Soul and R&B songwriting legend Don Covay, who has been recovering from a 1992 stroke, is working on his first album since 1976. "ADLIB," due from Cannonball Records in late August or early September, is credited to Don Covay & Friends.

Produced by Jon Tiven, the album will feature both new and old songs, with Ann Peebles covering the Aretha Franklin standard "Chain of Fools," Paul Rodgers [ tickets ] (Bad Company) singing on "Mercy, Mercy"--which was once recorded by the Rolling Stones--and Wilson Pickett on "Please Do Something," a song best known by Covay with the Spencer Davis Group.

Other guests include Huey Lewis, Dan Penn, soul singers Frederick Knight, Otis Clay and Syl Johnson, alto saxophonist Lee Konitz and former Savoy Brown guitarist Kim Simmonds.

The album's core band includes guitarist-organist Tiven, pianist Paul Shaffer and drummer Anton Fig ("Late Night with David Letterman") and bassist Sally Tiven.

The Rolling Stones' Ron Wood designed the cover and drew two new portraits of Covay while Mick Jagger contributed to the liner notes.