Whitesnake New Album Due in Early 2018
David Coverdale has confirmed to Ultimate Classic Rock that WHITESNAKE is working on music for a new album, tentatively due in early 2018. "We've never had such an immense amount of positive material," he said. "I've worked, for the first time as writers, with [WHITESNAKE guitarists] Reb Beach and with Joel Hoekstra. Because when Joel came in, we were doing 'The Purple Album', of course. And not only do we have great Coverdale/Hoekstra and Coverdale/Beach songs, but we have the three of us combining [as writers]."
He continued: "The songs are fucking excellent. We have eighteen or nineteen extraordinarily positive, potent, juicy classic WHITESNAKE songs, from balls-to-the-wall [rockers] to blues, to epics to ballads. It's kickass. It's definitely got me fluffed up. That will be [coming out in] late spring next year. We're looking at getting out [on tour] in the U.S. around June, so probably May."
According to Coverdale, another project that is in the works is a DVD that was filmed during WHITESNAKE's tour in support of the group's latest disc, "The Purple Album". That effort, which was released in May 2015 via Frontiers Music Srl, was billed as "a re-imagination of classic songs from Coverdale's time as the lead singer for DEEP PURPLE's Mark III and Mark IV studio albums." Coverdale was DEEP PURPLE's frontman from late 1973 to early 1976 and sang on the albums "Burn", "Stormbringer" and "Come Taste The Band".
Coverdale told Ultimate Classic Rock about the upcoming DVD: "It's fucking fantastic. I'm going from talking with you guys to finishing off the edit today. We're doing the last tweaks and then delivering it to Warners. It's kickass. To promote it, we've put together WHITESNAKE as you've never seen them before on a video for 'Burn'. It is un-fucking-believable. It's a full-production video. And we're still tweaking, but the people at Warners who have seen it, they're mindblown by it. We worked with a young, hip gunslinger Canadian director called Tyler Bourns. And he's kick-fucking-ass. He did all of the videos with us on 'The Purple Album'. He's the head of our video creative ops and a great guy as well."
Also coming from the WHITESNAKE camp is "a fucking huge coffee table book" that is "about the size of a fucking huge encyclopedia, a historical photographic journey from the beginning of 'The Purple Album' to the end of the last show in the U.K. in Sheffield," according to Coverdale. "We were supposed to have this out for last Christmas, but I was so exhausted, coming off the road," he said. "So, better late than never. It's still only a year and a half old. The book's fucking beautiful to have. It's going to be a WHITESNAKE Christmas, without a doubt."
PURPLE classics revamped for "The Purple Album" included "Stormbringer", "Lady Double Dealer", "Soldier Of Fortune" and "Sail Away".
WHITESNAKE's self-titled album, also known in some countries as "1987", which was certified multi-platinum and featured the smash single "Here I Go Again", turns thirty this year and Rhino is celebrating with four new versions, including an expansive boxed set.
"Whitesnake: Super Deluxe Edition" will be available on October 6 for $49.98. The 4-CD/DVD collection includes the original album with newly remastered sound, unreleased live and studio recordings, classic music videos, concert footage, a thirty-minute documentary, featuring a new interview with Coverdale,. The music comes with a sixty-page hardbound book that's filled with rare and unseen photos from the era, an extended essay based on new interviews with Coverdale, plus a booklet of the album's lyrics, handwritten by Coverdale. The audio will also be available via digital download and streaming services.
