We'll shortly be offering for sale a limited edition pre-release pressing of "Diary Of A Drowning Man." These CD's will be offered on a first come, first served basis to all TS myspace fans & will be signed by Todd. PLEASE MESSAGE US WITH YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO RESERVE YOURSELF A COPY & we'll contact you when the CD's are ready for shipping ONCE YOU'RE DONE WITH THE MYSPACE MUSIC PLAYER UPSTAIRS, YOU CAN SIT BACK, PUT YOUR FEET UP, POUR YOURSELF A DRINK, & LISTEN TO THE REST OF "DIARY OF A DROWNING MAN" DOWN HERE (12 TRACKS):
On August 15th 2004, Todd Sharpville casually strolled out onto the stage for the first of many nights opening up for Pink on her European tour, and delivered an impassioned and rocking set with his band to 10,000 eager music fans. Always one to mock his own aristocratic roots, the crowd had just been treated to a "Monty Python'esque" mini-comedy movie on the plasma screens featuring Todd playing poker with Queen Elizabeth II (AKA pop icon, Leo Sayer playing the Queen in drag!). Moments into the show, he was lying down next to the drum riser with a young woman feeding him grapes mid guitar solo. He proceeded to belt out a series of highly charged self-penned anthems, whilst dominating the stage with abandoned ease & confidence. The show concluded as Todd passed his guitar to a tech whilst proclaiming "gotta go, my lift's arrived!" On cue, a large glossy motorcycle glides across the stage, ridden by a Queen Liz II lookalike (with ermin robes & crown to boot); Todd hops on the back, salutes the crowd, and is promptly driven off stage by her Majesty as the band rocks on! As first nights go, I wondered what Pink would make of her new support act... Indeed, as he left the stage to tumultous applause, I chuckled with the knowledge that this was in fact Todd's first public performance since his divorce...
He had been suffering from reactive depression due to the collapse of his marriage, and this performance was the first step towards getting back on his feet & getting back in touch with what he does best. This period also marked the beginning of a new chapter for Todd artistically, as he has now deviated from his bluesy roots and has ventured out into much broader singer/songwriter territory. After a year of collaborating with The Strokes guitarist's dad, Albert Hammond snr (the legendary Californian songwriter) as his musical director/lead guitarist, Todd is now set to carve out a name for himself as a world-class writer & lyricist. Those of you familiar with the international blues scene already know him as the young guitar slinger with heaps of attitude. His last solo blues album The Meaning Of Life was the best selling British blues release for 2003, featuring an array of guest appearances from ex-Stones guitar legend Mick Taylor, Leo Sayer (yes, many moons ago Sayer used to be a bluesman!), Snowy White & others. . However, upon deviating from the blues, Todd now chooses to express his innermost emotions by means of his new studio album "Diary Of A Drowning Man" exposing all the cross-genre musical influences that have affected him, and is his debut as a mainstream artist. The songs exude an eclectic blend of cross-styles that can best be described as Todd Sharpville in the raw, pure & simple. They include a passionate duet with Sam Brown, Todd's favourite Brit female singer, who also MD'd a gospel choir for the track ("Sweet Redemption"). Recorded in Denmark at Lundgaard Studios (currently one of the top five studios in Europe), and co-produced with Dave Hyatt (of Stone Roses/Ian Brown fame) Sharpville offers up a musical portrait of his emotional roller-coaster ride...
- Dragan Nikitovic 2006The TS & HRH Queen Elizabeth II Poker Game (featuring Leo Sayer as Liz):
THE STREET TEAM
If you're interested in joining Todd's Street Team (& getting access to a range of benefits un-available to regular fans), please let us know by private mail... There's so much that generally needs doing when Todd's touring (spreading the word to all your friends on myspace & beyond, making sure gig posters are up around town, handing out flyers at like-minded gigs, ensuring that local record stores are well stocked with Todd's CD's, checking that local radio stations are playing the album etc..). There's a host of different things you could be doing to assist us. We need YOUR help to make sure every show is a storming success! As we mentioned, there are plenty of benefits to contributing your hard earned time (such as free tickets, partying with Todd & the band back at the hotel after shows, signed albums/t-shirts, free merch, etc) so get in touch if you'd like to get pro-active in spreading the word...