Features
A New Theology
Twenty years after the release of her solo debut, The Lion and The Cobra, Sinead O’Connor has released Theology, an album that may be her most personal work yet. To mark the occasion, the singer has embarked on a world tour that includes a 17-city North American leg.
O’Connor will spend July and August overseas hitting the summer festival circuit, with stops scheduled in Scotland, Ireland, Turkey, Poland, Norway, Belgium, France, Denmark, Russia, Hungary and the U.K.
The North American portion of the tour kicks off September 16 at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco. Other shows on the books include the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles (September 18), the Capitol theatre in Salt Lake City (September 20), the Pantages Theatre in Minneapolis (September 24), New York’s Beacon Theatre (October 23), Voodoo Fest in New Orleans (October 27), and Hogg Memorial Auditorium in Austin (September 28).
In November, O’Connor will head back across the pond for a handful of dates in the U.K., France, The Netherlands, Germany and Ireland.
Information on onsale dates for several shows on the North American leg is available through Ticketmaster.
Theology, which was released in June, features eight new songs written or cowritten by O’Connor, including “Something Beautiful,” “Dark I Am Yet Lovely,” and “The Glory of Jah,” The album also features three covers: Curtis Mayfield’s “We People Who Are Darker Than Blue,” the traditional reggae spiritual “Rivers of Babylon” with new lyrics written by the singer, and Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s “I Don’t Know How To Love Him.”
The two-disc set includes two versions of each song. On the first disc, “Dublin Sessions,” all 11 tracks were recorded in an acoustic setting, and on the second, “London Sessions,” the same songs were re-arranged and recorded with a full band.
O’Connor admits the album was inspired by events since 9/11, but insists it’s not a message or protest album.
“Theology is an attempt to create a place of peace in a time of war,” the singer said. “It is my own personal response to what has taken [place] and is affecting everyone around the world since and including September 11, 2001.””I want to be very clear – there is no message. No preaching. Nothing deep and meaningful the artist wants to say, nothing trouble making. I simply wanted to make a beautiful thing, out of something beautiful, which inspires me.”