This page last updated: 8 Dec 2023
Sherwood is in Yes: news on the main page. He is also in Asia: see under Asia for details. Billy Sherwood and Tony Kaye continue as CIRCA:, covered on its own page. He is in Arc of Life with Jon Davison, Jay Schellen, Jimmy Haun and Dave Kerzner: see the main page.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Sherwood was doing online clinics
and teaching, as he explained in this Apr
2020 Facebook post and this
one, but most of all this
one. He opened his new Sherwood
Studios Online, saying:
The studio is open and operational. Anyone needing real drums, bass, gtrs, keys, vocals or mixing simply message me for details here at my FB page. File sharing makes it all doable from a safe social distance 😎 as I’m not touring nows a good time to help with any artists/bands looking for professional assistance. I love helping folks along thier musical journey 😇However, asked about lessons in Nov 2022 on Facebook, he replied, "I'm in the weeds between Yes/Asia & Arc Of Life/ Circa:".
| Solo
work Sherwood has been working on his next solo album. On 22 Sep 2018, he said on Facebook that he had, "Started working on another solo CD… The 1st track is called "pushing into the wind".... its early going of course but I'm feeling that creative wave coming on and so it begins". On 10 Oct 2019, again on Facebook, he said, "Working on my own new song , material for what will become my next solo cd. Recording guitars". In a Feb 2021 interview, Sherwood said, "I'm in the final stages of another solo album [...] called Pushing Into the Wind [...] there's a song called "Love Remains Real" [...] which is about [...] these people who have never seen each other, never touched [having met online] [...] but love remains as real as if you were there in person." (In a Feb 2021 appearance by Arc of Life on SOAL Night Live, Jay Schellen described recently working with Sherwood, which could be for this project.) In a Mar 2021 interview, Sherwood said, "It's basically ready to head over to mastering and bring it home. I just haven't had a moment to get on that because there's always stuff going on..." He posted lyrics to a song from the album called "All is Fair in Love" to Facebook in Jun 2022. Back in Sep 2016 on Facebook, Sherwood described working on a song entitled "Until Further Notice", which was also the working title for a solo album. Another song was "Talking with Siri". In early Nov 2017, Sherwood shared video on Facebook of a drum session by Jay Schellen (working with Yes, ex-Asia, ex-World Trade) for that song. These both ended up on Arc of Life. |
Tribute
albums & related
Sherwood appeared on "Pigs on a Wing 2" on the
Cleopatra Records release, Animals Reimagined
– A Tribute to Pink Floyd:
see
on main page for details. Cleopatra
Records also have some other releases with remixes of
Sherwood's earlier work for the label: see
on main page for details.
In an Apr 2008 interview, Sherwood said he was working on a tribute to The Police, saying, "I was planning on kind of inviting just like great guitar players to come on and play some great solos and play over the top of the stuff and keep the music kind of pure." However, further news on this did not emerge.
Other news
Sherwood appeared at a 3 Aug 2023 memorial concert for John
Wetton: see
main page for details.
Billy Sherwood and the late Michael
Sherwood appeared on
Kurt Michaels' Stones
from the Garden, out 7 Jul 2023 through Melodic
Revolution Records. Tracks:
The album was written and produced by Michaels (Facebook,
Soundcloud),
who plays guitar and sings throughout. Also appearing are Len
Szymanski, Scott Williams, Dennis Keith Johnson
(ex-Survivor, worked with Dennis DeYoung), John Abbey (worked with John Cale), Jim Gully, Jeff
Abbott, Chris Ussery, Cory Hance, Annie Carlson, Amanda Lehmann (works with Steve Hackett) and Kathie Mills.
It was engineered by Mike Hagler, and mixed and mastered in Jul
2022. Art is by Krista Wallhagen (worked with The
Syn, Renaissance). Michaels began writing the album in
Feb 2016, and recording began Aug 2018.
"Beyond
a Dream" is a digital single released by Cameron Carpenter
(keys, harmony vocal), who wrote the piece. Sherwood plays
fretless bass, produced and mixed the track. Also performing are
Robbie Carpenter (lead vocal) and Wendi Whipple (harmony vocal),
and the track was mastered by Maor Appelbaum.
"The
Fountain of Light, Pt. 2" (3:30) followed on 6 Oct 2023,
credited to Carpenter and Sherwood.
Sherwood guested on vocals on "The Ocean" (3:29) on the
12-track album Songs
for the Future (Apollon Records) from Norwegian band
Laughing Stock, released 3 Feb 2023. The band consists of Jan
Mikael Sørensen, Håvard Enge and Jan Erik K Nilsen. The album
was produced and mixed by Sørensen with Laughing Stock, and
mastered by Jacob Holm-Lupo (White Willow).
Other guests on the album include Colin Moulding
(ex-XTC) and Colin Bass (Camel).
Out 18 Nov 2022 digitally was Shadows in a Jar, the
sixth studio album from Life of
Mars, led by Earl Kayoss and with Fernando
Perdomo (works with Dave Kerzner, Rick
Wakeman, Geoff Downes). A CD
release (Cherry Red Records, SOUMCD030) followed 3 Mar
2023. The album was written by Kayoss, while guesting are
Sherwood and Denny Seiwell (ex-Paul McCartney
& Wings). The album was mastered by Zach Ziskin.
Tracks:
Sherwood provided backing vocals to "All the Tears That Shine" on David Paich's 2022 release Forgotten Toys, co-written and with lead vocals by older brother Michael: see under Michael Sherwood for details. In a Feb 2021 interview, Sherwood said he'd "recently been doing some sessions with Paich, doing some vocal things". In the Mar 2021 interview, Sherwood said, "I'm working with David Paich on some stuff for his solo album".
Directions
is the debut EP from Middlesong,
Joe Schneider (vocals, guitar, keys) and Phil Tomczak (keys,
guitars). Sherwood produced, mixed and played bass, drums,
keys and guitar on the release; Maor Appelbaum mastered.
Tracks: "See This Through" (3:53), "Rain to Sun" (4:45),
"Directions in D Minor (Make Sure that You Learn)" (5:53).
Tracks can be heard on their SoundCloud
page. Middlesong are continuing to work on a full
album.
|
Sherwood co-produced, co-wrote and
played on In Extremis, the second release from Los
Angeles prog band, Days
Between Stations. The band consists of guitarist
Sepand Samzadeh and keyboardist Oscar Fuentes Bills, who
have previously worked with The Pineapple Thief. Sherwood
again co-wrote/produced/arranged their next album: in a 16
Dec 2014 Facebook update, he described "tonight we are
recording the 2nd song for the record (as yet untitled)."
He talked of mastering the album in a Mar 2016 Facebook
post, and in Apr 2016 listed Days Between Stations as one
of the bands he is currently in. Erik Nielsen said on
Facebook in Dec 2017 that he, with Paul Whitehead (worked with Genesis, Van der Graaf
Generator, Le Orme), were finalising artwork for
the third album (both worked on In Extremis). The
album, entitled Giants,
is out digitally
(on Bandcamp or Amazon
UK), on CD and
vinyl. Details
in Yescography.
Sherwood performs drums, bass and vocals, and the album
also includes three guests: Colin Moudling
(ex-XTC) sings lead and co-wrote lyrics on "Goes
by Gravity"; Durga McBroom (works with
Dave Kerzner, worked with Pink Floyd) provides
lead vocals on "Witness the End of the World"; and Inid
Abiza provides backing vocals on "Spark of Life". In the Mar
2021 interview, Sherwood said, "I'm playing drums as
a de facto band member, if you will, with a band called
Days Between Stations. We're trying to gear up to record a
live DVD/Blu-ray for sale and possible stream." Samzadeh
and Fuentes were in rehearsals in Apr 2021, for planned
live shows with Sherwood (drums) and Jennifer Jo Oberle
(bass) later in 2021, but they didn't happen. The quartet
had previously rehearsed in Nov 2020. The set was expected
to include "Giants" and "Eggshell Man". The band then
announced a one-off live show/filming session on 15 May
2022 in Los Angeles, CA. The band were Samzadeh (guitars)
and Fuentes Bills (keys), with Scott Connor (CIRCA:;
drums, backing vocals), Jarrad Lander (bass),
Persephone Godwin (backing vocals), Michelle Aragon
(vocals) and David Hussey (XNA; vocals).
Sherwood and McBroom were also billed on vocals as special
guests. The show was recorded for Blu-ray/DVD/CD/digital
release. The band promised more news
about the live release soon in Aug 2023. A 2024 release
is expected. The band shot a video for "Witness the End of the World"
with McBroom. However, the pandemic
delayed the video production, so the video
was not released until Sep 2023. Samzadeh, Sherwood and Oberle
(vocals) are working on a side project. Samzadeh
described working on "a side project with Billy Sherwood"
in the promo for Giants. Sherwood said in a
Jan 2019 interview that he is producing a solo
album by Samzadeh, but I think that has become this
collaboration. Oberle mentioned on Facebook in 2019
recording vocals for a project with Sherwood and Samzadeh,
which she later referred to as the debut album by The
Settlements. |
#ad |
Sherwood works extensively with Dave Kerzner
(worked with Steven Wilson, Jon Anderson), live and on
albums. They are both in Arc of Life. Sherwood has guested on
several of Kerzner's studio albums and also on Kerzner's Sonic
Elements projects. See on the
main page for details.
Billy also guested on the instrumental "The Answered Prayer"
(3:37) on the 7-track Projekt
Gemineye album, In
the Year 3073 - Book II. (Lee
Pomeroy also guested on the album.)
Any news, additions or corrections, please e-mail Henry Potts. Thanks.