Bassist Bill Wyman left The Rolling Stones in 1993 after 30 years with the band, but at age 87, he’s still making music. Wyman has just announced plans to release he’s ninth solo album, Drive My Car, which is due out on August 9.
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Drive My Car is Wyman’s first new studio effort since his 2015 album, Back to Basics.
[RELATED: Bill Wyman Reveals How It Took Two Years for The Rolling Stones To Realize He Quit]
The album, which can be pre-ordered now, is available on CD, vinyl LP, and via digital formats. The CD and digital versions of Drive My Car feature two bonus songs.
Wyman has released the title track, which he wrote, as an advance single. You can check out an animated video for the tune at his official YouTube channel.
The fun and flirty mid-tempo rock ‘n’ roll tune features Wyman singing in a gruff whisper as he tells his love interest, “You can drive my car, but don’t drive fast.” The video features a Rolls-Royce with a bass guitar sticking out of its back window taking a leisurely drive along a country road.
More Details About Drive My Car
Five of the 12 songs on Drive My Car were either written or co-written by Wyman.
“It’s not something I do every day,” he noted, “but sometimes I just see a guitar in the corner of the room, pick it up to play around and then something clicks into place.”
Wyman recorded Drive My Car at his home studio with some of his longtime musical collaborators, including guitarist Terry Taylor and drummer Paul Beavis. Taylor, who is a member of Wyman’s post-Stones group The Rhythm Kings, also co-wrote two songs on the album with Bill.
About the Cover Tunes on Drive My Car
The album features several interesting cover songs, including Bob Dylan’s “Thunder on the Mountain,” Taj Mahal’s “Light Rain,” and the late John Prine’s “Ain’t Hurtin’ Nobody.”
“Thunder on the Mountain” is a song that first appeared on Dylan’s 2006 album Modern Times.
“I’ve known Bob since the mid-’60s,” Wyman revealed. “He used to take me and Brian Jones round the Greenwich Village clubs whenever we were in New York. We were very good friends for a while, he was a really nice guy.”
“Light Rain” is a folk-blues song Taj Mahal first released in 1969. Wyman befriended Taj Mahal when the latter artist took part in The Rolling Stones’ 1968 TV special Rock ‘n’ Roll Circus.
“He was fascinated that I was a member of the Royal Horticultural Society,” Wyman remembered. “[W]e bonded over botany!”
Wyman paid tribute to Prine, who died in 2020 at age 73, by covering Prine’s 1995 tune “Ain’t Hurtin’ Nobody.”
“We were very great friends, and the Rhythm Kings did a few of his tracks,” Wyman pointed out. “What a lyricist!”
Wyman’s Biggest Musical Influence on Drive My Car
Wyman cites late blues-rock singer/songwriter JJ Cale as the biggest musical inspiration for Drive My Car.
“[H]is laidback groove has always appealed to me,” Wyman said. “Friends I’ve played [the album] to have said things like ‘it really sounds like you’, and that makes me happy. I’ve never tried to be anyone else. … I’m Bill, basically.”
Wyman’s Other Recent Endeavors
Wyman contributed to one song on The Rolling Stones’ 2023 album, Hackney Diamonds. He played bass on the track “Live by the Sword,” which also featured late Stones drummer Charlie Watts, thereby reuniting the band’s classic 1970s/’80s-era lineup.
Also in 2023, Wyman published a book called Billy in the Wars!, which features his childhood recollections of and anecdotes about living though World War II.
Drive My Car Track List:
- “Thunder on the Mountain”
- “Drive My Car”
- “Bad News”
- “Storm Warning”
- “Light Rain”
- “Ain’t Hurtin’ Nobody”
- “Rough Cut Diamond”
- “Wings”
- “Two Tone Car”
- “Fools Gold”
CD/Digital Bonus Tracks:
- “Sweet Baby”
- “Tell You a Secret”
