Michael Shipp Joins "Private Radio" International Tour

Michaelrshipp.com
Friday, March 1, 2002

Michael R. Shipp is joining his lifelong friend and cohort in musical crime, Billy Bob Thornton, playing electric and acoustic guitars for Billy Bob Thornton's European Tour to celebrate Thornton's critically successful Private Radio CD (available on Lost Highway Records).  With Old Goldie in tow, Mike will join a hand picked group of fine musicians on stage with Billy Bob Thornton, covering not only prime cuts from the "Private Radio" CD but also several gritty pieces that Billy Bob and Mike have cowritten.  Launched with two wildly successful performances in Montreal, Canada last week, the tour will take Thornton et al on the road in Europe, with U.S. dates to be slated in the late spring/early summer.  

"I am very excited about having the opportunity to perform live once again with Billy," Mike commented at the prospect of hitting the road with his friend for the first time in 20 years.  "Later this year, Billy and I hope to continue working on his second CD, which we started last year prior to the Private Radio project."

Michael Shipp and Billy Bob Thornton toured much of the South in the mid-1980s with their ZZTop Tribute Band, Tres Hombres.  That ensemble effort produced the energetic, blues-blastin' Gunslinger LP (Trigger Records), now a highly sought-after collectible.   Over the years, and throughout the rise of Billy Bob's astonishing career in motion pictures, Mike has remained a key collaborator on the Oscar™ winner's musical projects, often songsmithing with Billy Bob on the sets of his films--between takes, no less!  In the meantime, Mike has also diligently pursued the crafting of his own material.  "Billy graciously allowed me to step away from the Private Radio project, which gave me most of 2001 to focus on recording my project, The Adventures of Roosterboy, which we hope to release later this year."