Sir Rod Stewart’s rekindled love of songwriting grows stronger on his 31st studio album, THE TEARS OF HERCULES. It’s Stewart’s fourth new album of original songs since 2013 when he reconnected with his songwriting muse to record Time, the chart-topping album which entered the Top 10 in the US and ten countries worldwide, including #1 in the U.K., where it’s been certified platinum double-platinum. For his latest, Stewart wrote nine of the album’s 12 songs, including the first single, “One More Time,” which is available today on all digital and streaming services. A new video for the song is also available today.
On November 12, THE TEARS OF HERCULES will be available on CD, LP, and through digital and streaming services.
THE TEARS OF HERCULES is a project close to Stewart’s heart, especially the song “Touchline,” which he dedicated to his father, who taught him and his brothers to love football, a tradition Sir Rod has passed down to his sons. In the album’s sleeve note, Stewart says he’s proud of the album. “I’ve never said this before about any previous efforts, but I believe this is by far my best album in many a year,” he writes.
To make THE TEARS OF HERCULES, Stewart once again worked with Kevin Savigar, the keyboardist-songwriter-composer who has co-produced Stewart’s last three studio albums: Time (2013), Another Country (2015), and Blood Red Roses (2018). Their long-running collaboration began in 1978 when Stewart invited Savigar to join his studio and touring band. In addition to “One More Time,” they also co-wrote the standout tracks “Hold On” and “All My Days.” Stewart co-wrote “Born To Boogie (A Tribute To Mark Bolan)” with Emerson Swinford, the guitarist in his band. Stewart, Savigar, and Swinford share songwriting credit on “I Can’t Imagine.
Stewart has always had a gift for making any song sound like it was written just for him. That’s certainly true of the album’s title track, a powerful ballad written by Marc Jordan. Through the years, Stewart has recorded other songs written by Jordan, including “Rhythm Of My Heart” (#5 U.S./#3 U.K.) from Vagabond Heart and “This” from his gold-certified album, A Spanner in the Works. Additional covers include Stewart’s joyful take on Soul Brother Six’s “Some Kind Of Wonderful,” and his stirring rendition of Johnny Cash’s “These Are My People.”
The two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee says he’s looking forward to playing some of the new songs live next year during his North American Tour. It will start on July 1, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas, and includes 19 shows. Visit rodstewart.com for ticket information.
But first, Stewart will return to Las Vegas to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his acclaimed residency, “Rod Stewart: The Hits.” He’ll play nine shows at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace between October 6 and 23. The performances will feature chart-topping hits that span Stewart’s unparalleled career, including “You Wear It Well,” “Maggie May,” “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy,” “The First Cut is the Deepest,” “Tonight’s the Night” and “Forever Young.”
THE TEARS OF HERCULES
CD Track Listing:
“One More Time”
“Gabriella”
“All My Days”
“Some Kind Of Wonderful”
“Born To Boogie (A Tribute To Mark Bolan)”
“Kookooaramabama”
“I Can’t Imagine”
“The Tears Of Hercules”
“Hold On”
“Precious Memories”
“These Are My People”
“Touchline”
LP Track Listing
Side One
“One More Time”
“Gabriella”
“All My Days”
“Some Kind Of Wonderful”
“Born To Boogie (A Tribute To Mark Bolan)”
“Kookooaramabama”
Side Two
“I Can’t Imagine”
“The Tears Of Hercules”
“Hold On”
“Precious Memories”
“These Are My People”
“Touch Line”
Rod Stewart is one of the best-selling artists in the history of recorded music, with an estimated 250 million records and singles sold worldwide. His signature voice, style, and songwriting have transcended all genres of popular music, from rock, folk, soul, R&B, and even the Great American Songbook; making him one of the few stars to enjoy chart-topping albums throughout every decade of his career. He’s earned countless of the industry’s highest awards, among them, two inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the ASCAP Founders Award for songwriting, New York Times bestselling author, Grammy™ Living Legend, and in 2016 he officially became “Sir Rod Stewart” after being knighted at Buckingham Palace for his services to music and charity.
