News

Christiaan Webb's Debut Solo Album

• 17th Jan 2012

Christiaan Webb (The Webb Brothers) releases his debut solo album A Man Possessed in April. It features twelvesongs that represent the culmination of a life-altering spiritual journey for Christiaan.

Eldest son of songwriting legend Jimmy Webb (Witchita Lineman, Galveston, By The Time I get To Phoenix), Christiaan first came to public attention as part of the Webb Brothers, a band he formed with his younger brother, Justin. In 1998, the demo album ‘Beyond the Biosphere’ was released to critical acclaim in the U.K. and was quickly picked up by London-based label Easy!Tiger Records and released the following year. The Webb Brothers then signed with Warner Music and the album ‘Maroon,’ was released to critical and commercial success in 2000. Touring extensively, the brothers built a strong fan base in the UK that continues to this day.

2003 saw the release of the eponymous Webb Brothers album (as well as recruitment of brother James), showcasing the versatility and depth of Christiaan’s songwriting. In 2009, the brothers joined their father to form ‘Jimmy Webb and the Webb Brothers,’ releasing the reflective, mature-sounding ‘Cottonwood Farm’ (Proper Music).

Following this collaboration, Christiaan began work on the songs that form A Man Possessed, partly inspired by the writings of Don Miguel Ruiz. “The way this album came about has been a spiritual journey more than anything else,” says Christiaan. “Last year, I read the book The Four Agreements. It affected me; a Toltec wisdom book had changed my life. This was quite a change for a guy who had been a freewheeling rock-and-roller for 18 years.”

The album began to take shape in early January 2011, the songs coming in a flash – lyrics, melody and chords, sometimes all in an hour or less. “I had never experienced anything like it. They were coming out so fast and they were some of the best songs I had ever written. I felt like a marionette, my fingers moving to new and unexpected places on the piano. I really did feel like ‘a man possessed.”

With this new, yet somewhat unexpected collection of songs, Christiaan set out finding the right location to record them. “I reached out to Musicbox Studios in Cardiff , Wales . Mark ‘the bear’ Foley and Andrew ‘Bernie’ Plain have been good friends to the Webb Brothers over the years and had always left their door open to me” With Bernie (drums), Mark (Bass) and Graham Ryder (Guitars) on board as the newly named ‘The Sweet Lords’, A Man Possessed was recorded at Musicbox between April 2 – 17, 2011 and was produced by Charlie Francis (REM, High Llamas, Turin Brakes). Christiaan’s good friends Romeo Stodart and Angela Gannon from the Magic Numbers make guest appearances as well as a wealth of talent from the Cardiff area including Zervas and Pepper, Steve ‘Sweet Baboo’ Black and John ‘Catfish’ Thomas.

‘A Man Possessed’ features some of Christiaan’s most beguiling melodies to date, with tracks such as ‘Midnight Moon’ recalling his best work with the Webb Brothers. While ‘Life Support’ and ‘My Best Intentions’ express the range, power and soul of Christiaan’s melancholy, often spellbinding vocals. “This album is a shout out to my childhood heroes, both living and fallen, who were always in my prayers as I wrote and recorded it: John Lennon, Harry Nilsson, Billy Joel, Elton John, Billy Preston and Jimmy Webb. I would especially like to thank George Harrison, who I believe was my spiritual guide throughout this project. If you are ever possessed by a spirit, I recommend George Harrison.”

Christiaan Webb will be touring in April 2012 at the following venues, tour support comes from the amazing Joshua Caole: 13th April – Cardiff – Clwb Ifor Bach, 14th April – Oxford – The Jericho Tavern, 15th April – Birmingham – The Kitchen Garden Café, 16th April – Leicester – The Musician Venue and Bar, 17th April – Bangor – Blue Sky Café, 18th April – Bristol – St Bonaventures, 20th April – Glasgow – Oran Mor, 22nd April – Kinross – Green Hotel, 23rd April – Leeds – Gaslight at the Oporto, 24th April – London – The Slaughtered Lamb (More dates tbc)