I’ve made a slight alteration to previously announced release schedules and plans for 2019 so I thought I’d update you on what happens next.

At the turn of the year I originally planned to return to my First World War songs with ‘Postcards From Potter’s Field’ updating some of the older material from 10 years ago, and adding some new songs written for the forthcoming Armistice Tour in November.

Then the muse struck and I wrote and recorded an entire album in 32 days.

These new songs told the story of Hull’s fishing fleet, or rather that of the Triple Trawler Tragedy of 1968 and the Headscarf Revolutionaries who campaigned for safer working practices at sea. It was a story deserving of telling in songs and the 50 year anniversary, followed by my reading Brian W. Lavery‘s excellent book on the subject, inspired me to put pencil to paper.

This will now be the next Joe Solo album.

‘Headscarves & Hurricanes‘ has the fiddle added courtesy of the amazing Rebekah Findlay early next month and is scheduled for mastering on November 26th with a view to a January release.

I can hear a collected sigh of apathy about an album on such a niche subject when so much is happening in the world, and I get that honest.

That’s why, on top of ‘Headscarves & Hurricanes’, an extended EP of more topical material will arrive hot on its heels in the Spring. The EP is called ‘The Past Won’t Last Forever’, and will contain 6 new songs, some bang up to date and some using history as a mirror to the present as per.

Both will be available on CD and download.

The EP will include the new Joe Solo & The Hatfield Brigade song ‘Rise Up!’ which will be available to download before Christmas.

It will also contain ‘Land Fit For Heroes’, one of the songs written for ‘Postcards From Potter’s Field’ which I’m sad to say has now been shelved indefinitely. If truth be known, I came to realise I’d said all I had to say 10 years ago and captured the voices in my head as well as I could have done. There seemed little point in going over old ground when so much is happening in the now. Aside from ‘Land Fit For Heroes’ there were two more songs written for this album- ‘The Ballad of Charlie and Molly’ and ‘When You Were Away At The War’– both of which will feature on future releases as stand-alone songs.

Oh, and my recently recorded unreleased cover of Bob Dylan‘s ‘Chimes Of Freedom’ will soon see the light of day on ‘Bad Dylan Vol II’ a compilation CD raising funds to help Palestinian children find some normality through the medium of the skateboard.

I’ll blog when that is released.

If all that is confusing, imagine living in my head!

And don’t worry. After these two releases I won’t be putting out an album until at least Autumn 2020.

Even I need a rest sometimes.