Peter Frampton - Now (2003) [Reissue 2015]

Five decades into his career, Peter Frampton continues to innovate and entertain! Beginning his career with The Herd and Humble Pie in the 1960s, Peter Frampton stormed into the 70s as a solo artist, creating one of the best-selling live albums of not only that decade, but all time. A commercial and critical resurgence through the 80s and 90s brought him into not only another decade, but a new century. Now, originally released in 2003, was Peter’s 12th studio release. Proclaiming “I’m Back,” he addressed his longest gap between releases, and offered up a seriously strong collection of material. From riff-filled rockers to shimmering ballads and instrumentals, Now was not only a culmination of what made Frampton a superstar, but showed he was far from done creating. In addition to his iconic guitar playing, Frampton reached back into his history with Bob Mayo (who played in his Frampton Comes Alive band) on keyboards, and found a new songwriting collaborator in Gordon Kennedy – whose resume includes tracks recorded by Bonnie Raitt, Garth Brooks, Alison Krauss, and a Song Of The Year Grammy for Eric Clapton’s “Change The World.” In addition to Now’s 10 originals, Peter pays tribute to his recently departed friend George Harrison with a searing cover of The Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” which not only captures the emotion of the original, but confirms Frampton’s stature as a guitar icon. Including liner notes from writer Scott Schinder, based on new interviews with Peter, this reissue is timed perfectly to coincide with Frampton’s first acoustic tour, through the fall of 2015. It is obvious that the time to revisit or discover this album is Now!