Photo Credit: Pooneh Ghana
Acclaimed singer-songwriter-pianist Neal Francis has shared his emotionally charged and soulful new single, “Don’t Want You To Know,” available today at all DSPs and streaming services. Produced in Los Angeles by longtime collaborator Sergio Rios, the emotionally charged track heralds the Chicago-based artist’s upcoming new EP, Sentimental Garbage, arriving via ATO Records on Friday, November 18. Pre-orders are available now.
“This was another artifact of a bad breakup,” Francis says. “This one occurred back in 2014. It’s about living a double life and paying the consequences. This is one of the first tunes I demoed out for the Neal Francis project with Mike Novak in 2016 when I was recently sober.”
PRE-ORDER SENTIMENTAL GARBAGE EP
Sentimental Garbage was unveiled last month with the premiere of two all-new tracks, the horn-blasted “Very Fine, Pts. 1 & 2” backed with a hypnotic cover of Shuggie Otis’ classic, “Strawberry Letter 23,” both available now for streaming and download. The double-sided single had its exclusive premiere via Rolling Stone Country, which wrote, “Francis’s rendition of ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ evokes the Seventies charm of the disco-tinged single — a Top 5 hit for the Brothers Johnson in 1977 — and dazzles with a psychedelic mid-song breakdown.”
Sentimental Garbage – which follows last year’s breakthrough sophomore LP, In Plain Sight (ATO) – collects a number of standout tracks recorded during the original album sessions at The Parsonage, Francis’s DIY studio at St. Peter’s Church in Chicago. In addition to “Strawberry Letter 23,” the EP includes a newly recorded cover of The Three Degrees’ R&B-fueled version of “Collage” (co-written by Joe Walsh and originally recorded in 1969 by James Gang).
“Sentimental Garbage was the working title of our last LP,” Francis says, “which includes the track of the same name. We ended up calling that record In Plain Sight while removing the title track from the sequence. I knew this was my last chance to slap Sentimental Garbage on a record jacket, the thought of which always brought me great joy. It also works because this record is compiled of bittersweet scraps. I guess we could have also titled the record Burnt Ends.”
Sentimental Garbage continues what has already proven a milestone 2022 for Francis, with highlights including a prestigious Americana Music Association Honors & Awards nomination (for “Emerging Act of the Year”), a benefit single with Wilco featuring a live collaboration on their classic “Theologians,” and debut live appearance on CBS Saturday Morning performing the In Plain Sight highlight, “Can’t Stop The Rain.”
Hailed by SPIN as “a mesmerizing performer,” Francis will mark the arrival of Sentimental Garbage with a wide-ranging live schedule, including headline shows, festival appearances, and a North American tour supporting Marcus King. A much-anticipated EU/UK tour will follow in November, including headline dates in England, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Italy, and Spain. Headline dates with Danielle Ponder supporting have been confirmed for January and February 2023. For complete details and ticket information, please visit www.nealfrancis.com/tour.
NEAL FRANCIS
ON TOUR 2022-2023
OCTOBER
13 – Portland, OR – Crystal Ballroom ^
14 – Seattle, WA – Neptune Theatre ^
15 – Seattle, WA – Neptune Theatre ^
17 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex ^
18 – Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom ^
20 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant ^
21 – Chicago, IL – Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom ^
22 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore Detroit ^
23 – Cleveland, OH –Agora Theatre and Ballroom ^
25 – Charlotte, NC – The Fillmore Charlotte ^
26 – Birmingham, AL – Avondale Brewing Company ^
27 – New Orleans, LA – The Fillmore New Orleans ^
NOVEMBER
1 – London, UK – Moth Club
2 – Maastricht, NL – Muziekgieterij
3 – Rotterdam, NL – Bird
4 – Nijmegen, NL – Merleyn
5 – Groningen, NL – TakeRoot Festival †
6 – Utrecht, NL – De Helling
8 – Antwerp, BE – Trix Bar
9 – Leffinge, BE – De Zwerver
10 – Beauvais, FR – L’ouvre Boite
11 – Saint–Lô, FR – Le Normandy
12 – Béthune, FR – Le Poche
13 – Paris, FR – Please, Please, Please Festival @ La Boule Noire †
15 – Hengelo, NL – Metropool
16 – Hamburg, DE – Häkken
17 – Copenhagen, DK – Råhuset
18 – Malmo, SE – Folk å Rock
19 – Falkenberg, SE – Tryckhallen
20 – Stockholm, SE – Nalen
21 – Oslo, NO – Blå
22 – Bergen, NO – Lille Ole Bull
25 – Berlin, DE – Prachtwerk
26 – Munich, DE – Milla Club
27 – Milan, IT – Spazio Teatro 89
29 – Madrid, ES – Villanos del Jazz at Teatro Pavón
30 – Barcelona, ES – Piñata Music Series @ La Nau
DECEMBER
1-4 – Key West, FL – Coast Is Clear Music & Arts Festival †
2-3 – Lake Wales, FL – Orange Blossom Revue †
JANUARY 2023
2 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up Aspen
25 – Louisville, KY – Headliners Music Hall *
27 – Pittsburgh, PA – Mr. Smalls Theatre *
28 – Toronto, ONT – The Velvet Underground *
31 – Baltimore, MD – The 8×10 *
FEBRUARY 2023
1 – Raleigh, NC – Lincoln, Theatre *
2 – Asheville, NC – Salvage Station *
3 – Athens, GA – Georgia Theatre *
4 – Charleston, SC – Charleston Pour House
6-12 – Miami, FL> Puerto Plata, DR>Ocean Cay, BS – Jam Cruise 19
MARCH 2023
3-5 – Steamboat Springs, CO – WinterWonderGrass Festival †
^ Supporting Marcus King
* w/Danielle Ponder supporting
† Festival Performance
