It’s hard to believe that it’s been over 40 years since Tesla started out as a cover band in the nightclubs of California before writing and recording their own songs and selling millions of albums. Just like their musical heroes—The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Jimi Hendrix—artists who honed their craft by learning songs from the legends before them, Tesla did the same as youngsters and still enjoy paying tribute through recording cover songs today. HOMAGE is the band’s new album, paying tribute to legendary artists while showcasing lead singer Jeff Keith’s remarkable vocal range and the musical dynamics Tesla developed in their early years. It serves as a thank-you note written in sound—an offering to the singers and songs that shaped the music they grew up listening to and the songs they would eventually write. Each track highlights Jeff Keith’s distinctive vocal ability, something the band feel may have been overlooked throughout their long career—but never by their fans. HOMAGE isn’t about imitation. It’s about acknowledgment. About tracing the line from influence to identity, from listening to becoming. It has also been 20 years since the release of Real to Reel, and revisiting these songs even sparked the writing of a new original Tesla track, “Never Alone.” As the band put it, “It’s what bands are supposed to do... make music.” The songs were chosen for a variety of reasons—mostly because they were performed by some of the greatest singers of all time, including Elvis Presley, Freddie Mercury, Sam Cooke, David Ruffin, Etta James and James Brown. Others were selected simply because they were songs the band loved growing up, hearing them on the radio or spinning them on their turntables. As Tesla say: “We hope you all enjoy this as much as we did making it. Thank you for all the years... Keep it real and keep rockin’!”
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