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Nick D'VirgilioNick D'Virgilio
Nick D'VirgilioNick D'Virgilio
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BIG BIG TRAIN Share Revealing 90-Minute Interview About the Making of "Grand Tour" Album

BIG BIG TRAIN Share Revealing 90-Minute Interview About the Making of “Grand Tour” Album

April 26, 2019 News

Four times Progressive Music Award winning band, Big Big Train, recently announced the release of “Grand Tour”, their new studio album, out on May 17th 2019. Big Big Train‘s members Greg Spawton and David Longdon, and band artist Sarah Ewing, sat down with Prog Magazine writer Nick Shilton at the Royal Astronomical Society for an in-depth discussion on the new album and more. In it the band lift the lid on their creative processes.

“We’ve got four great singers in the band,” explains bassist Greg Spawton. “I did a bit of singing at some early shows, probably not a good idea. But as an observer I’ve learnt that the focus is on those four strong voices. And David will now write for those voices. With “The Underfall Yard”, well, I didn’t even know David could write these big vocal arrangements, he was brought in as the lead singer. And then we’re presented with these complex vocal arrangements.”

You can watch the video below

Grand Tour features nine new tracks which will take listeners on an epic journey over land and sea and through time and space. Big Big Train drummer, Nick D’Virgilio says:  ‘There are songs inspired by the legacy of the Italian Renaissance genius, Leonardo da Vinci; songs telling the story of the rise and fall of Rome; of the beautiful mosaics of Ravenna, and of the shipwreck of a great poet, lost in a tempest off the coast of Italy. Along the way, the story of mankind’s greatest ever journey is told.’   

Vocalist David Longdon says: ‘Grand Tour is a celebration of the human experience, of science and art, and of what it means to be alive.’

Grand Tour will be available on double heavyweight gatefold vinyl (featuring a 24 page booklet), digipack CD (featuring a 52 page booklet), on standard and hi-resolution (24/96) download, and on streaming. The album is available for pre-order at this location

“Grand Tour” Album Artwork

“Grand Tour” tracklist:

1. Novum Organum (2.33)
2. Alive (4.31)
3. The Florentine (8.14)
4. Roman Stone (13.33)
5. Pantheon (6.08)
6. Theodora in Green and Gold (5.38)
7. Ariel (14.28)
8. Voyager (14.03)
9. Homesong (5.12)

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To celebrate the 20th anniversary of @SpocksBeard' To celebrate the 20th anniversary of @SpocksBeard's record "Feel Euphoria" and its release for the first time on vinyl, I made a play-through video of one of my favorite tunes on the record "Onomatopoeia". This one is a rocker and is really fun to play and sing. I am very happy that our friends at @insideoutmusic decided to reissue this album. The brand new gatefold 180g 2LP edition has been newly remastered especially for vinyl by Patrick Engel at Temple of Disharmony and it sounds great! 

This song was great fun to revisit. Maybe I can get the boys to make a play-through of another track on the record. What other song from "Feel Euphoria" would you like to see and hear us perform?
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#NDV #SpocksBeard #FeelEuphoria #PlayThrough #ProgRock #ProgressiveRock #Reissue #Vinyl #NickDVirgilio
The @promarksticks NDV signature sticks are on dis The @promarksticks NDV signature sticks are on display at the @sweetwatersound music store. Come on in, if you’re in the area, or goto the fabulous @sweetwatersound website and get yourself - or that special someone in your life - a pair. Or two. Or three!!! They could make a cool holiday gift. Just sayin 😉 If you don’t live in the states then head on over to my website to grab some. They will be live there very soon. Happy Holidays one and all! #nickdvirgilio #signaturedrumsticks #sweetwater #promark
Greetings everyone! In this video vlog, we head ba Greetings everyone! In this video vlog, we head back in time to July 2023 to have some fun reliving some fantastic memories of @mrbig_music in Southeast Asia. This video has some behind-the-scenes footage of the venues in Seoul and Hong Kong along with a couple of snippets from the shows. It is truly awesome to see and hear the crowds. Both cities were simply amazing. Thank you to everyone who came and rocked with us!
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#Tour #VLog #MrBig #HarRock #Memories #NDV #Drummer #Singer @official_ericmartin @paulgilbert_official @billysheehanonbass
Thank you everyone for all the birthday wishes! I Thank you everyone for all the birthday wishes! I had a great day hanging out with my family and friends. I got some awesome bday cakes and focaccia baked by my daughter ( she made me a mean carrot cake that looked like my yellow DW kit! ), my wife made her oh so yummy pasta sauce, there was the mystery punch made by my son in law that went down very easily and yes, there definitely was alcohol in it, and I made a big ole fire. It was nice and I am blessed. #55 #family #friends #blessed
55 laps around the sun and no signs of stopping. H 55 laps around the sun and no signs of stopping. Happy birthday to me! #NDV #Drummer #Singer #Songwriter
“I love record release day! It's always very exc “I love record release day! It's always very exciting knowing that the thing you worked so hard to create can now be shared with the whole world. Although "worked so hard" are not really the right words to use. It was a total "labor of love" creating Sophomore with @rossjenningsofficial and @neal_morse_official Those are the right words. I hope you enjoy the music as much as we did making it!”

You can order "Sophomore" from the link in my bio, and you can also watch a live session video for the track ‘The Weary One’, recorded at Neal’s studio earlier this year.
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#DMJ #NealMorse #RossJennings #NickDVirgilio #Sophomore #NewAlbum #ReleaseDate @insideoutmusic
Do you have any burning questions for the three of Do you have any burning questions for the three of us? Join the FB Live Q&A event tomorrow and let's chat! 
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#DMJ #ReleaseDate @insideoutmusic @neal_morse_official #Sophomore @rossjenningsofficial
Only three more days until “Sophomore” is out! Only three more days until “Sophomore” is out! #DMJ #NealMorse #RossJennings #NickDVirgilio #Sophomore #NewAlbum
20 years ago the 7th @spocks_beard_official record 20 years ago the 7th @spocks_beard_official record "Feel Euphoria" was released. It was a crazy but very special time for the band. A big transitional period that proved to me that we could indeed make some great music and keep the band alive. I am grateful that we did. 

"Feel Euphoria" will be released by @insideoutmusic on Nov 24th for the 1st time on vinyl and it sounds amazing! In this video, I reminisce a little about that time and open up the record for the 1st time. @mousehousestudios did such a fantastic job recording up and his mix translates to vinyl. In fact, I think it sounds better than on CD. It's big and phat and rocking! Get yourself a copy!
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#NDV #SpocksBeard #FeelEuphoria #Vinyl #Collection #Reissue
Greetings everyone! I am super excited to announce Greetings everyone! I am super excited to announce the NDV signature drumstick from @promarksticks is now available!!! This is the first time in my professional career that I have had my very own signature stick. Not just with my name on it but designed to my specifications. 

The amazing team at @promarksticks and I got together, went back and forth with some prototypes, tweaked the look and feel, until we landed on what I feel is a fantastic all around drumstick that looks super cool as well. Light enough for softer styles of music and with plenty of weight to play the heaviest rock n roll. 

My sticks are being sold exclusivley at @sweetwatersound in the USA. If you would like to try these sticks out but live outside of the states you can get them from my website www.nickdvirgilio.com 

Thank you to everyone @promarksticks !

Check em out!

#nickdvirgilio #sweetwater #promark #drums #signaturedrumsticks
@rossjenningsofficial , @neal_morse_official & I p @rossjenningsofficial , @neal_morse_official & I present you today with the second single from our upcoming album "Sophomore", available wherever you stream your music.

About the song, penned by @rossjenningsofficial, he reveals: "The melody for 'Tiny Little Fires' came about as a result of messing around with my son's toy Xylophone. You never know when or where inspiration strikes but when it does, you just gotta harvest and harness it. And so with that Xylophone hook, along with the alternating time signatures, an entire song began unravelling and building in my head and at the first opportunity I demoed a full band version of the track. It came together extremely fast and the final recording with our three voices, along with Nick's live drums and Neal's additional Wakeman-esque keys, didn't differ too much from what I visualised that morning goofing around with my toddler!"

"Sophomore" will be available on Limited CD Edition (incl. 2 bonus tracks), Ltd Gatefold Transparent Red LP, Ltd Gatefold Transparent Blue LP & as Digital Album. Pre-order it now from the link in my bio!
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#NDV #NealMorse #RossJennings #DMJ #Sophomore #ThreePartMelodies #NewAlbum #NewSingle #Drummer #Trio
Here are some fun pics from the Mr Big tour in Jap Here are some fun pics from the Mr Big tour in Japan and South East Asia. Pic 1 is from behind my kit in Japan at the Budokan playing to a sea of cell phone lights. That was very cool to witness! Pic 2 is @iamericmartin talking to the crowd at The 90's Festival in Jakarta. Big crowd! Pic 3 is the 10th @dwdrums kit I played on the tour. This yellow sparkle DW Collectors Maple I use for the last show in Kuala Lumpur. I love pic 4! It is @billysheehanonbass mid-shred at the Budokan in Tokyo. Pic 5 is the 6th @dwdrums kit I use for the tour. This one was in Taipei. A Collectors Series Maple in a very nice looking finish ply (that's the wrap on the outside of the shell). The final pic, pic 6, is @mrbig_music about to bow for the amazing crowd at the @marinabaysands Theater in Singapore. That tour was such a blast! I am really looking forward to the next run. Tickets already on sale. Go to www.mrbigsite.com for info. More tour vlogs from the Asia tour coming! ROCK N ROLL!!! #mrbig #nickdvirgilio #leanintoit #billysheehan #ericmartin #paulgilbert_official
It's good to hear that I don't suck! Thank you @IA It's good to hear that I don't suck! Thank you @IAmEricMartin for the kind words. Read the whole article at @sonicperspectives 
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#MrBig #TheBIGFinish #USATour #Drummer #LeanIntoIt
Show 14 of the Big Big Train - The Journey Continu Show 14 of the Big Big Train - The Journey Continues tour was last evening at The Queens Hall in Edinburg Scotland and it was fantastic! What a crowd! They gave us so much energy. The video snippet shot on my iPhone by Matt my drum tech comes from the song Hedgerow. @clarelfiddle is just slaying the fiddle solo in that section each and every night. She’s got finesse, style, attitude, and amazing presence. After her part the band kicks off with a little drum flurry and then @rikard_sjoblom_official and @maria_barbieri_guitarist play the harmonized guitar part perfectly. Whooo hoooo to this band! This tour has been great for us. There’s also a few great pictures from @forkerfotos . Alberto and I even ran into a fan in town with a BBT shirt on and his nails painted BBT style. I love our passengers! 3 shows left! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #thejourneycontinues
BIg Big Train had a fantastic gig the other night BIg Big Train had a fantastic gig the other night Asshaffenburg at the ever classic @colos_saal_aschaffenburg. My old friend and one of the best drummers/ educators @claus.hessler came out to see that show and we were able to catch up after many years. Claus is a big inspiration for me and it was so cool to have him in the audience. About the audience….wow! What a crowd! Thank you to everyone who came out to the show. It was great fun! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #claushessler #colossaalaschaffenburg #thejourneycontinues
Here's the first video/single from our second D'Vi Here's the first video/single from our second D'Virgilio, Morse & Jennings album aptly titled "Sophomore". Check it out and let me know what you think!

Pre-orders are live now! Follow the link my bio
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#NDV #DMJ #Sophomore #Trio #NewAlbum #TeaserClip @rossjenningsofficial @neal_morse_official @insideoutmusic
I’m so proud of my band @bigbigtrain. Everyone i I’m so proud of my band @bigbigtrain. Everyone is raising their game to epic levels and it has been a blast performing with each and everyone of my band mates.  Here’s a little video snippet from the song The Connection Plan we played last night in Reichenbach Germany. My awesome drum tech Matt Janke shot the video on my iPhone from side stage. The drums are loud but you’ll get the picture.  I love putting in the full on Phil Collins drum fill midway through the bridge. Also, Rikard slaying the guitar solo, the brass adding a touch o funk to the song, Maria and Clare shredding the unison melody line, and so much more. The whole band playing at a very high level. Fantastic!!! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #mariabarbieriguitarist #clarelindley #rikardsjöblom #gregspawton #oskarholdorf #thejourneycontinues
Here's a teaser clip of the first single from our Here's a teaser clip of the first single from our upcoming D’Virgilio, Morse & Jennings album "Sophomore", for the song titled "Anywhere The Wind Blows". 

Pre-orders start this Friday, Sept. 8, at 9 AM CST. Set your calendars!
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#NDV #DMJ #Sophomore #Trio #NewAlbum #TeaserClip @rossjenningsofficial @neal_morse_official @insideoutmusic
Big Big Train had an amazing first ever show in It Big Big Train had an amazing first ever show in Italy last night. Headlining Saturday night at the 2Days Prog + 1 festival. The crowd was great and we really loved playing there. A VERY nice surprise was getting to catch up with Chester Thompson. He is playing at the festival on Sunday. Chester is such a nice person and we had a great talk. He’s been a huge inspiration to me.  I’ve also added a couple snippets of video from the song Apollo and Victorian Brickwork. I made a big ole mistake in once section of Vic Brick. For me, it is one of the most difficult songs in our set. You know, it’s live and stuff happens. #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #chesterthompsondrums #beingamusician
Delighted to be rockin the house with these two aw Delighted to be rockin the house with these two awesome women! @clarelfiddle and @maria_barbieri_guitarist are bringing the house down night after night on the @bigbigtrain “The Journey Continues” tour across Europe. Come see for yourself. 10 shows left on the tour. Goto bigbigtrain.com for info on the rest of the dates and come join us for a show if you can. We would love to have you there with us! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #thejourneycontinues
Big Big Train had a fantastic first ever show in O Big Big Train had a fantastic first ever show in Oslo, Norway last evening - Aug. 29, 2023. Thank you to all who came out to the show. You made it so very special for us and we can't wait to come back! 

I'm using a very nice British Drum Co drumkit, my amazing Sabian cymbals, Evans drumheads, and Nick Dvirgilio signature ProMark drumsticks. I also cannot forget to mention the awesome Porter and Davies drum throne. The drumkit belongs to our engineer Rob Aubrey and made it very easy and convenient to use on this tour. BDCo makes beautiful sounding drums that are fun to play. My iPhone actually does a very nice job of capturing the sound of the drums and cymbals. 

Make sure to go to bigbigtrain.com to see the rest of the dates on the tour and if you can, come join us for show. We'd love to see you there! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #thejourneycontinues #britishdrumco #sabiancymbals #evansdrumheads #promarkdrumsticks #porteranddavies
The BIG BIG TRAIN "The Journey Continues" tour 202 The BIG BIG TRAIN "The Journey Continues" tour 2023 is in full swing. We played for the first in Sweden last night at the Stora Teatern in Gothenburg and it was fantastic! Tonight in Oslo at the Cosmopolite Scene. There are many more shows to come. Go check out bigbigtrain.com for the rest of the dates in Europe and the UK. If you are near any of the cities we will be in we would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see you there! #bigbigtrain #thejourneycontinues #nickdvirgilio
Yesterday I was back in Hamburg Germany for the fi Yesterday I was back in Hamburg Germany for the first time in 14 years and I got to catch up with one of the very best to sit behind a drum kit, Benny Greb. Benny brought his son along, we had a nice lunch, and they came to the BBT soundcheck. It was great to have them there. Then Big Big Train had our first ever gig in Hamburg at the classic venue, Markthalle. The last time I played at that venue was back the Spock’s Beard days. Thank you Hamburg for welcoming BBT. It was a great gig and we hope to be back again very soon! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio #bennygreb #markthalle
Amazing first official gig of the Big Big Train 20 Amazing first official gig of the Big Big Train 2023 European tour. Thank you to everyone who came out to see the show! #bigbigtrain #nickdvirgilio
Greetings everyone! Sorry, it took so long to ge Greetings everyone! 

Sorry, it took so long to get Tour Vlog 2 done. There is always a lot going on while traveling every other day. Plus I am shooting a ton of content for both myself and @sweetwatersound while on this tour. Keeping everything organized is a full-time job in itself. 

In this vlog, you will see some of my adventures with @MrBig_Music while in Japan. A little bit from our shows in Nagoya, Osaka, and Tokyo. There are some travel bits, behind-the-scenes at the venues, and a little bit of concert footage from all three venues. All the footage is either shot from a GoPro or iPhone. 

The shows in Japan were incredible. The venues are amazing to discover and play at. The @MrBig_Music crew doing such a great job taking care of us and getting our gear ready for every gig. The UDO group in Japan is beyond fantastic! I also got to share the experience with my wife Tiffany. She braved traveling all the way to Japan on her own to be with me and we had a great time together. Then the icing on the cake was the fans at all the shows. Such passion for the band and so much fun to entertain. These gigs were some of the biggest of my life. Calling it fun does not adequately describe the experience. It was awesome! 

A special prize goes out to the person figuring out how many times I say "SO COOL" in this vlog. HA! It's way too many but I couldn't help. It was all...SO COOL!!! Vlog 3 will be up as soon as possible. Thanks for watching and cheers! 
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#NickDvirgilio #MrBig #TheBigFinish #DWdrums #SabianCymbals #PromarkDrumsticks #Budokan #BillySheehan #EricMartin #PaulGilbert #RockAndRoll #TouringMusician #MakeItHappen
What it feels like to hold Paul Gilbert’s guitar What it feels like to hold Paul Gilbert’s guitar….ROCK N ROLL BABY!!! YEAH! 🤘#mrbig #paulgilbert_official #thebigfinish
What a great experience for me, a real baseball fa What a great experience for me, a real baseball fan. It was a day off on the Mr Big tour in Seoul South Korea. I did some searching around and found out that there was a game going on at the stadium near by. The LG Twins against the Doosan Bears. Both teams are from Seoul. Master drum tech and super cool person Jose Baraquio joined me and we watched the LG Twins put a whoopin on the Bears. They won 9 to 2. Thank you to Summer who works for the local promoter for finding us great seats. 2nd row from the field right across from 3rd base. It was fun sitting in the Twins side of the stadium but the Bears side was incredibly loud and raucous rooting for their team. It was definitely a different vibe then going to a baseball game in the states. Just super fun and I’m glad Jose and I got to go. And in that note….GO DODGERS!!! ⚾️
Show #2 at the Budokan tonight! #mrbig Show #2 at the Budokan tonight! #mrbig
About to hit the stage for gig #2 in Japan. Yes! L About to hit the stage for gig #2 in Japan. Yes! Let’s do this! #mrbig #thebigfinish #sabiancymbals #dwdrums #promarkdrumsticks
Greetings everyone! Here is the first installment Greetings everyone! Here is the first installment of my tour vlogs with @mrbig_music. We are traveling across Asia and it is going to be awesome! This first vlog shows a bit of rehearsal, my travel adventure getting over to China for the first show, and a little bit of the first gig. What an adventure this will be! Cheers!

#NickDvirgilio #MrBig #TheBigFinish #DWDrums #Sabiancymbals #Promarkdrumsticks #Sweetwatersound @billysheehanonbass @paulgilbert_official @iamericmartin
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YOU MIGHT ALSO WANT TO READ …

  • NICK D’VIRGILIO, NEAL MORSE & ROSS JENNINGS Share Music Video For ‘Anywhere The Wind Blows’, Off Upcoming Album “Sophomore”
  • BIG BIG TRAIN Release Video of Live Performance of “The Atlantic Cable”
  • BIG BIG TRAIN Share Live Performance of “The First Rebreather” In Advance Of ‘The Journey Continues’ Tour
  • BIG BIG TRAIN Announces Additional 2023 European Shows As Part of “The Journey Continues Tour”
  • BIG BIG TRAIN Announces Arrival of “Ingenious Devices” EP, Including Re-Recording of Classic Tracks and More

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