into the spotlight in Jools's cercle de reves is the queen of fancy footwork and French pop powerhouse Heloise Letissier, aka Christine & The Queens, to perform her new single Girlfriend, an 80s-inspired funk jam from her much-anticipated second album. Making his debut on the show is jazz saxophonist and band leader Kamasi Washington, who has played with the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Herbie Hancock and whose thrilling melodic take on funk, hip-hop and even movie soundtracks with an early 70s vibe is the talk of the town. Kamasi previews tracks from his upcoming double album Heaven & Earth. Hot on the success of their last album, James bounce back with songs from their upcoming fifteenth studio album Living In Extraordinary Times, a decade on from their last appearance on the show and fresh from a short tour of the UK. Grammy Award-winning Texan multi-instrumentalist Annie Clark, aka St Vincent, follows up the piano-led preview of her fifth studio album Masseduction by strapping on her guitar, summoning her band and rocking out on the title track and Slow Disco. And make way for a double debut of Daniels this week as we welcome Canadian Grammy nominated R&B soul singer Daniel Caesar with his debut album Freudian, featuring Californian singer HER, who joins him for their track Best Part, and British singer-songwriter Daniel Blumberg, a veteran of Cajun Dance Party and Yuck, whose combination of melodic songwriting in an improvised setting has grown out of sessions in East London's Cafe Oto, and who performs at the piano accompanied by violin and double bass on a couple of songs from his acclaimed debut album Minus.

  • S52E06 Nile Rodgers & Chic, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Nakhane, Gaz Coombes, Goat Girl, Chas & Dave

    • June 12, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools on the last show of the series and finally making their debut on the show are funk and disco legends Nile Rodgers and Chic, who are joined by contemporary British artists such as Cosha, aka Bonzai, and producer and songwriter Mura Masa. Denver-based old-school soul combo Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats come to the show with a song or two from their second album Tearing at the Seams, which sees them revisit their take on the golden years of Stax, complete with vibrant and integral horns, a steadily funky rhythm section and a bearded vocalist who takes it to the bridge every time. Making his UK TV debut is native South African Nakhane, an LGBTQ trailblazer with a startling voice. Now based in east London, he has recently released his second album You Will Not Die, which features songs full of strutting glam and electro flourishes. Former Supergrass frontman Gaz Coombes makes his solo debut on the show with songs from his very well-reviewed third solo album World's Strongest Man, which is his reflection on what it means to be a strong man in 2018. London four-piece, signed to Rough Trade, Goat Girl perform tracks from their self-assured debut, which sees them rage against modern Britain from public transport to mental health. Finally, and completing the line-up, much-loved cockney duo Chas & Dave perform a track from their first album in 30 years to feature new songs, A Little Bit of Us

Season 53

  • S53E01 Jess Glynne, IDLES, Soft Cell, Hak Baker, King Princess, Ralph McTell

    • September 25, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools on the first show of the series are five artists all making their own debuts on the show. From London, Jess Glynne, who this year became the first British female solo artist to have seven number one singles in the UK. She performs tracks from her upcoming second album Always In Between, which is the follow up to her massive selling 2015 debut I Cry When I Laugh. From Bristol, blistering intelligent punk from five-piece IDLES, whose social commentary and sparky live performances have earned them rave reviews and a top five slot for their second LP Joy As An Act of Resistance. Back together since their last record 16 years ago, synthpop duo and stars of the 1980s charts, Soft Cell. Singer Marc Almond and producer Dave Ball perform on the show in the week of their farewell concert at the O2 Arena and perform a new track as well as a classic or two from their haul of top 10 hits. Making her TV debut on the show is Brooklyn based 19-year-old songstress Mikaela Straus aka King Princess. The first signing to Mark Ronson's new Zelig label, one of the tracks she performs is 1950 which has been described as one of this year's political anthems and a beautiful homage to the LGBTQ+ community. Completing the line-up is the prolific and gifted songwriter and one of the great storytellers Ralph McTell, who is now celebrating more than 50 years on the road. Known for his virtuoso guitar style, Ralph made his debut in 1968 with the album Eight Frames a Second and in 1974 his timeless track Streets of London earned him an Ivor Novello Award. He performs his track West 4th & Jones Street, which is based on the iconic cover of Bob Dylan's Freewheelin. Other artists set to perform during the series include Muse, Jungle, Laurel, Interpol, Sigrid, Joe Bonamassa, Neneh Cherry and Paul Weller. The Later... website features a host of archive performances.

  • S53E02 Muse, Laurel, John Grant, Hamzaa, Jon Cleary, Easy Life

    • October 2, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools on the second show of this series are Devon stadium rockers Muse, who return to the show three years after their global chart-topping album Drones, with songs from their upcoming release Simulation Theory, an LA-recorded science fiction based affair featuring production from Rich Costey and Timbaland. Making her TV debut on the show is Southampton-born, now London-based Laurel, who first caught attention with a series of chamber-pop EPs and mixtapes recorded solely in her bedroom. She performs a couple of tracks from her recently released full-length debut Dogviolet. Also on the show is New Orleans-based R&B and funk musician Jon Cleary, who was born not far from the Maidstone studios in neighbouring Cranbrook, and has worked with legends such as Dr John, BB King and Bonnie Raitt. He plays a couple of selections from his new Dyna-mite album. Making a welcome return to the studio is Michigan-born, now Iceland-based singer John Grant, who performs tracks from his upcoming fourth album Love Is Magic, which he says captures 'the absurdity and beauty of life'. Completing the line-up are two debut performances - Leicester's self-proclaimed 'best band ever' Easy Life, who all met at school two years ago and have since made waves with what the NME call 'the middle ground of hip-hop, indie and slacker-rock', and 19-year-old Londoner R&B soul singer Hamzaa, whose voice has been described as 'an intoxicating blend of old-soul sapience with a sensual edge'

  • S53E03 Neneh Cherry. The Lemon Twigs, Echo & The Bunnymen, Sam Fender, Toots Hibbert, Ashley McBride

    • October 9, 2018
    • BBC Two

  • S53E04 Sigrid, Paul Weller, Jacob Banks, Villagers, Joe Bonamassa, Octavian, Rosalia

    • October 16, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools on the fourth show of this series are five artists all returning in triumph following debuts at earlier points in their now burgeoning careers. Norwegian singer and pop star Sigrid made her UK TV debut on the show in May 2017 with Don't Kill My Vibe at the piano and has since gone on to win the BBC Music Sound of 2018 accolade, enjoyed a top ten hit with her track Strangers and became a must-see on the festival circuit. Now, to top it all, she returns to perform a new number or two with her band. No stranger to the show, or indeed our cultural life of the last 40 years, Paul Weller returns to perform in an acoustic vein with just regular cohort Steve Craddock and a string quartet. Paul and co are in the middle of the studio floor with a track from his recently released 14th solo album True Meanings, a collection of dreamily autumnal, wistful, even melancholy songs. Weller debuted on Later... in 1993 with Sunflower and has appeared on the show more than any other artist. Nigerian-born and London based singer Jacob Banks made an impressive debut on the show back in 2013 and has gone on to captivate audiences around the world with his soulful voice and songs. Following a series of EPs, he is finally releasing his debut full length album in November and on his return to the show performs a track at the piano with Jools. Dublin's indie folk outfit Villagers made their debut on the show back in 2010 just before the release of their much acclaimed and Mercury Prize-nominated debut Becoming a Jackal. Lead by singer-songwriter Conor O'Brien, who recently collaborated with Paul Weller on his album, they return to the show with songs from their fifth album The Art of Pretending to Swim, which has been described as their most ambitious record to date. New York State born blues-rock guitarist Joe Bonamassa opened for BB King a number of times in the late 80s when he was 12 years old and knows a thing or two about the blues with the likes of Jeff Beck

  • S53E05 Bugzy Malone, Fantastic Negrito, Another Sky, Fatoumata Diawara, Marc Almond

    • October 23, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools in the theatre of dreams this week are New York modern rockers Interpol, premiering songs from Marauder, their sixth album, which expands on their iconic, menacing sound with some warmer colours on singles such as The Rover and If You Really Love Nothing. Manchester MC and grime star Bugzy Malone will be accompanied by Rag 'n' Bone Man on their contemporary anthem Run from Bugzy's top ten debut long player B Inspired. Introducing Oakland, California's eccentric bluesman Fantastic Negrito, with a song from his second album Please Don't Be Dead which confirms the mid-life flowering of his talent. London-based expansive guitar band Another Sky emerge from their shadowy beginnings to show off their compelling guitar figures, and the extraordinary vocals of singer Catrin Vincent. Also on the show is Malian star Fatoumata Diawara, who returns to the show with her four-piece band and songs from her second album Fenfo (Something to Say). The album showcases her particular brand of Afrofuturism, which sits squarely between the ancient and the modern with its mix of up-tempo blend of rock, pop and Afrobeat. Plus a swift return for Soft Cell frontman and solo star Marc Almond, who collaborates with Jools on a song they have written together. Completing the line-up is classically trained British folk singer Olivia Chaney, who over the years has collaborated with the likes of Robert Plant, The Decemberists, Eliza and Martin Carthy, to name a few. She performs a number or two, including the hauntingly beautiful title track Shelter from her latest solo offering written in her family cottage in the hills of the North Yorkshire moors.

  • S53E06 Jungle, The Good, the Bad and the Queen, Robyn, Mattiel, and Terry Reid.

    • October 30, 2018
    • BBC Two

    Joining Jools on the final show of this run are south London's Jungle, the soul/funk collective formed around the nucleus of childhood friends Tom McFarland and Josh Lloyd-Watson. They perform a couple of tracks from their recently released second album For Ever. The supergroup comprising of Paul Simonon, Tony Allen, Simon Tong and Damon Albarn, The Good, the Bad & the Queen, make a welcome return almost 12 years on from their self-titled debut album with songs from their long-awaited follow-up. Swedish pop queen Robyn is another artist who had been away too long, until breaking an eight-year silence with her aptly-named comeback single Missing U this summer. She makes her debut on the show with a couple of tracks from her brand new album Honey, along with one or two of the tunes which helpfully mapped out the sound of the next decade. Making her TV debut is Atlanta's Mattiel, who grew up as an only child and working on her mother's farm, and cites influences such as Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Andre 3000, Marc Bolan and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, which can all be found in her brand of fiery rock and soul. She brings a couple of belters from her eponymous debut album. One of British rock's greatest vocalists, Terry Reid's career is littered with a veritable who's who of legendary names he has performed with. Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin's loss is our gain when Superlungs joins the line-up on the show with a song. Completing the lineup is east London grime original and the scene's articulate conscience Ghetts, who perform a track from his recent album Ghetto Gospel: The New Testament.