Guitarist Ashley Naylor, guitarist for Paul Kelly, the RocKwiz Orchestra, Even and most recently The Church, has today released the new single “Les Paul Waltz” from his new solo album Soundtracks Volume 2, which debuted in the AIR Album Chart Top 5 upon release late last month. Ashley’s ode to the creamy tones of a Gibson Les Paul guitar, the instrumental track echoes classic late ’60s instrumentals by the likes of Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac and Jeff Beck and highlights the taste and musicianship of the man who sees himself as primarily a guitar player.
“Les Paul Waltz” represents but one flavour on Naylor’s wide-ranging collection of guitar instrumentals. Also taking inspiration from the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Dicky Betts, Peter Frampton, Eddie Hazel, David Axelrod and more recent artists like AIR and Spiritualized, Soundtracks Volume 2 is a testament to the artist’s current vision and new phase.
Naylor, who has just returned from a US tour with The Church, has announced that he and his new solo band Spaceship will perform a “Soundtracks Vol. 2 Album LIFT-OFF Concert” on Friday 17 November at the Brunswick Ballroom. Tickets are on sale now.
Ashley Naylor‘s new solo album Soundtracks Volume 2 is out now, and available as an LP, CD or digital download on the El Reno Music Bandcamp site now
Soundtracks Volume 2, which has been preceded by the 8-minute single “Spaceship”, will be Naylor’s second volume of instrumental guitar music and will be his first solo release since Even‘s acclaimed 2021 ARIA Top 20 Double album Reverse Light Years. It won’t be the first new release of 2023 to feature Naylor’s remarkable playing though; most notably he appears throughout The Church‘s latest album The Hypnogogue, which was his first album with the iconic group he joined in 2020. Naylor also played on Paul Kelly‘s recently released cover of the Sunnyboys‘ classic “Alone with You”, and also appears on the new ARIA Top 10 album Hey Dawn by up & coming Australian alt-country superstar Fanny Lumsden. He has also helped ready for release a new album Centaurus – out November 3 – by The Ronson Hangup, another long-term project which he fronts alongside former Anyones singer and songwriter Steve Pinkerton.
Naylor, who in 2021 featured on Vika & Linda‘s #2 ARIA charting album The Wait, and Paul Kelly’s #1 ARIA charting Christmas Train and toured with both PK and the sisters nationally, has had a frantically busy year, involving a lot of touring with both Paul Kelly and The Church. The Church in particular has provided Naylor with a momentous time this year: having undertaken a 21 city, six week with the band in March & April, he is currently in the midst of a second US Church tour, taking in 26 cities in 5 weeks. As the release of Soundtracks Volume 2 approaches, he has his sights set on space – inner and outer, wherever his playing will take him – and is getting his instrumental guitar head on. Stay tuned.