Breakaway Angel is available for purchase at NilsLofgren.com
This was my first official recording as a member of the Nils Lofgren Band. It wasn't, however, my first time in the studio with Nils; that happened in 1979 when I was in the group Tears. Nils came in to produce and add parts to demos we were doing for a new album which never materialized. Those tunes did achieve a bit of notoriety, being mentioned in Bob Woodward's book about John Belushi as being among the tunes he listened to on the night he died (but that is definitely another story!).
The next sessions I did with Nils were with bass player John Previti a few months after Danny Gatton's death. There was also a harpist on those sessions whose name I forget, which gave a slight glimpse into the future and Nils' current interest in that instrument. While none of those recordings have been released (at least to my knowledge), one of the tunes we did at those sessions ("Seize Love") was re-worked and included on this album.
This album was recorded in Arizona and Maryland. The sessions in AZ included Michael Botts on drums and the great Lee Sklar on bass. Rhythm tracks for the MD sessions were tracked at my studio with Wade Matthews on bass, Nils on acoustic guitar, and me playing live. Overdubs were done by Nils at his place. One of the tracks Wade initially played was re-cut by Lee in AZ, so I got to play with one of my all-time heroes - only not at the same time!