Peter Gabriel Offers Free Preview of Upcoming Covers Album Featuring David Bowie, Arcade Fire and Radiohead

BY Stephen CarlickPublished Jan 15, 2010

Back in late October, we told you that ex-Genesis art-rock legend Peter Gabriel was working on a covers album that demonstrated what we called his "impeccable taste." It was to feature orchestral versions of songs by the likes of Radiohead, Magnetic Fields, Bon Iver, Arcade Fire, Lou Reed, Neil Young and others, and was slotted for a 2010 album release. Now, Gabriel is giving fans their first taste of the record.

Via a new set of podcasts (here and here), Gabriel talks about some of the artists included on the album, delving into why he's chosen to take on the likes of Talking Heads and David Bowie. More importantly, the podcasts also feature several clips of the new covers songs themselves, including Gabriel's redo of Arcade Fire's "My Body Is a Cage."

Along with the sneak-peak, Gabriel confirms that the album, titled Scratch My Back, is indeed only one half of a "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" deal. This means a sister album featuring the artists covered on the album reinterpreting Gabriel's songs is on the horizon. In fact, the Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt has already covered Gabriel's 2004 track "Not One of Us" and will be releasing the song digitally on January 30.

Also, he mentions that he'll only play three North American shows in support of the record. As of right now, the locations are up in the air, but it sounds as if Montreal may just be one of those stops, so keep your fingers crossed.

Scratch My Back is due out on February 16 in North America via Real World/Universal Records.

Scratch My Back :

1. "Heroes" (David Bowie cover)
2. "The Boy in the Bubble" (Paul Simon cover)
3. "Mirrorball" (Elbow cover)
4. "Flume" (Bon Iver cover)
5. "Listening Wind" (Talking Heads cover)
6. "The Power of the Heart" (Lou Reed cover)
7. "My Body Is a Cage" (Arcade Fire cover)
8. "The Book of Love" (Magnetic Fields cover)
9. "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" (Randy Newman cover)
10. "Après Moi" (Regina Spektor cover)
11. "Philadelphia" (Neil Young cover)
12. "Street Spirit" (Radiohead cover)

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