Nearly 30 years since its release, Bryan Ferry has revisited his ninth album, Mamouna, with a deluxe reissue of the album, out November 17. The reissue features a new vinyl press of the album, along with an early version of Mamouna recordings on Sketches, and Ferry’s previously unreleased album Horoscope.
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For the Mamouna reissue, Ferry also shared the remastered version of “Your Painted Smile,” along with an instrumental draft of the song recorded in 1989.
The album features contributions from artists spanning Ferry’s career, Roxy Music‘s Phil Manzanera and Brian Eno, who co-wrote the track “Wildcat Days” with Ferry, marking the first co-write for the two. Nile Rodgers, Steve Ferrone, David Williams, Maceo Parker, Carleen Anderson, and more are also featured collaborators on the album.
Cut at Abbey Road Studios, the Mamouna deluxe reissue is available in 2-LP and 3-CD formats and features the original album, mastered by Bob Ludwig, along with Horoscope, which Ferry began writing in 1989 prior to working on Mamouna.
Produced by Ferry and Johnson Somerset and mixed by Sven Taits, Horoscope features seven of Ferry’s original songs, including “The Only Face” and “Gemini Moon,” which ended up on the Mamouna. The album also features a 10-minute version of Roxy Music’s “Mother of Pearl,” originally released on the band’s third album Stranded in 1973.
The final addition to the deluxe set, Sketches, features early versions of Mamouna songs, which were recorded between 1989 and 1993. Sketches features instrumental versions of tracks, including “NYC/Desdemona,” “Loop De Li,” and “Your Painted Smile,” along with other recordings with Ferry’s vocals and piano, alone.
The reissue of Mamouna and Ferry’s lost album comes as he celebrates his 50th anniversary as a solo artist, and the release of his debut These Foolish Things. In 2022, Ferry also celebrated 50 years of Roxy Music with a tour, along with founding members Manzanera, oboist Andy Mackay, and drummer Paul Thompson.
[RELATED: Roxy Music Celebrates 50th Anniversary – Interview]
In 2022 Ferry released Love Letters, an EP featuring interpretations of love songs previously performed by Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, and Dusty Springfield.
“I like extending my repertoire by covering songs from different genres and different times,” said Ferry of the EP. “It can be an interesting challenge, finding the best way to interpret them in my own style—whatever that may be.”
‘Mamouna’ 30th Anniversary Reissue Track List:
Disc 1 – ‘Mamouna’
“Don’t Want to Know”
“N.Y.C.”
“Your Painted Smile”
“Mamouna”
“The Only Face”
“The 39 Steps”
“Which Way to Turn”
“Wildcat Days”
“Gemini Moon”
“Chain Reaction”
Disc 2 – ‘Horoscope’
“Where Do We Go from Here”
“The Only Face (Horoscope Version)”
“Desdemona”
“S&M”
“Loop De Li”
“Gemini Moon (Horoscope Version)”
“Raga”
“Mother of Pearl”
Disc 3 – ‘Sketches’
“Mamouna” (Instrumental Edit ’89/’94)
“Your Painted Smile” (Instrumental – First Draft ’89)
“Your Painted Smile” (With Guide Vocal) (Later Version ’89)
“Your Painted Smile” (Piano and Vocal ’93)
“NYC/Desdemona” (Instrumental ’91)
“Robot” (Instrumental) [first Draft ’89]
“The Only Face” (Instrumental) (First Draft ’89)
“The Only Face” (Piano and Vocal ’93)
“Loop De Li” (Instrumental) (first Draft ’89)
“Horoscope Strings” (Instrumental ’90)
Photo: Matthew Becker / Courtesy of High Rise PR
