By 2016, Djabe and Steve Hackett had already been working together for 14 years; they had released several live albums together over the years and had featured on each other’s records, but a studio album by Djabe & Steve Hackett had not yet been released. In June 2016, however, they travelled to Sardinia, where, in Tergu, next to the 1,000-year-old parish church of Nostra Signora di Tergu, they recorded the album *Life Is A Journey – The Sardinia Tapes* using 24-track analogue technology in a temporary studio set up in the vicarage.
On the recordings, the members of Djabe – a band undergoing a period of transition – were represented by Tamás Barabás (bass guitar), Attila Égerházi (guitar, percussion) and Áron Koós-Hutás (trumpet). They were joined by Gulli Briem, drummer with Mezzoforte, and Steve Hackett, the legendary guitarist from Genesis. The recordings were made by Ben Fenner, the renowned British sound engineer who has been working with Steve Hackett for over 25 years.

The musicians did not arrive at the recording session with pre-written compositions; instead, they improvised for three days. Their improvisations were greatly influenced by the atmosphere of the island and its immediate surroundings, as well as by the experiences they gained during excursions between the morning and evening recording sessions. The landscapes, the people, the culture, the built environment, the food and the drink all find their way into the compositions, which were finalised by Tamás Barabás upon his return to Budapest. His extraordinary talent as a composer, sound engineer and producer is evident on the now legendary album *Djabe & Steve Hackett – Life Is A Journey – The Sardinia Tapes*. Tracks such as ‘Castelsardo At Night’, ‘Beams Over The Nulvi Mountains’, ‘Building a Nuraghe’ and ‘Golden Sand’ reflect the surroundings, whilst ‘What’s The News Antonio’, ‘Wake Up’, ‘Buzzy Island’ and ‘After Limoncello’ reflect the human connections forged during the week of recording.
It was in Sardinia that Steve suggested Attila get in touch with the manager of the Esoteric Antenna label at London’s Cherry Red Records regarding the release of the live album *Summer Storms and Rocking Rivers*, which was released in February 2017. Buoyed by this success, Attila offered Mark Powell the chance to release the album *Djabe & Steve Hackett: Life Is A Journey – The Sardinia Tapes*. The parties agreed on a high-quality, paper-sleeve, two-disc release. The first disc was a CD containing the studio album, whilst the second was a DVD featuring both the stereo and surround mixes, both in high definition with visual extras. The DVD authoring was carried out by Ray Shulman, the former bassist of the band Gentle Giant and a man of many talents, adding further prestige to the release. A 16-page booklet is included in the third panel of the digipak.

The album proved hugely successful and, thanks to Cherry Red Records, was available worldwide. Countless Steve Hackett fans discovered and grew to love the band Djabe through this album. The release and distribution of the 2LP and cassette versions of the album are still handled by Djabe’s label, GR1993 Records, to this day.

Djabe became known worldwide not only for their music, but also for the sound quality of their releases. *Life Is A Journey* was a resounding success at high-end exhibitions in Munich, Vienna, Budapest and elsewhere, and remains one of the band’s standout releases in this respect to this day.
In 2026, the rights to release the album on CD and in digital formats reverted to GR1993 Records. Following the band’s decision, the 10th-anniversary edition will be released as an expanded double CD set. The first CD contains the original album, remastered by Tamás Barabás in 2026. As we mentioned, the first edition already sounded world-class, but Tamás has managed to improve on that sound even further. The second CD features live versions, previously unreleased recordings, and audio documentation from the 2016 studio sessions. More than half of the live recordings were made back in 2018 with the collaboration of Gulli Briem and have not been released in audio format until now. A real treat is the audio documentary compiled from outtakes, mixed on-site by Ben Fenner during the studio sessions, on which the musicians’ conversations and interactions can also be heard. The disc concludes with an interview with Steve Hackett about the making of the album.

This anniversary expanded 2CD edition is presented in a 3-panel digipak with an expanded 16-page booklet.

Watch the album’s introduction video

More informatuion, track list, musicians and order