Scratch My Back

Scratch My Back is the eighth studio and fourteenth album overall by the English musician Peter Gabriel, his first in eight years. It was released on 12 February 2010 in Australia and Germany, on 15 February in the UK and on 2 March in the U.S. The album, recorded at Air Lyndhurst and Real World Studios during 2009, consists of cover versions of twelve songs by various artists, using only orchestra and voice.[4] It is produced by Gabriel himself with Bob Ezrin.As one reviewer described it, “covers albums don’t get any more idiosyncratic or high concept than Scratch My Back.”

Scratch My Back is released on compact disc and digital download; a vinyl edition was subsequently released in late March 2010.

The album performs well on the album charts around the world. Since its release it has peaked at #1 in Belgium, #2 in Germany and Canada, and #3 in the Czech Republic, Italy and Switzerland.It also reached the top 5 in France and Sweden. In Gabriel’s native U.K. it peaked at #12 on the UK Albums Chart on 21 February 2010.



Background
The idea behind the Scratch My Back project is a song exchange where each artist would cover one of Gabriel’s songs in return for his covering one of theirs; the other artists’ renditions of Gabriel’s songs will appear on a later album entitled I’ll Scratch Yours.

“ If you’re going to reinterpret something, then really do something. Nail your colors to the mast and say, ‘This is different, and it isn’t everybody’s cup of tea. ”
—Peter Gabriel, on Scratch My Back.