Ex-Journey bassist Ross Valory has debuted a second advance track from his forthcoming debut solo album, All of the Above. The song is a Latin-flavored instrumental tune titled “Wild Kingdom.” A music video for the song premiered at Ultimate Classic Rock, and also can be viewed at Valory’s YouTube channel.
Videos by American Songwriter
The upbeat track boats a jazzy, rhythm-heavy sound. It features Doobie Brothers saxophonist Marc Russo, longtime Santana percussionist Karl Perazzo, and former Santana drummer Walfredo Reyes Jr.
Valory played bass and synthesizer on the song, while Eric Levy, who co-produced All of the Above, contributed keyboards.
“‘Wild Kingdom’ is definitely a good example of the variety of songs on All of the Above,” Valory explained in a statement. “I wrote the piece on a Calliope keyboard patch in the mid ’80s and had the [privilege] of developing the arrangement with Karl Perazzo … in 2012. ‘Wild Kingdom’ became my first venture in recording with authentic Latin rhythms as well as the first project I worked on with keyboardist Eric Levy.”
The ”Wild Kingdom” Video
The video, which combines video footage with computer-generated animation, features a train riding through a surreal jungle landscape. As the train makes its journey, we see a variety of unusual creatures, some resembling jungle denizens such as elephants and giraffes, and other that are clearly alien beings. The only passenger seen on the train is a young girl, who views the creatures and odd landscape with wonder.
About All of the Above
According to Ultimate Classic Rock, All of the Above will be released on April 12. The first advance track from the album, “Tomland,” debuted in January, along with its own companion music video.
As previously reported, “Tomland” features guitar work by Miles Schon, son of Journey co-founder Neal Schon. The Tubes’ Prairie Prince, who also was an original member of Journey, plays drums on the track.
All of the Above features eight tracks in total, and includes original material that Valory has been accumulating for decades. Among the songs is a cover of the 1970 Santana tune “Incident at Neshabur.” Other guest musicians on the record include ex-Journey drummer Steve Smith and Sly and the Family Stone drummer Gregg Errico.
About Valory and Smith’s Departure from Journey
Valory and Smith were ousted from Journey in 2020 after they apparently unsuccessfully attempted to gain control over rights to the band’s name. The musicians eventually reached “a peaceful mediated settlement” with their former bandmates.
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