Album out November 27 as part of new deal
with Shamus Records and TRO Essex Publishing
First single "Babylon (2026 Version)" out now
A World Called Desire: The Townshend Tapes Redux, a long-lost 1993 solo album from veteran rock songwriter, guitarist and cultural historian Jeff Slate, produced by Simon Townshend and Slate himself, will be released on Record Store Day Black Friday, November 27, on Shamus Records, part of a new label deal and publishing agreement with TRO Essex Publishing, the premiere independent music publisher, which now oversees Slate’s entire music catalog. The album is available to pre-order on 180g vinyl and Deluxe Edition CD. The album’s first single "Babylon" is available now.
The recordings capture a pivotal moment in Slate's creative life: Pete Townshend, riding high from the Tony-winning Broadway production of The Who’s Tommy, invited Slate out on his Psychoderelict tour to discuss a production partnership. What followed was a legendary week at Avalon Studios outside New York, where Slate, alongside Simon Townshend, drummer Mark Brzezicki, keyboardist Josh Phillips, and multi-instrumentalist Bob Stander, recorded what would become this album.
"I was always incredibly proud of this material," says Slate. "It just wasn't meant to be at the time. But hearing the tracks now, more than thirty years later, what felt dated in 1993 feels timeless now."
The project lay dormant for decades, shelved as the grunge era shifted musical tastes and other projects took precedence. When Avalon Studios eventually closed, Stander reached out, having discovered additional multitrack reels that Slate believed were lost. The rediscovery sparked a years-long finishing process, with Slate, Stander and company completing arrangements and overdubs to realize the album Slate always envisioned.
The supporting ensemble reads like a career retrospective: Simon Townshend provides backing vocals and guitar alongside his production work; Brzezicki (drums, percussion) was a Psychoderelict project veteran, as was Phillips, who plays piano, Hammond and keyboards, and Stander, who helped Slate realize a project originally begun more than 30 years ago.
The album was mixed by Duane Lundy and mastered by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios.
Slate, a multi-instrumentalist with his own towering résumé spanning decades of rock's inner circle, has recorded and performed with Townshend, Roger McGuinn, Jeff Tweedy, Sheryl Crow, Margo Price, The Wallflowers and beyond. He's penned everything from Roy Orbison biography to exhaustive liner notes for Beatles, Stones, Dylan and Hendrix reissues, and regularly guest-hosts on SiriusXM. His previous solo work has featured musicians from Guns 'n' Roses, Tom Petty's Heartbreakers, David Bowie's and Paul Weller's bands and Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.
"Babylon," the album's first single, showcases the interplay between Slate, Stander and Townshend's guitar work, anchored by Brzezicki's muscular drumming and Phillips' lush keyboards. It's a statement of intent: a track that captures the energy of those sessions and stands fully realized more than three decades later.
"A World Called Desire: The Townshend Tapes" arrives on Record Store Day Black Friday, November 27. "Babylon" is out now.
PRESS CONTACT
Brendan Gilmartin
Chart Room Media