Three years on from the release of his previous solo album Always Seeking, guitarist and singer-songwriter Jake Aaron is back with a follow-up. Livingston Sessions is named after Livingston Studios in London, where it was recorded. The album features the same line-up of musicians that played on his previous album, namely with Steve Lodder on keyboards, Davide Mantovani on bass and Marc Parnell on drums.
Jake Aaron: “I wrote the pieces on my latest album at different times over the years, but they seemed to belong together in style – something between folk and jazz. With the opportunity to bring together the excellent line-up from Always Seeking once again, it felt like the right time to record them.”
The jazzy, ambient ‘It’ll Be Alright’ was first released as a single back in 2025. Aaron: “We discussed recording this with some lead guitar but Steve’s piano is so superb and atmospheric it wasn’t needed. During the session, Kenny Jones, the engineer, mentioned he listened to this track on repeat through underwater headphones while swimming.”
Lyrical themes on the album, which comprises a mix of both songs and instrumental pieces, include the long-running feud between Joan Crawford and Bette Davis (‘Duel’); the Japanese soldier who remained a staunch defender of his island holdout 29 years after the Second World War ended (‘Hiroo Onoda’) and the final thought processes of crew members on a wrecked ship (‘Watery Moon’).
Musically, the album encompasses jazz and folk influences with individual tracks also taking a peek at 1950s doo-wop, soul, avante garde and experimental.
Always a fascinating artist, both musically and lyrically, and one with an instinctive feel for pulling together seasoned collaborators for his various projects, Livingston Sessions is another Jaje Aaron album that’s well worth a listen.
Released: 12 November 2026 https://jakeaaron.com/livingston-sessions
Related posts:
Always Seeking: interview with guitarist and singer songwriter – Jake Aaron
Interview: Darren talks Fag Ash and Beer with guitarist/singer-songwriter Jake Aaron
