Matt Backer - Backernalia (2021)

Matt Backer’s outstanding 2021 solo album, Backernalia. Born in New Orleans, and now based in London, Matt is a top guitarist and songwriter, who has performed, toured and recorded with artists including Rumer, Emmylou Harris, Elton John, Cher, Joe Cocker, Alice Cooper, Aimee Mann, Laura Mvula and Julian Lennon, as well as playing lead guitar with pop band ABC for the last two decades. In addition, he has composed music featured in hit television series’ NCIS and Law and Order, and films such as Domino and Horton Hears A Who!. Backernalia is Matt’s fifth solo album, and was produced by Matt and his long-time collaborator Ian Shaw (Nick Heyward, Julian Cope) of Warmfuzz Studios in Key West, Florida. The album features I Wish You Would, an exhilarating version of Billy Boy Arnold’s rhythm and blues classic, with Matt and Sarah Jane Morris of The Communards on vocals. Other highlights include The Devil Washed His Hands Of Me, co-written with Martin Fry of ABC, Hooked On Love, a duet with Italian singer, Francesca de Bonis, and The Eyes Have It, featuring Mari Wilson. Matt’s previous albums have won numerous awards, and his singles have been playlisted at radio stations across the USA, as well as being supported by stations throughout the UK, including BBC Radio 2. Mojo described his debut album The Impulse Man as having ‘the chunkiest riffs and licks you wish youʼd learned to play wrapped around songs reeling with fat choruses and wry humour.’