Leslie West Announces Star Studded New Record

Released on 19 September Unusual Suspects is West's first solo album since 2006.

It features a fantastic roster of guest appearances from the likes of SLASH, JOE BONAMASSA, BILL GIBBONS and ZAKK WYLDE over 12 new tracks.

"These guys don't just show up to play on everybody's albums," says West on his special guests and the album's title. "They're all stars in their own right, and fantastic players — everyone with their own sound and style, about as far from 'the usual suspects' as it gets."

Here's the tracklist:

1. One More Drink For The Road ft. Steve Lukather
2. Mudflap Mama ft. Slash
3. To The Moon
4. Standing On A Higher Ground ft. Billy F. Gibbons
5. Third Degree ft. Joe Bonamassa
6. Legend
7. Nothing's Changed ft. Zakk Wylde
8. I Feel Fine
9. Love You Forever
10. You & Me
11. Turn Out The Lights ft. Slash & Zakk Wylde
12. Beetle "I Don't Know” Bonustrack

West has had a pretty traumatic month after losing part of his leg a few weeks ago.

On 17 June, West (a long-time sufferer of type 2 Diabetes) was aboard a long-haul flight to Mississippi to perform at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, when the limb began to swell. He was rushed to the emergency room and lost consciousness. The decision to proceed with the operation was made by his wife, Jenni, who remarks "It was his leg or his life."

But West didn't let the event stop him from releasing the new album. "Now I've got to figure out how to play the guitar whilst standing on one leg," he states, under no illusions regarding the size of the task ahead. "The prosthetic ones they have these days are really good, but of course I'm used to balancing my weight on two feet. I'm going to have to retrain myself."