Legendary Yes guitarist, Steve Howe, is set to re-release highly acclaimed solo albums “Portraits Of Bob Dylan” and “Natural Timbre” on CD and on vinyl for the very first time on September 12, 2025 through his own HoweSound label, distributed by Cargo Records.
Originally released in 1999 “Portraits Of Bob Dylan” saw Howe paying tribute to one of his main inspirations in his own inimitable way, with an impressive array of guests performing an intriguing selection of Dylan songs, digging deep into his repertoire rather than the obvious hits.
The album features intriguing collaborations with guest vocalists including Jon Anderson (Yes), Max Bacon (GTR), Allan Clarke (The Hollies), PP Arnold, Annie Haslam (Renaissance), Keith West (Tomorrow) and Phoebe Snow along with extra special guest Dylan Howe on drums, bringing a whole fresh approach to Dylan‘s classics.
Steve Howe: “What I loved about it was having the chance to arrange them as I wasn’t going to copy what Dylan had done; I wanted to bring a little bit more to it.“
Available on CD and for the first time, on double deep red vinyl across three sides with an etched fourth side.
Steve Howe: “The ‘Portraits’ idea was always a sort of pipe dream, and I originally recorded one song to start the project, and I thought, this will be good, I’ll do lots of Bob“
— Portraits of Bob Dylan —
01. Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands
02. Mama, You’ve Been on My Mind
03.It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
04. Going, Going, Gone
05. Just Like a Woman
06. Well, Well, Well
07. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
08. Lay Lady Lay
09. One Too Many Mornings
10. I Don’t Believe You
11. Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
12. Buckets of Rain
Steve Howe: “I like the singer to grab the song and I think PP Arnold really did. It`s a treat to hear her singing. The way she controls her voice and the power that she has to punch the words out. The shape and definition of the song was contoured by her voice“
Following two years later, “Natural Timbre” features Howe, joined by his son Dylan on drums, in an acoustic setting with an array of instruments including acoustic guitar, banjo, mandolin, dobro, lap steel guitar, mandocello and koto across a range of original instrumental compositions and Classical interpretations to produce a deeply intimate collection of moving, atmospheric and stunningly beautiful music.
Available on CD and also for the very first time on translucent green double vinyl featuring 18 pieces over four sides.
Steve Howe: “The idea behind ‘Natural Timbre’ was to show that the beauty of acoustic instruments is universal.” He goes onto say: “I really set about it, putting the electric guitar away wanting to do another kind of exploration, because like the piano, you can’t get away from the tonality of acoustic sound. It’s one of those beautiful, harmonising, soothing things“
— Natural Timbre —
01. Distant Seas
02. Provence
03. Intersection Blues
04. Family Tree
05. J’s Theme
06. In the Course of the Day
07. Dream River
08. Golden Years
09. The Little Galliard
10. Up Above Somewhere
11. Curls & Swirls
12. Pyramidology
13. Lost for Words
14. Winter (Vivaldi)
15. Solar Winds
16. Your Move
17. Disillusion
18. To Be Over
— About Steve Howe —
Steve Howe is a highly influential guitarist born in London in 1947. He is best known for his groundbreaking work with Progressive Rock legends Yes, recording the classic albums “Close To The Edge“, “Fragile,” “Tales From Topographic Oceans” and “Relayer” with the most recent being 2023`s “Mirror To The Sky.”
Howe`s early recording career began in the `60`s with The Syndicats and Tomorrow before joining Yes in 1970, making his debut appearance on “The Yes Album” in 1971 where he has, over several periods with the band, recorded 19 studio albums.
His unique style embodies an innovative blend of Classical, Jazz, Folk and Rock influences which has seen him play an array of guitars and stringed instruments which brought a unique sound to his complex compositions.
On a hiatus from Yes, Howe formed supergroup Asia with Carl Palmer (ELP), John Wetton (King Crimson) and Geoff Downes (Yes) achieving a Number One album on the American Billboard Top 100 in 1982, where it stayed for an astonishing nine weeks yielding three top 10 hit singles including “Heat Of The Moment.” Howe went on to record seven studio albums with Asia across several periods in the band. Howe also collaborated with Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett in the short lived GTR achieving a Top 2album in America and several albums with keyboardist Paul Sutin.
Howe has also had a varied career as a session guitarist playing on albums by a diverse range of artists including Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Propaganda, the Bee Gees, William Shatner and Queen.
Howe has released 15 solo albums and a further two studio albums with The Steve Howe Trio, formed with his son Dylan, which has seen him explore a wide range of styles and techniques.
Howe, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 as a member of Yes, has been an enduring presence in the music scene for over half a century, continually exploring and pushing back the boundaries of musical possibilities influencing musicians as diverse as Alex Lifeson (Rush), Steven Wilson (Porcupine Tree) and Brian May (Queen).
Steve Howe: “With acoustic music, it’s the beauty of the instruments that comes through.“