AN EARTHWIDE CROSS MEDIA ENTERTAINMENT SPOTLIGHT PRESS RELEASE
-ROBERT CALENDER RAINBOW - THE ANNIVERSARY CONCERT
LP-
-A TLAK/THINK LIKE A KEY MUSIC CD/DVD and VINYL ALBUM RELEASE-
-(Note that, Pre-orders Begin on September 29, 2025)-
“Cycles, cycles, cycles. You see, it’s those cycles again!’
The creative process is a continuously cyclical movement. No one understands that more than singer, songwriter and artist Robert Callender, as he begins to expound on his fascinating life journey that’s led him to his latest album and his first musical release in over five decades.
In a previous cycle, sas Bobby Callender, he was a striving young artist, recording his debut for MGM Records, collaborating with the best and brightest musicians of his era in New York. The resulting album, 1968’s Rainbow, managed to fuse Eastern musical sounds with Western psychedelic rock music to create a cosmic fusion, lyrically complimented by Callender’s song cycle. The cast of musicians that collaborated with the artist on those sessions included renowned bassist Richard Davis, soon to record with Van Morrison on his landmark album Astral Weeks; guitarists Eric Gale and Hugh McCracken, and sitarist and percussionist Colin Walcott, who found acclaim with the band Oregon.
The raga rock fusion of Rainbow proved to be far ahead of its time, but nearly sixty years later, listeners are finally catching up, with interest in Robert Callender continuing to rise, thanks to record collectors, DJs and crate diggers worldwide discovering his music, coupled by a career-spanning interview in a renowned music magazine, which helped shed light on many aspects of the enigmatic artist’s career. Listeners young and old are discovering and immersing themselves in Callender’s timeless music and songs.
Now, nearly sixty years after its debut, Think Like a Key Music is proud to announce the release of Robert Callender’s Rainbow: The Anniversary Concert LP / CD & DVD, which features a recording of Callender performing his Rainbow album in its entirety, for the first time ever on stage, in Orlando. The CD edition also comes with video of the the entire concert as well.
The journey to the release of Rainbow: The Anniversary Concert began in earnest four years ago, when album producer Chaim O’Brien-Blumenthal tracked down Callender for an interview. As a renowned writer and archivist, he was looking to interview Callender about his musical and artistic career. “I spend a lot of time tracking down and working with musicians both obscure and famous’ O’Brien-Blumenthal says. ‘I want to get their stories on tape, hear how their records came to be. Robert Callender had long remained an enigma in sixties and seventies music history, a talented individual who made some of the great underground records of the era, and I wanted to hear the stories behind them. Who was he?’
The resulting conversation with Callender led to the writer penning a multi-page feature in UK music magazine Shindig!, which told Robert’s story in depth for the very first time, and most importantly, told it in the artist’s own words. “There was lot of misconception and confusion about Robert Callender’ O’Brien-Blumenthal says. ‘Rumors spread over the years, and that’s how myths start, for good or bad. In my research, I’d heard so many tales about Robert that I knew he was the only one who could set things straight.”
The Shindig! feature introduced Callender’s music to an even larger audience, one that had already been exponentially growing, thanks to crate diggers and record collectors discovering his albums, ‘As a longtime record collector, that’s how I first discovered Robert.’ O’Brien-Blumenthal says. “You spend days in record shops, looking for records that are just waiting to be discovered. And Robert’s albums practically leap out at the listener with their colorful album covers and air of intrigue. They naturally make you curious.’
Musically, Callender’s combination of East-West fusion in the sixties presaged the musical tides to come, as O’Brien-Blumenthal explains ‘Robert was definitely a pioneer in crafting songs that told stories. Remember, these were still the early days of the concept album. Dylan and the Beatles were breaking the mold. The idea of a singer-songwriter not merely steeped in the folk music bag but endlessly searching for new sounds and influences was an entirely different thing.” You can easily draw a line from the musically diverse Rainbow to the jazz-rock fusion of the seventies, right through to the modern psychedelic bands of today.
But unbeknownst to listeners, Callender had never performed Rainbow on stage when it was recorded in the sixties. It wasn’t until fifty odd years later that Robert was approached by his friend Benoit Glaser at the Timucua Arts Foundation in Orlando, with the idea of staging a Rainbow anniversary show. “I had never performed ‘Rainbow’ on stage before, even back in the sixties.’ Robert explains. “When I was approached by the wonderful Benoit at Timucca about staging a production of the album for its anniversary, and knowing the talented musicians I’d worked with before were up for the challenge, I agreed.”
And "Together" with "A Universe of Very Talented," "Impressive," "Admirable," and "Exceptionally Insightful Ensemble of Interdependent Musicians," (who are also "One and All," a part of "An Exciting New Tapestry" of "A Wonderful Renaissance of Creative Music," and "Artistic Expression in Central, Florida,") "Callender Premiered the Album he Recorded back in the Sixties before "A Highly Supportive," and "Appreciative Audience!" To which, Callender Expressed as Being, "both exciting, exhilarating, and humbling!"
And now with the release of ‘Rainbow: The Anniversary Concert’, listeners can share that discovery and joy everywhere.
Future plans include Rainbow Anniversary shows in New York and throughout the United States, along with a European tour in the new year.
Order link: https://tlak.rocks/rainbow
