It’s been so many years that fans of Peter Gabriel have been lost in conjecture about a hypothetical new album – when they have not simply thrown in the towel – that when finally a concrete announcement, from a source close to the interested, it is hard to believe. At the end of the week, drummer Manu Katché, companion of the rocker’s most prosperous years, announced an upcoming album and a tour for the singer with a captivating career, which will be in Europe in May 2023. His latest album by original compositions, Up, a concept disc, introspective and quite dark, was released in 2002.
In an interview on the Swiss site The IllustratedManu Katché, a famous 63-year-old rhytmicist, who has also had a career in jazz for several years, spoke of his joy at continuing to “run the world” (in response to a question), despite health problems that hinder him in his practice of his instrument: “The passion has not dissipated. (…) Behind my drums, I am 14 and a half years old! (…) A world tour is planned for 2023 with Peter Gabriel, from May in Europe . We’re finishing his new album, then we’re going for a walk around the planet. It’s super exciting!”
The drummer, who has accompanied Peter Gabriel in the studio and on stages around the world since the legendary album So (1986), the English singer’s biggest hit, is believed to have woven “a real family bond” with this artist who has been committed for decades to humanitarian causes, but also with Sting: “If we stayed so close, it’s because we have a fairly similar philosophy and vision of life. I learned a lot from them. The first tour I did with Peter was It was Amnesty International. We weren’t paid. The money from the concerts went to lawyers in charge of freeing political prisoners. In that context, you learn quickly. Me, music made me grow. J have matured thanks to my collaborations.”
On the newspaper’s website West France, Manu Katché had already mentioned on March 15, at the end of an interview, “a new album with Peter Gabriel at the end of the year” and “a tour of the United States and Europe in 2023”, he said then. Things therefore seem to be clearing up for the legendary co-founder of Genesis, who was long believed to be retired from the scene. Gabriel’s latest musical projects included an album of cover songs by artists he admired (Scratch My Back in 2010, before the mirror disc And I’ll Scratch Yours in 2013, where other artists covered his songs), in new versions of his songs with a symphony orchestra (New Blood in 2011), and a few unreleased tracks and remasters.
A few years ago, Peter Gabriel reformed the “dream team” of the album So for a 25th anniversary tour of the record, with a brilliant passage – and not devoid of nostalgia – at Bercy in October 2013. It is in this same room that he triumphed several times between 1987 and 2004, solo or during different events such as Amnesty International tours. In 2016 he toured with Sting in North America. In the meantime, Peter Gabriel has remained active in humanitarian and environmental commitments.
In October 2021, Peter Gabriel had posted photos on Instagram of his friends and fellow travelers David Rhodes (guitar), Tony Levin (bass) and Manu Katché at the famous Real World studio which he founded near Bath at the end of the 1980s. The work done in recent months is therefore about to bear fruit.