A Conversation With Keyboard Legend Tony Carey

The name Tony Carey…..Well known in the rock world. What he’s most well-known for depends on where you are I think. Most will know he was the keyboard player on Blackmore’s Rainbow album Rising as well as the live offering On Stage. His mystical sounding keyboard intro to Tarot woman off of the Rising album is legendary. A few years down the line and really at the other end of the spectrum is his work on his musical alter-ego, Planet P Project. The songs Why Me? And Static were MTV and radio staples in America. His solo release, Some Tough City also hit heavy rotation on U.S. radio and MTV with Fine, Fine Day and The First Day Of Summer. Planet P Project epic concept double lp, Pink World then took it’s turn in the spotlight. The magnificent Blue Highway followed under the Tony Carey banner. Then all was quiet in the U.S..

So….you’re probably wondering…..what happened to him….where did he go? I wondered myself until a chance viewing of a German movie dubbed to English presented a soundtrack that I immediately recognized as the work of Tony Carey. The search was on….I hit every “import” bin in every record store I came upon looking for Tony’s music. Finally, I found him….in of all places…..Best Buy! They cost a fortune….imports always do but they were worth every cent. Still, I had no “news” of Tony and then along came the internet. I swear on the Bible that the VERY FIRST search I EVER made was for Tony Carey / Planet P Project. Tony has a different take on this but you’ll have to listen to the podcast to see what that’s all about…Tony had been busy……He’s still busy and if you haven’t been following him for the last 30 years….well, you can get an insight into the man, the myth, the legend of Tony Carey by listening to the podcast below.

There is a bit of an echo that appeared on the recording for some reason…you’ll notice it but it doesn’t make it unlistenable. There are 3 audio tracks included so you may hear some new music as well. Tony’s website can be found here:  www.tonycarey.com  There you can DOWNLOAD for FREE the 4cd box set called G.O.D. Box, a Planet P Project release. The upcoming Showtime DVD release can be ordered there as well. The latest Planet P Project release, Steel Town is also available. In the podcast, Tony makes a VERY generous offer. You’ll need his email to take advantage of that offer. So…..here’s Tony’s email address: carey68@hotmail.com

Yes, he DOES answer his email on a regular basis and I can vouch for that…listen to the podcast to find out about that too! This is a lengthy conversation with Tony and really we only scratched the surface of his body of work….his discography can be found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Carey#Discography

Did you know he’s worked with the likes of Pat Travers, Joe Cocker and John Mayall and The Bluesbreakers? Listen to the podcast and check out the links and give some feedback……maybe I can get a “part two” out of him…

Interview, article and artwork by Steve Amaon  (musicnracin)