Here is the press release: Still jamming as hard and heavy as ever over 35 years since his smashes “Frankenstein” and “Free Ride” captured an era in pop history and redefined the possibilities of fusing blues with rock, Edgar Winter (www.edgarwinter.com) continues to defy musical trends by traveling along the Rebel Road. A fresh, dynamic extension of the multi-talented singer, songwriter, keyboardist and saxophonist’s classic musical vibe, the perfectly titled album—yes, he still calls his projects “albums”—brings his four decade career full circle with the help of Slash, country superstar Clint Black (on vocals and harmonica) and Winter’s equally legendary guitarist brother Johnny Winter. Beyond the all-star contributions, the 11-track collection marks a flourishing of the creative relationship between Winter and Curt Cuomo, who has worked extensively with classic rocker Eddie Money over the past ten years and whose credits include “Pyscho Circus” among numerous songs with Kiss. Cuomo, who first worked with Winter as co-writer of “You Are My Song” on 1999’s Winter Blues, co-produced Rebel Road with Winter and is a co-writer on nine songs; he also contributes percussion, vocals and organ work.

The first stops along Winter’s infinitely winding, heavy grooving Rebel Road this year include dates this summer with Winter’s longtime hero Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band, This is Winter’s second go-round with the former Beatle’s summer tour extravaganza; he counts his first tour in 2006, “the thrill of a lifetime and a dream come true.” The 28-date 2008 Ringo tour kicks off June 19-20 in Niagara Falls, Ontario and wraps August 2 at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. Later in August, Winter has dates booked with Johnny at the House of Blues in Dallas (they’re natives of Beaumont, Texas) and another with fellow bluesman Kenny Wayne Shepherd.

While the high-energy, Slash-sparked title track best captures the spirit of Rebel Road and is the probable first single, Winter is hoping that Ringo lets him complement his latest renditions of “Free Ride” and “Frankenstein” with performances of the album’s more heartfelt cuts, the very Beatlesque mid tempo ballad “Peace And Love” (dedicated, of course, to the spirit and legacy of The Fab Four) and the romantic acoustic ballad “The Closer I Get,” which Winter wrote for Monique, his beloved wife of 29 years. On the 2006 tour, he sang “Dying To Live,” an early classic he wrote after he performed at Woodstock. Winter complements these gentler hopeful expressions with the country rock blues vibe of “The Power of Positive Drinkin’” (featuring Black on harmonica) and blistering blues-rock jams like “Eye On You,” “Do It Again” and “Rockin’ The Blues” with Johnny.

“The idea was to make a classic American rock album similar to the kind I used to back in the 70s,” he says. “I believe music is about following your heart as opposed to trends and second guessing What you think the public wants to hear. I wanted to put out an album that felt real to me, regardless of what’s going on in today’s music world. I think artists who play music that comes from the heart and that they believe in will communicate with people. What’s missing in music today is not only real rock and roll, but the Southern style rock that Johnny and I grew up playing in Texas. Country music has come in to fill the vacuum of honesty and sincerity, and I wanted to contribute to this kind of musical integrity in my own way.

“The kind of music I’m playing on Rebel Road has meant so much to me over the years,” he adds, “and it was great working with so many talented musicians on bringing it to life. I think it will resonate with fans familiar with my early music and younger lovers of classic rock. There’s something magical about the time this sound came from, when there was more musical freedom and songs reflected such powerful social changes as civil rights and the peace movement during the Vietnam era. There’s a deep sense of humanity in classic rock that still resonates today.”