New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Today marks 25 years since the release of Mickey Hart's groundbreaking album, Planet Drum. The landmark recording earned the first World
Music Grammy, spent 26 weeks at #1 on the Billboard charts & the band, comprised of Mickey Hart, Zakir Hussain, Vikku Vinayakram, Babatunde Olatunji, Sikiru Adepoju, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim and
Giovanni Hidalgo toured the world, performing for sold out crowds. The music of Planet Drum transcended sonic and cultural boundaries and is as relevant today as it was over two decades ago. In celebration of Planet Drum, UMe is proud to announce the 25th anniversary edition, coming December 2016.
Planet Drum, 25th anniversary edition includes three new tracks-"Sea of Showers," "Throat Games," and "The Spot," with additional arrangement and composition by long time collaborator Zakir Hussain. "Sea of Showers" features Flora Purim and Babatunde Olatunji singing over a rhythm base that includes sounds ranging from a bullroarer to chimes. "Throat Games" is an all-globe scat-a-thon and "The Spot" is a sonic homage to the water gods.
When asked to reflect on making Planet Drum, Hart commented "This experience was about people having the will to do it and wanting to come together�because many times, people from different cultures are reticent of getting together with powerful people from other cultures; it's hard to share rhythm for some musicians who are tradition-bound. In this case, these folks, they weren't culturally bound by their rhythms; they were in the right place at the right time for a new gumbo, a new way of coming together, egoless, in the spirit, to have fun and record a classic 20th century gamelan, which has always been the carrot for me. I always wanted to ring that bell."
Universal
Music Group and Mickey Hart are also happy to announce a new partnership, which takes Hart into the studio to create a new album that will be released with
Verve Label Group in 2017. Hart is also bringing his extensive historical body of work to UMe, naming them as his partners for catalogue initiatives.
The 25th Anniversary edition of Planet Drum will be released on vinyl, cd and with all digital partners on December 2, 2016. For the latest news on Mickey Hart, go to www.mickeyhart.net
