By David O’Neill
The first time I heard Glenn Hughes sing was around 50 years ago when Deep Purple III released ‘Burn’ in 1974! As a wet-behind-the-ears 14-year old a friend and I were blasting ‘Burn’ before we took a trip to London to see the third incarnation of Deep Purple in the Lewisham Odeon. No mean feat for two teenagers from the valleys of south east Wales.
Anyway, I have seen 50 per cent of BCC (Hughes and Joe Bonamassa) live a few times since. Having played ‘BCC IV’ multiple times since its release almost seven years ago, the chance to get an early listen to their latest issuing was potentially always going to be one I was not going to pass up. Is it as good as ‘BCC IV’? Read on to find out!
Now there is no arguing the pedigree of the four exponents of their instruments in this band. Hughes is known as “The Voice of Rock”, but he is also a pretty damned good bass player and song writer. JB could play guitar with a spoon and still make it sound stunning, but the change of style to rock from his usual blues guitar was a revelation to me on ‘BCC IV’. Adding in Derek Sherinian from Dream Theatre on keyboards and Jason Bonham on drums and it was always going to have potential. Despite differences between Hughes and Bonamassa after recording of ‘Afterglow’ in 2012, ‘BCC IV’ was a stunning compilation of tracks.
The opening track, ‘Enlighten’, opens with the guitar hook before Hughes vocals come in almost a capella in the first verse gently supported by the drumming and guitar playing picking up the main body of the track into the chorus. Bonamassa’s guitar playing has a supporting role until the solo where the distorted echoey sound takes your ears on a soaring/freefalling auditory journey.
The first single, ‘Stay Free’, has a funky bass line to the rock track. The vocals are powerful as always from Hughes but the guitar hook is prevalent throughout until the breakdown when it completely soars in the solo. ‘Red Sun’ has another booming bass line opening that carries the track to the chorus admirably supported by the guitar hook again. Hughes vocals are well supported harmonically by the other band members. Once again, the slower solo of Bonamassa is sublime (but why wouldn’t it be?). The drumming of Bonham is also very prevalent in the track but it is subtly included in the mix.
‘Restless’ is obviously Bonamassas’ time to shine. The slow, lilting blues track opens with a haunting guitar solo and the clean hook is carried underneath the vocals until Hughes adopts his usual approach to vocals. However, it is the drums, guitar and keyboard playing that shine in this track for me. ‘Letting Go’ is a much more upbeat track and whilst Hughes’ vocals are the dominant force, the backing vocals and all the other exponents are equally laid in the mix. It is probably the only weaker track on the album.
‘Skyway’ is another mid paced track with all the band being given some limelight but the guitar solo is more about what is not played as much as what is played that lets it breathe. The keyboard playing is much more evident in this track than some of the others. ‘You’re Not Alone’ is straight back to a funky feel to all the instruments under the vocals. All the band get some “airtime” with each member getting solo sections in it.
‘Love And Faith’ opens with a keyboard section from Sherinian that carries the bulk of the track to the breakdown/solo section, it is a great track and well deserving of its position in the album listing. It is a track full of everything this band has to offer. ‘Too Far Gone’ feels like a crescendo track, it picks up everything that comes before and lifts it to an appropriate level for the penultimate track on the album.
The final track is ‘The Open Road’ and it once again gives everyone their place in the sun, vocals are typically Hughes, the keyboard carries the bulk of the track with the rise and fall of Bonamassas’ guitar playing again showing why he is probably one of the best exponents of his instrument. The breakdown/outro gives Bonham his time and the funky feel to the hook helps it finish well.
Overall, I have been waiting for this album for seven years! Was it worth the wait? Very definitely. Two listens and I’m as hooked as a trout on fly fishing line. Is it instantly as good as ‘BCC IV’? Not quite for me. There is definitely no ‘Song For My Last Resting Place’ on here but ‘Enlighten’ is a great track, as is ‘Too Far Gone’. However, the overall sound and feel is consistently of a very high quality group of excellent musicians coming together to create great music. Would I pay to see them on the same stage? Hell Yeah. In a heartbeat.
- ‘BCC V‘ is released on Friday (14 June).
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