Seeking Major Tom

Seeking Major Tom is the fourth studio album by William Shatner. It was released October 11, 2011 in the US by Cleopatra Records.[1] The album features many noted musicians, including Sheryl Crow, John Wetton, Patrick Moraz, Ritchie Blackmore, Alan Parsons, Peter Frampton, Warren Haynes, Nick Valensi, Zakk Wylde, Mike Inez, Chris Adler, Steve Hillage, Steve Howe, Michael Schenker, Dave Davies, Johnny Winter, Brad Paisley, Bootsy Collins, Carmine Appice, Ian Paice, and Toots.[2] The titular Major Tom in question is the one created by David Bowie.

Seeking Major Tom
Studio album by
William Shatner
ReleasedOctober 11, 2011
Recorded2011
GenreRock, spoken word
Length95:13
LabelCleopatra Records
ProducerAdam Hamilton
William Shatner chronology
Exodus: An Oratorio in Three Parts
(2008)		 Seeking Major Tom
(2011)		 Ponder the Mystery
(2013)

Track listing

Most tracks on the album are covers of space-themed songs.

  1. Major Tom (Coming Home) (Peter Schilling)
  2. Space Oddity (David Bowie)
  3. In a Little While (Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, Larry Mullen Jr.)
  4. Space Cowboy (Steve Miller, Ben Sidran)
  5. Space Truckin' (Ritchie Blackmore, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Jon Lord, Ian Paice)
  6. Rocket Man (Elton John, Bernie Taupin) (previously performed by Shatner in 1978)
  7. She Blinded Me with Science (Thomas Dolby, Jo Kerr)
  8. Walking on the Moon (Sting)
  9. Spirit in the Sky (Norman Greenbaum)
  10. Bohemian Rhapsody (Freddie Mercury)
  11. Silver Machine (Robert Calvert, Dave Brock)
  12. Mrs. Major Tom (Kirby Ian Andersen, Sheryl Crow)
  13. Empty Glass (The Tea Party)
  14. Lost in the Stars (Kurt Weill, Maxwell Anderson)
  15. Learning to Fly (David Gilmour, Anthony Moore, Bob Ezrin, Jon Carin)
  16. Mr. Spaceman (Roger McGuinn)
  17. Twilight Zone (George Kooymans)
  18. Struggle (William Shatner, Adam Hamilton)
  19. Iron Man (Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler, Bill Ward)
  20. Planet Earth (Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Nigel John Taylor, Roger Andrew Taylor, Andy Taylor)

Release

Shatner released a music video for his version of "Bohemian Rhapsody". The New Zealand Herald labeled the video as "typically bizarre".[3][4]

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Consequence of Sound[6]
The Tune(3.8/5)[7]

The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart in America and number 147 on the Canadian Albums Chart.[8]

In July 2020, Steve Howe told Rolling Stone magazine when asked about performing on "Planet Earth": "Get lost! Absolutely get lost! And you can print that! I played some really good things on that and they aren’t on the recording. There is none of me there at all. There is some guy playing what everybody else could have played. I said, “Look, I’m not going to play the part that everybody knows is part of that song. That’s easy. You can’t make anything of it.” And so I did some single-line stuff. God knows what happened. But when the record came out, I put it on and there was none of me on there at all. As much as I think that William Shatner is fun and all that — I know he’s good friend of [Yes bassist] Billy Sherwood — but that is rude. To credit me and not have me on there is just about the nastiest you can do. It’s not a good thing to do." [9]

References
  1. "Announcing the Song Line Up for Bill Shatner's Upcoming Album "Searching for Major Tom"". William Shatner's official site. Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2011.
  2. Lynch, Joseph. "William Shatner reveals track list of his space-themed album and surprise guest stars -- Bootsy Collins and Brad Paisley are just the beginning". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved April 16, 2011.
  3. "William Shatner covers Bohemian Rhapsody". The New Zealand Herald. October 21, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2011.
  4. Cruz, Gilbert (October 20, 2011). "William Shatner's Floating Head Sings 'Bohemian Rhapsody.' | Entertainment | TIME.com". Entertainment.time.com. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  5. Collar, Matt. "Seeking Major Tom". Allmusic.com. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
  6. Mojica, Frank (October 31, 2011). "Album Review: William Shatner – Searching for Major Tom". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved November 13, 2011.
  7. Kasko, Jordy (October 14, 2011). "Review: William Shatner – Seeking Major Tom". The Tune. Archived from the original on November 13, 2011.
  8. "CANOE - JAM! Music SoundScan Charts". Jam.canoe.ca. November 17, 2011. Retrieved December 7, 2011.
  9. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/steve-howe-interview-songs-without-yes-1028737/
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