I just wanted to update everyone that Corinne has announced that all US dates that were scheduled for last month have been “moved” to 2011 to cover the missed concerts in April. There are no hard dates but for the US fans, I’m sure it’s a bit disappointing. Interesting tidbit, Corinne says that there’s a possibility of adding more cities so I’m going start a thread for “Cities that Swing Out Sister Should Visit In 2011!”

I’ve stickied this post so it’ll be there until Swing Out Sister announces dates next year. Have fun with it and I’m sure that Corinne and Andy will be reading.

Updated: I’ve added the text from the site in case anyone wants to read from here directly:

“A big thank you to all of you for being so patient. As you know we can’t make decisions in a hurry… and it’s not just because we take so long to decide! There are lots of things to take into consideration…. the organisation and availability of everyone in our band and crew… availability of venues close enough to each other to travel on consecutive days (preferably by bus so we can get some sleep!)… enough lead time to promote the concerts ….. volcanic activity (!)…. we also have other touring commitments throughout the rest of the year which may make it difficult to work a US tour around them. We hope all of you have now been reimbursed for your tickets and that those of you who had booked flights and hotels didn’t lose out too much… this kind of natural disaster is unprecedented so we ourselves are still waiting to see if we have any chance of compensation. So- back to the drawing board- we will probably be looking at organising a US tour in 2011, but hey- hopefully with enough time to plan ahead- we may be able to include more cities and get to see more of you!”

Corinne & Andy  and all of the SOS team xxx

via http://sosister.com/us-dates-latest-news

I was just recently made aware of an unsubstantiated rumor that began over on the forums here. On March 18th, a member had posted news that Andy Connell could not play live because he had acute alcoholism. Besides the fact that alcoholism cant’ be acute, this member had claimed that he received this information from Paul O’Duffy, Swing Out Sister’s long time collaborator and producer. This forum member also claimed to have worked with Paul as well.

After a few responses from members who challenged this information, Paul himself contacted me about this post. He was upset that someone would use him as a source of information that was completely false, especially since this directly involves to his long time friend, Andy.

This is what Paul had to say:

“Firstly, I do not know or have ever worked with or employed anyone called (removed). Secondly, his comments are completely untrue, Corinne and Andy are among my oldest and dearest friends and I have nothing bad to say about either of them to anyone! As you can probably tell I am very annoyed about this and am puzzled as to why someone would go to the effort to offend both myself and Andy.”

My guess on why this person had decided to do this is beyond me, however with the internet full of trolls, this is just to get some people excited and to cite some kind of ill reaction. What’s also telling is that this person used an anonymous email account to create the post. The likeliness for us to find out who this person is much tougher though not impossible. You can’t hide forever on the internet… Here’s the funny thing, the poster didn’t even know that Andy posts here and even had the nerve to post that he had just emailed him. Andy, in response, said:

“Not sure this really needs a response. Bit of a shame, really. Thanks, (removed), though for making me aware of it..” – Andy

I’ve since removed the post (though still have it in case it’s needed in the future) and banned the user. If there’s any posts in the future that you, as fans and commenters on this forum, please let me know if there are any fishy, offensive or unsubstantiated posts by clicking on the “!” icon on each post. That will alert me to the post and I’ll take appropriate action on it if it’s required. There’s no way to go through each post here but this will help tremendously help prevent any misinformation from spreading.

For now, Paul and I are still dumbfounded on why anyone would speak badly of Andy. As someone who’s had a chance met and speak with Andy, I can’t say why anyone one ever stoop that low.

If it was meant to be a joke, it was as horrible joke and unfunny on many levels. I’m sure Andy would agree.

A message from Corinne…

Hey you, it’s been a while!

Beautiful Mess is finally being released in the UK on 8th September!
The European release is being planned for October on Edel. Here are some links to other SOS sites.  We have a video for Butterfly, filmed in around Manchester during rehearsals for our last tour, and a video for Butterfly Lullaby, both of which you can see on I like.

Here are some links to other SOS sites:

SOS Myspace Page    http://www.myspace.com/sos06
SOS Facebook Page    http://www.facebook.com/pages/Swing-Out-Sister/20295978634
SOS iLike Page      http://www.ilike.com/artist/Swing+Out+Sister
SOS Last FM Page     http://www.last.fm/music/Swing+Out+Sister

Corinne xxx

We are in still in Japan – have played Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo gig tomorrow.. then on to Fukuoka…then Manila! We have one performance  planned in the UK on 26th April at Blackburn King Georges Hall. It’s a soul night supported by smooth fm. However we will only be doing a short set (around 30-40 mins) as we are special guests- the rest of the night is DJ sets.The music is great!  It’s on until around 3am- we are appearing at around 11.30.

Love Corinne xxx

We are currently in Japan, one gig down in Osaka. (It went really well with our new keyboard player Matt Steele- who incidentally attended the same school as Andy!) The rest of the band are:- Gina Foster providing additional vocals, Myke Wilson drums, Juneroy bass, and Tim Cansfield guitar. We are family!
Next stop Nagoya where we will perform at the Blue Note.

Have to check out now.
Corinne xxx

Here’s the track list and some concert information from Corinne!

It was a race against time to get Beautiful Mess finished before Christmas to make the February 27th release date in Japan. We are still in discussion with other territories including the US, and are currently planning rehearsals for dates in Japan at the end of March. No plans for US dates yet – but we are working on it… (We have to come back & see you!)

Here is the track listing for Beautiful Mess:-

Something Every Day
Time Tracks You Down
Butterfly
My State of Mind
I’d Be Happy
Butterfly Lullaby
Secret Love (You’re Invisible)
All I Say. All I Do
Out There
Beautiful Mess
Butterfly (Little Wizard Mix)
Something Every Day (Little Wizard Mix)

Will be in touch when we have something to report!

Corinne xxx

From Corinne with very important news!

Hey Everybody!
How fantastic- you have come up with some great ideas- this should keep us in album titles for the rest of our lives!!! Where do you get them from- some were very reflective and thoughtful, some fun, and some – well -some were just plain strange! (eg: Wes’ You’re The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly)

Now I have to confess….the very same day the message was posted about titles…Avex Japan issued an ultimatum saying they had to have a title immediately for advance publicity etc…..so…..we opted for the title of one of the tracks on the album- and the title is….Beautiful Mess.
So a big thank you to all those of you who have been racking your brains and tapping into our consciousness!

As for the sound of the album …..we are the last people to try and explain…..it’s a musical journey through our lives that gets more twisted as our lives get longer…..we think it’s great (that’s why we take so long-we don’t want to unveil anything until we are happy with it)……but that’s for you to decide.

The provisional release date for Beautiful Mess by Avex, Japan, is 27th February. There will be two initial tracks available for download in late December, I believe. These are Butterfly and Something Everyday.

So there!
Lots of love and a big thank you to all of you,
Corinne xxx

I feel really guilty for not having written another newsletter recently.

The trouble is, when we are in the studio there isn’t much to write about… I mean, what can you write about writing?!!
It’s going really well- I feel that we are just about getting there…… we will be sure to let you know when we have something completed. We did a photo session last week so should have a cover shot  & some new publicity pictures when we get the chance to edit them. One thing we have been asked….and have had no time to think about…. is a title for the album… it may turn out to be the name of one of the tracks… but if anyone has any suggestions that fit the mood of the album, you would be doing us a great favour as we have a thousand and one things to think of at the moment… and somebody might just think of the perfect title!

Corinne xxx

Corinne reflects…

Is it just me or was 2006 a rotten year?

Most people I have mentioned this to are glad to see the end of it- myself included!
Some years are wonderful- everything runs smoothly and according to plan, others you have to get over and get on with making the next a damned good one. I’m sure this all happens for a good reason- perhaps some years are for reflection to enable us to re-charge and forge full steam ahead with the next.

(more…)

After a very quiet summer, I was emailed by Andy today that they’ve finished doing work on that TV show that I had mentioned a few months ago.  Here are the deets:

Television producer Bill Boyes asked Swing Out Sister to compose music for a TV pilot called “The Outsiders” which will air on October 3rd in iTV (Check your listings for time.) It’s a contemporary spy drama in the likes of the Avengers and Persuaders.  The lead role will be played by Nigel Harman of Eastenders fame.

Andy’s take on what it’s going to sound like?

“We had great fun doing it, and I think it turned out well. There’s a huge variety of music in the show – speedboats, fight scenes, lots of opportunities for me to indulge my John Barry, Bond-theme fantasies, and Corinne gets to sing a French chanson, and can even be heard showing off her operatic side in the background of one scene..”

There’s no plan to pickup the show for an entire season so for now, we’ll get what we can take from Corrine and Andy.  Wouldn’t it be nice to see SOS do new music for a show on a regular basis?  For our friends overseas, make sure you tune in to The Outsiders on Tuesday October 3rd!  Whether the show is good or bad, it’s nice to see them get high profile gigs.

Go here for a couple of clips from the show (with music!): http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/article/ds36928.html