Dave Stewart to Release THE WAY IT WAS BACK THEN Album on Bay Street Records
Recorded in the Bahamas, the record features Stewart and engineer Jesse Samler playing every instrument.
Dave Stewart, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriter Hall of Fame member best known as co-founder of EURYTHMICS, has announced a new solo album titled THE WAY IT WAS BACK THEN. The 10-song collection, written, performed, and produced entirely by Stewart, is set to arrive as a limited, physical-only release on CD and vinyl via Bay Street Records.
The album will arrive on Friday, September 18, just days after his birthday. Fans can visit baystreetrecords.com for pre-order and purchasing information.
Recorded at Stardust in the Bahamas, THE WAY IT WAS BACK THEN was written and produced entirely by Dave Stewart, and was built almost entirely from spontaneous, one-take performances. With no lyrics written down beforehand, Stewart sang, played guitar, and improvised melodies in real time — handling vocals, guitar, keyboard, and programming — while his longtime engineer and collaborator Jesse Samler played bass, drums, keyboard, and programming alongside him (Samler also handled the album's layout). The two of them then built out the rest of each song together and mixed the record themselves. The result is an intimate, unfiltered album about memory, survival, love, loss, loyalty, and betrayal — and the strange feeling of still being here after all of it.
Dave Stewart Shares:
'I wasn't aware that I was making an album — in-between the various things happening in my life — some I instigated, and some just happenstance. I started to record myself singing songs at the same time as playing guitar. In almost every song, I didn't write down any lyrics — I just sang the words at the same time as singing the melodies and playing the chords, kind of freeform. Luckily, my engineer and good pal Jesse can play the drums and bass real well, so it's only the two of us playing everything! The whole album is very spontaneous in its lyrics and music. I have used this method on various solo albums, but usually that was with a programmer or a full band playing, but this time it was a lot more intimate.
There is a lot of looking back, and I suppose everyone goes through this at different times in their life... especially at my age, but this is not looking back in a soft nostalgic way. These songs are about memory, survival, love, loss, damage, loyalty, betrayal, and the strange feeling of still being here after all of it. All of this spewed out, as I said, with no lyrics written down, straight off the top of my head in one take — so I'm not sure how I did it, and as usual, have to work out later what chords I was playing and learn the melodies that I sang at the time. On listening and reading the lyrics now, I realize there are songs about old friends, parents, heartbreak, the streets, courtrooms, and so many ghosts of people and places that never really left me.
At the centre of the album, I suppose there is a deep longing for connection, but there is also the truth that nothing ever works out the way it did back then, hence the title. The past can be beautiful, but it can also be dangerous. A name, a voice, a house, a photograph — any of it can open my heart and break it at the same time.
Some of the songs are very personal and rooted in where I came from. For me, the feeling of this album is bittersweet, cinematic, and human. 'The Way It Was Back Then' is not really about trying to go back...it's about finally facing what was there.'
Tracklist
'The Way It Was Back Then'
'Your Wishes'
'Cry If You Want To'
'The House Where I Was Born'
'Black Cat'
'Makes Me Happy (And Sad)'
'Oh Jesse'
'All Done'
'Thin Ice'
'What's A Man Supposed To Do'
The new album follows DAVE DOES DYLAN, Stewart's 14-song homage to Bob Dylan, which arrived as a limited-edition, Record Store Day-exclusive vinyl release via Surfdog Records on April 12, 2025. Featuring just Stewart on vocals and guitar recorded in live, unedited takes, the album found him performing inspired renditions of Dylan songs he has adored since childhood — a project Dylan himself praised, calling Stewart 'a dreamer and a fearless innovator, a visionary of high order.' Aired live via PBS and YouTube, Stewart honored Bob Dylan with an intimate stripped down performance of Dave Does Dylan.
About Dave Stewart
With a career spanning four decades and over 100M album sales worldwide, award-winning singer, songwriter, musician, producer and EURYTHMICS co-founder Dave Stewart is among the most respected and accomplished talents in popular music history. Stewart co-wrote and produced each Eurythmics album in his world-famous duo with Annie Lennox. He has also produced albums and co-written songs with Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, Tom Petty, Gwen Stefani, Damian Marley, Stevie Nicks, Daryl Hall, Bryan Ferry, A.R. Rahman, Katy Perry, Sinead O'Connor, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, and Joss Stone, and many others. In 2022 Dave Stewart released Ebony McQueen, one of his most ambitious and autobiographical works of his remarkable life and landmark career.
His wide-ranging work has earned Stewart a long list of prestigious honors, including over fifty ASCAP and BMI Awards, four Ivor Novello Awards for 'Best Songwriter,' four BRIT Awards for 'Best Producer' (including a Lifetime Achievement Award), a Golden Globe Award, and a GRAMMY Award. 'Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)' by Eurythmics was recently inducted into the GRAMMY Hall of Fame and U.S. Library of Congress National Recording Registry, in recognition of its qualitative and historical significance. Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox were among the 2020 inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, inducted by St. Vincent, with the ceremony taking place in 2022. Also in 2022, with an inspired induction by U2's The Edge, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation welcomed Eurythmics as inductees for their profound impact on music.
Stewart is also a renowned film and TV producer (including NBC's hit songwriting competition series, Songland), author, photographer, public speaker, and entrepreneur. In 2010, Stewart established Dave Stewart Entertainment (DSE), linking creative ideas to a host of projects in music, film, television, books, theatre, and new media.
About Bay Street Records
Founded in 2020, Bay Street Records sees Dave Stewart bringing together his legendary passion for discovery and artist development with a multi-disciplinary new brand and full-service production house. Bay Street Records – which takes its name from its location on Stewart's Caribbean island home – will see Stewart bringing his unmatched production and songwriting approach to collaborations with extraordinary artists and rising new stars. For more information, visit baystreetrecords.com.
Recorded at Stardust in the Bahamas, the album was built largely from spontaneous, one-take performances, with Stewart handling vocals, guitar, keyboard, and programming while longtime engineer and collaborator Jesse Samler played bass, drums, keyboard, and programming. The two mixed the record together, with Samler also handling its layout.
