After a long hiatus, fans are being treated to a double dose of new music from Jill Scott. “The Light of the Sun” — the singer/songwriter’s first album under her recently announced distribution deal with Warner Bros. — is due in early summer. Its first single is “Shame” featuring Eve, which surfaced online today (Apr. 5). In the meantime, Scott’s former label Hidden Beach Recordings is ramping up the late spring arrival of “Just Before Dawn: Jill Scott From the Vault, Vol. 1.” The project’s lead single is a cover of Bill Withers‘ classic, “Lovely Day.”
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Video: Jill Scott, “Lovely Day”
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Slated as the first in a series of previously unreleased Scott projects, “Just Before Dawn” represents the amicable outcome of a lawsuit last year between Scott and Hidden Beach alleging the singer exited halfway through her six-album deal. “Every family has fights from time to time and the Hidden Beach family is no different,” Hidden Beach CEO Steve McKeever tells Billboard. “But if you’re family, you come back and figure something out. That’s what we did. We are cheering the Warner Bros. record on, but also pleased to have worked jointly with Jill in selecting and compiling music from previous recording sessions that celebrate the greatness of her artistry.”
Scott approved all the selections on “Just Before Dawn,” which McKeever emphasizes is not a random collection of outtakes. “These are unheard masterpieces, some of which were meant to be the centerpiece of future albums,” says McKeever. In addition to the DJ Jazzy Jeff-produced “Lovely Day,” available for sale exclusively at hiddenbeach.com, the 10-track album features songs helmed by such noted producers as Dre & Vidal, James Poyser, Carvin Haggins & Ivan Barias and Adam Blackstone. Also available: a limited edition, deluxe version of the CD, packaged with a DVD that includes all of Scott’s music videos and bonus live performances. In conjunction with the “Lovely Day” single, Hidden Beach is launching a campaign that will encourage people to “Do Better. Feel Better. Have a ‘Lovely Day.'”
Scott spent 10 years with Hidden Beach during which time she released three studio albums, a live album, a live DVD and a compilation album featuring previous collaborations with various artists. Her last proper Hidden Beach studio album, 2007’s “The Real Thing: Words and Sounds, Vol. 3,” has sold 663,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Hidden Beach is distributed through Universal Music Group Distribution. The label’s forthcoming 2011 releases include projects by Naturally 7, The Tony Rich Project and Glen Scott.
Here is the track list for “Just Before Dawn: Jill Scott From the Vault, Vol. 1”:
“The Light”
“Wondering Why”
“Running Away”
“Love to Love”
“Dear Mr. & Mrs. Record Industry”
“I Don’t Know”
“Holdin’ On”
“Wake Up Babay”
“Comes to the Light”
“I’m Prettier”