Leslie West – Unusual Suspects – West’s Best?

The fact that Slash, Billy Gibbons, Joe Bonamassa, Zakk Wylde, and Steve Lukather all showed up and turned in outstanding performances says a lot about this record, but it is not what the hoopla is all about. It’s not even the fact that shortly after the completion of the album, Leslie West suffered a tremendous, life changing tragedy of having his right leg amputated just above the knee, and is staging a brave comeback. The hoopla is that at 65 years of age, Leslie West has made what may be the best record of a career that has spanned 45 years.

West doesn’t want to be called a legend, but that’s exactly what he has spent these many decades becoming. The good part is that he’s not nearly finished.

Unusual Suspects is the guitarist’s first long player since Masters of War, his excellent collection of Bob Dylan covers from 2007. At the time, I called the album one of the best rock records I had heard in a long time, West had retorted, “Man, Tony, that blows my mind. You just made my day. I’m really so happy to hear you say that. I worked my ass off for two years on that record.” I can only imagine that West also worked his ass off on this one as well.

Many guitar heroes these days are relying on past glories to keep the fans coming out to shows. Too many albums are pasted together Pro Tools productions that often mean that the players aren’t even on the same continent, let alone standing toe to toe, as West is here with the fellows I mentioned previously. The production and bass playing of Fabrizio Grossi is perfect. He and drummer Kenny Aronoff and provide a stellar frame for the Mountain man’s performance.

Leslie West is most famous for being an incredibly soulful, and strong guitarist – he’s been named as a major influence by some of rock’s greatest players (Eddie Van Halen, Slash, and Michael Schenker, to name a few). He has never sounded better than he does on Unusual Suspects. His tone is more massive than it has ever been, as notes jump out of his signature Dean Guitar and scream through his Budda Amps. If anyone needs an electric guitar tone 101 class, start here. Thick chords slam about, and single notes ring for days with rich tube saturation, but the fact is that West would sound pretty much the same playing through any rig. The man is his tone, and it is bigger than life, as Leslie has always been.

One More Drink For The Road kicks off the record, and it’s a piano driven tune that has West slinging single note guitar lines that rip through the mix with fiery emotion, cascading around and between a great set of lyrics that tell a tale of woes on the road. When West, Grossi, and Aronoff slide into the song’s solos, the sound is rock and roll bliss as the rhythm section drives the guitarist into gritty overdrive. The use of the piano as the main accompaniment is a brilliant strategy for showcasing the snarling beauty of West’s stock in trade lead playing.

I find it amazing that I dig the vocals on this album as much as I do the guitar work, and the fantastic rhythm section. West sounded great on his 2007 release with Mountain, Masters of War, and, if anything, his vocalizing is even stronger and more passionate now. Soulful, gritty, and powerful, the axe slinger’s voice is now as strong and poignant as his guitar playing. Much of this is down to his choice to lead a sober life, and a work ethic that has him striving to be seen as relevant and not just legendary. He succeeds boldly.

Slash shows up on the powerhouse rocker, Mudflap Mama, a tale that expands on the tune that brought Mountain to every radio in the country in 1970, Mississippi Queen. West updates the tale, and the two guitarists go at it like they’re jousting for the queen’s favors. West says that Slash didn’t think he was necessary on this track, but Mr. Hudson’s licks mesh perfectly with Leslie’s. Was Slash necessary? Probably not. Does he make a great track even greater? Most definitely.  In any case, I’m hoping that the biggest guitar hero of the last couple of decades shows up for a cameo somewhere on West’s fall tour, The 3 Guitar Heroes Tour, featuring West, Michael Schenker, and Uli Jon Roth, which may be the year’s most highly anticipated road show for fans of rock guitar playing.

Going toe to toe and guitar to guitar with Billy Gibbons is a tall order. The ZZ Top kingpin brought a song of his own to the studio, Standing On A Higher Ground, and it had some finishing touches applied by West and producer Grossi. The result is a Texas sized slice of straight up rock that features an intro, of which West says, “Only Billy Gibbons can come up with an intro that sounds like Hendrix and ZZ Top joined at the hip.”

West makes you wish that there were two guitarists in ZZ Top – the pair take this tune, which is classic Gibbons-esque rock, and drive it ever higher. There is nothing about this that doesn’t just smoke. This is Billy Gibbon’s greatest moment outside of his home base. I thought I had perhaps never heard two guitarists sounding better together, until I heard the next track.

Joe Bonamassa is roughly half Leslie West’s age, but when these two stand face to face and sing the blues, they are truly brothers. The tune is the Willie Dixon classic, Third Degree, and once again a pairing of musical giants creates something greater than the sum of their individual efforts. There’s a definite Zeppelin flavor going on here, as drummer Aronoff, and bassist Grossi tromp out a slab of rhythm that creates a superhighway of sound for West and Bonamassa to shine like hard rock diamonds. Their guitar dual is an incendiary exhibition of blues rock chops galore, as each eight bars seem to drive the next to a higher plain at every turn. This transcends the usual cameo type appearance by miles, as these two giants sound like they are in this together to the very end. There is nothing that sounds even remotely mailed in, rather it sounds like these two are loving every second that they are sharing, as I am sure they did.- as I am sure you will.

Legend is another piano based track with Phil Parlapiano on the keys, this time a ballad that has Leslie West proclaiming, “Don’t call me Legend, I came here to play….” This may be true, and West has definitely come to play, but the fact is that the man is a legend. This is another track that features the singer as an awesome vocalist. He sounds like he’s spent the last decade devouring every soul record that ever mattered, and learned every nuance and every twist.

The next star turn is provided by West’s erstwhile son, Zakk Wylde, who turns in a predictable amount of sizzling shred licks that post up well next to West’s more tempered slabs of classic rock lead guitar. Nothing Changes is the title, and true enough, nothing does. Out of the gate the duo complement one another as they deliver the kind of lockstep rocking rhythms that have been a West hallmark since the days of Mountain’s Never In My Life. The senior partner takes the first solo, then Wylde steps in with a harmonic popping tirade of molten rock, the like have which has served him so well for so long. The minute he starts, there is no question as to who is playing, and it suits the song magnificently.

With all these amazing guitars and all this amazing singing, with all the great ensemble playing and the fine production, you could almost be excused for not noticing the quality of song-craft and lyricism at work here. West tells a lot of stories alongside his musical muscle flexing, and if you listen closely, you may well learn a bit about love, life, redemption, and regrets. He is a man who turned his life around a great many years ago, and still works at being a better man, a better lover, and friend. His tales are based on human relationships, and he’s done his time on the subject and seen his way through to the other side.

There’s a lot of great material on this album that features West, Grossi, and Aronoff without the aid of star cameos – and they are a more than sufficient rock and roll machine. From beginning to end they consistently deliver the goods - as I said earlier, the rhythm section is not pedestrian, these guys didn’t just show up and lay it down, they create excellent arrangements and there are a great many moments to treasure, in terms of ensemble playing, on every song. West and producer Fabrizio Grossi made sure that the record sounds like a full-on band that means every note and every beat.

“As far as my voice goes,” West says, “when I open my mouth, that’s what comes out. I’ve always loved the great soul and blues singers, so that is how I instinctively got my phrasing. When it comes to the guitar, I could never play fast, so I learned how to make every note count – to be sure that every lick has something to say. I believe in having a big sound and leaving space between the notes, and that space is like the point where the music stops in an Alfred Hitchcock movie. It builds tension and raises the question, ‘What’s gonna happen now?’ Plus, I love to feel the speakers move the air. The heavy sound it takes to make that happen really does it for me.”

Unusual Suspects may be Leslie West’s best work yet. It compares favorably with any album from the early days of Mountain, and to his later solo work. It achieves all it set out to do, and covers a tremendous amount of territory. It easily moves from ballads to blues, from metal to the Willie Nelson cover, Turn Out The Lights, that closes out the album and sees Slash and Zakk Wylde returning for one more go around with the master, the legend (yeah, I said it), Leslie West.

Unusual Suspects is out September 19^th on Provogue/Mascot Records.

Thanks to Peter Noble, Noble PR Consultancy

My Dream Guitars (15 Favorites)

A few nights ago I had the pleasure of meeting, and spending a few hours with Gary Dick, founder and owner of Gary's Classic Guitars. For those not familiar with Gary's legendary two page ads in Vintage Guitar Magazine, I would direct you there, and then straight to his website (www.garysguitars.com) to see maybe the most amazing collection of top shelf vintage guitars in the world. Regardless of the aged wonder you seek, Gary most likely has one, and in the best condition available. When Tom Petty pulls his tour bus up to your door, you know you are doing something right.

After spending a couple of hours comparing notes, sharing stories and telling tales of six string worship and fervor, Gary asked me to name my five favorite guitars. I whipped out a short list in pretty fast fashion, but quickly realized that for quite some time I had had a list of dream instruments that would make up my desert isle collection. The guitars I considered personally essential for me is a list that probably would be duplicated by no one. That is part of the beauty of the world of the guitar - everyone has a different outlook, and would choose a different list for themselves, based on myriad factors.

My list is dictated by a wide assortment of factors, such as - favorite players, classic tones, sheer aesthetics, and nostalgia for instruments strummed, picked or played in my personal past. Some would have longer lists, some would land on perhaps one guitar. I am fairly certain though, that no two would be identical.

I somewhat surprised myself with a list that included just one guitar from the last 25 years. I do not consider myself a Luddite, but sure enough, my tastes were for the most part as old as I am. I don't consider this a negative statement about the new, just an appreciation of the classic.

I did not seek a precise order, this is simply the order in which they left my pen - I do, however, think that it may speak to preference to a great degree.

1) 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard - I have never owned a '59. I have played perhaps ten, sold two while in retail, and once owned a fabulous replica that was built for me by a well known luthier. The last 'Burst I held was that belonging to blues rocker Joe Bonamassa. Joe's 'burst is a relative plain-top that is very light, incredibly resonant, and in great condition. The neck is thick - I believe that is one of the biggest reasons for the guitar's amazing tone. A good Les Paul is a very clean sounding instrument. From Page's to The Reverend Billy Gibbons', the classic Les Paul will clean up as nicely as a Telecaster. On a great Les Paul, it is the clean tones, and the amazing separation and clarity that impresses me most of all. There is a world full of great Les Pauls, but once you have felt the resonance of the strings through the back of that fat neck, you will realize why this is perhaps the holy grail of electric guitars.

2) 1968 Gibson Les Paul Standard Gold Top – This model was the first great Les Paul I ever played, and while I had no idea why I liked it so much at the time, I have long since figured out a few things that had me so enamored. The first thing was the guitar’s sheer beauty - the gold top had already by 1979, had begun to turn a cool tint of green on the upper bout where the owner's arm had perspired and worn through the finish. To my eyes this was very cool as it looked so well played. The guitar's P-90 pickups were another alluring feature, though I can't say that I knew exactly what they were at that point in my development. I did notice that that sounded both a little dirtier when played clean, and a little cleaner when played dirty! The fat neck profile also felt better to my hand than did the thin profiles of newer Gibson guitars I had previously played. This guitar had a wonderful chunkiness and grit when playing chords with a bit of overdrive, and a thick, corpulent tone not dissimilar to those I had heard from great guitarists such as Joe Walsh and Leslie West. I may not have exactly known why I dug it, but I sure knew that I dug it. And I still do.

3) 1954 Fender Stratocaster Sunburst - For almost 60 years Fender has been reconfiguring the Stratocaster in a thousand different ways, and they have yet to find a significant improvement in Leo Fender's original design. Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares truly got it right the first time, back in 1954. I've played several '54s and each had the magical mojo that comes built into a great Stratocaster. The sexy contours of the body are instantly apparent the minute you first hold a Strat, and that is a feeling that has never changed. To this moment I do not know of a more comfortable guitar. The tones the guitar produces are incredibly varied, and sound like they were made to be molded by whatever sound tools the guitarist chooses to place between the guitar and the speaker it finally sings through. Whether it  is the classic clean tones of Mark Knopfler plucking his way through the Dire Straits classic, Sultans of Swing, or David Gilmour's multi-effect approach to Pink Floyd's catalog, there are a million ways to make the Stratocaster work for you, and many more still to be discovered.

4) 1959 Gibson Les Paul Junior Tobacco Sunburst - My first real guitar teacher played a Les Paul Junior. He could play anything, in any style, and make it sound right. From bop, country, blues, to blazing rock - he nailed the tones and instilled in me the basic truism that it is the player, not the guitar. The guitar's 24.75 inch scale length made it a beauty to play, and once again, my hand was totally comfortable with its baseball bat neck. I have always preferred tone to technique, so the thickness of the necks were never a negative, but a blissfully toneful positive.

5) 1964 Gibson Firebird VII Sunburst - This one is all about the look. Never a comfortable guitar to play, whether you are sitting or standing, the Firebird is, however, a grand looker. Not exactly sexy in the female form of the Les Paul or Strat, the Firebird is handsome - having an almost militaristic elegance and bearing. I first fell in love with Johnny Winter's white Firebird V that he played so brilliantly on his great live record, Johnny Winter And, which saw Winter dueling with a Les Paul toting Rick Derringer. The albino guitarist blazed through the set with an incendiary tone that cut through the mix, and truly made me understand why they called them axes. The Firebird VII has the gold hardware, three mini-humbucking pickups, and the frustrating banjo tuners, but it is a beauty of a beast that is worth the taming.

6) 1964 Rickenbacker 360/12 Fireglo - There are a few 1963 models of this classic, but they are prototypes and promo guitars that went to an elite few, most notably, of course, The Beatles' George Harrison. George's deft use of the electric twelve string got noticed by Byrds founder Roger McGuinn (who favored a 370/12), and McGuinn's use led logically to the new wave chime of Tom Petty, and REM's Peter Buck. It says an awful lot that no other guitar manufacturer has ever come close to the popularity of the Rickenbacker twelve string electric. This another guitar that is notoriously unwieldy (mostly due to a thin neck, and very narrow string spacing), yet nothing approaches its unique jangle. This guitar will have you writing songs immediately, and they will be unlike any you have written before.

7) 1957 Gibson ES-295 Gold - The Scotty Moore model is how this glorious piece of rock-a-billy music magic maker is most commonly referred, and it is as stunningly beautiful as any instrument on the planet. Not satisfied with a gold top, the 295 is gold all over, with a Florentine cutaway, and two sizzling P-90 pickups. No less an expert than that Stray Cat Brian Setzer calls it, "The ultimate rock-a-billy guitar." I think I prefer it for prog-rock, but rockers such as Ted Nugent, Andy Summers, and Yes man Steve Howe have long since proven that the wide body ES series can certainly rock.

8) 1958 Gibson Flying V Korina - I have long been a big fan of the German rockers Rudolf and Michael Schenker, and, as a result, have had a long and lusty affair with the Gibson Flying V. While both of the brothers prefer later models, I am a friend of the korina. I have always found that the Flying V sounds distinctively different than other Gibson solid-body guitars - a brighter and punchier midrange that cuts through dense and distorted mixes better than the girthy tones of a distorted Les Paul. They also have a nice clean tone that I attribute to the thin body. '58 Vs are in very short supply (only 81 were produced), and tend to cost several hundred thousand dollars, but for the average player, Gibson reintroduced korina models in the early 80s that are a bit less pricey, and retain the same tone and vibe.

9) 1959 Fender Esquire Custom Sunburst - This is the one that got away. Early in my guitar playing days, I happened upon this rare version of the Telecaster at a local music store. I believe that I paid the fellow $350 and another $30 for some fresh strings, and a set-up. The same guitar is now valued at just a pinch under $20,000 - but what makes me sad is missing the way the Esquire Custom felt, played, and sounded. It felt like melted butter, as soft and supple as any action I have ever felt, and it sounded absolutely divine. It had a warm, round low end, a distinctive midrange honk, and a bright top end that contained no detectible harshness. I learned more about good tone from that guitar than any other instrument. I could not make it sound bad. But...like many youthful players, I could not afford to own more than one guitar at a time, and the band I was playing with required a tone that necessitated a couple of powerful humbuckers, so back I went to that local music store, and traded that beauty in on another.

10) 1977 Ibanez Artist Sunburst - Not being able to quite afford a new Gibson Les Paul, the cool fellow at the local music store directed me straight to this Japanese guitar. It was beautiful, it sounded good, and it had great action, so I proceeded to hand him back his Fender Esquire Custom (which, to his decency, he took back with some reluctance, asking me if I was sure I wanted to do this trade), and then instructed him to add what was to become the first of probably a thousand guitar modifications. I had them install two DiMarzio Super Distortion humbucking pickups, and I was up and rocking. The Artist, while not the best long range choice I could have made, was a great guitar. I have just remembered that I also had Larry install a phase switch that gave me the option of having the humbuckers out of phase when used together in the middle position - this was my first experience with this hallowed tone (think Gary Moore/Peter Green clean tones), and it is one I have utilized ever since. The Ibanez Artist is still an exceptional value, when one can be found - a great tone machine.

11) 2007 Campbell Nelsonic Transitone - The only relatively new guitar on my list is the result of a collaboration between guitar builder Dean Campbell, and legendary guitarist Bill Nelson (Be Bop Deluxe). The Transitone is a model that Campbell designed that combines a Jetson's like futurism with smart lines that recall some classic guitar designs. The first time I played a Nelsonic Transitone, I thought I had died and gone to guitar heaven. The smooth neck felt amazing - the fret work was perfect, and the action comfortably low. Tonally, I could coax almost any sound I could think of, from jazzy silkiness, to country rock chime, and it rocked fabulously. It somehow managed to satisfy my vintage beginnings, and still feel and sound completely new. A marvelous instrument from a great builder.

12) 1964 Gibson Thunderbird Bass Sunburst - This one is all Pete Way's fault. Pete, of course, played bass and wrote some of legendary British rock band UFO's greatest songs. Way was all fashion and fun, with his bass slung low, down near his knees, and busting out solid and melodic bassline for German guitar whiz Michael Schenker to play over and around. John Entwhistle also played a Thunderbird for many years, most notably perhaps on the band's second rock opera, Quadrophenia. With its long scale neck and two powerful Gibson humbuckers, the Thunderbird is absolutely thunderous. This is a rocker, pure and easy, there will be no jazz, no country played upon this low end weapon. It is, however, a handsome devil.

13) Rickenbacker 4001S Mapleglo - The Rickenbacker 4001S bass is the tone of some of my favorite bassists. Paul McCartney revolutionized rock bass playing when he switched to a Rick from his famous Hofner back in 1965, when The Beatles recorded Rubber Soul. The first tune McCartney recorded with the 4001S was the Motown influenced Drive My Car, and the change in tone is immediate. All of a sudden Paul could utilize the full neck, as opposed to the first few positions that were possible with the shaky intonation of the Hofner. Beyond The Beatles, Rickenbacker basses found their way into the hands of Yes's Chris Squire, Deep Purple's Roger Glover, Geddy Lee of Rush, and the famous chainsaw buzz tone of Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister. When combined with an Ampeg SVT, the 4001S is one of the most recognizable bass tones to be found.

14) 1939 Martin D-45 Natural - A pre-war Martin D-45 is the king of kings in the world of acoustic guitars. It has no true competitors when it comes right down to it. It looks right (Martin's most decorative dreadnaught), it sounds perfect, and it is the most sought after acoustic guitar on the planet. Martin made only 91, so they are extremely rare. I would gladly have a newer edition D-45, but since we're talking absolute favorites here, why not shoot high? If I come across one soon, I'll let you know.

15) Guild F512 Natural - I call this one the Pete Townshend Guild. Pete has been playing his since 1971's Who's Next. Its jumbo body is double bound, and the guitar is as handsome as it is toneful - it is exceptionally clear voiced for an acoustic twelve string (many are a bit muddy in the mids), and they play like a dream.

So, there you have it, a list of guitars that I would consider sufficient were I to be exiled to a desert island. As I said, it's my list, and I'm quite sure that no one else's would be the same. They all are great tone machines, and they are all attractive, but most importantly, they all occupy a place in my heart for all the right reasons.

John Wetton On Being Raised In Captivity

"Raised In Captivity is really about me growing up, and being born into the post-war England. We still had rationing, and we still had the Victorian morality hanging over us, hung over from the previous century. So everything was...you weren't allowed to do this, you can't do that, and if you did anything wrong, you were beaten - everybody's running scared, I mean, what chance did they have? That is the general theme of Raised In Captivity, except that, the flip side is the joy of freedom for me now. It's just unbelievable to actually come full circle. I went through two life threatening illnesses in the last ten years, so I really do feel blessed, and every day is to be lived to the fullest. I've got no idea where I'll be tomorrow, and no power over yesterday, so now is all I've got - this moment. All I'm able to do is make the most of what I've got. That's the flip side of being Raised In Captivity." John Wetton

John Wetton is making the most of the moment, of that there can be no question, of that, there can be no doubt. Raised In Captivity is Wetton's sixth solo album, and one of nearly sixty albums that he has sung and played upon, including his multi-platinum super-group Asia, prog legends King Crimson, UK, Uriah Heep, Roxy Music, and his recent three album collaboration with Asia/Yes-man Geoff Downes, under the moniker Icon. It's been a storied, and incredibly varied career, and now Wetton has made perhaps his finest record - a recording that seamlessly combines many aspects of his great career.

Raised In Captivity was recorded over a three and a half week period in Los Angeles, with Wetton collaborating with Billy Sherwood, who produced the album, and played the lion's share of the instruments. Sherwood also co-wrote many of the arrangements, and is, in Wetton's estimation, the reason the record sounds so much like a functioning band as opposed to two fellows. The album also features great cameos from some notable luminaries from Wetton's past. King Crimson founder Robert Fripp contributes some heady atmospherics, and his usual intensity to the album's title track, Steve Hackett lays down a melodic solo on Goodbye Elsinore, Uriah Heepster Mick Box brings the rock to New Star Rising, Tony Kaye tickles the ivories on Don't Misunderstand Me, and Eddie Jobson appears as the violin wielding Devil on The Devil and The Opera House.

John had this to say when I asked about their sterling contributions: "The people that played their solos - I had decided all that before I left England. I knew I wanted Steve Hackett to play a melodic solo on Goodbye Elsinore, and there's a song called The Devil and The Opera House, which has Eddie Jobson on it. The instrument I automatically associate with the Devil is the violin, and Eddie said to me, 'Do you want ME to be the Devil?,' and I said, yeah, be my guest - it makes me smile.

"All the people who play on the record sound like they were born to it. I wanted Allan Holdsworth for the solo on The Last Night Of My Life, and Allan said, 'Yeah, I'll do it, but I've a solo album to work out, my first in 11 years, so it won't be my priority.' I said, fine, if you've the time to do it. Two days before the end of recording I called and asked if he had done it, and he said he hadn't. I thought, I'll call Alex Machacek - he'd fit the bill as he's going to be playing in the UK band with me, and he played a great solo. I didn't say anything about Allan Holdsworth, I just said, please play a noble solo."

Steve Morse (Deep Purple, Dixie Dregs, Kansas) is featured on the album's opener, Lost For Words, and he brings to the table his usual collection of speed, melody, and jagged unpredictability that has been his signature for many decades. This solo would be at home anywhere in his discography, and the song is better for his six string musings. The song itself is as close as Wetton comes to his platinum hit making days of the 80s with Asia. The song aches for the era of melodic rock radio, and will more than satisfy any fan seeking a bit of the command the singer/bassist brings to this genre. Billy Sherwood brought this tune to the table, and you can hear the multi-instrumentalist at his best. This record never succumbs to Pro Tools proclivity for sterility.

John had this to say on the album's production, and the record's rockier side:

"It's all very edgy and it's great! I come to California, and it's all helicopters, police sirens, and I'm working with a guy who drinks too much coffee....it's a bit more rock and roll. Billy Sherwood is a good man. I had a creeping suspicion that he was the guy to do the job. He's very musical, we both work very quickly, and the main thing is that he's a very nice guy - we share a similar sense of humor.

"It does sound live, and I give Billy credit for that. He said on our first meeting that we need to make this sound like a real band, not just the two of us. We didn't analyze every kick drum beat - there have been certain records I've made where we did analyze every detail, every sound, and it sounds like it! It sounds a bit anal, and so kind of clean that it loses some of its core personality.

"If I'd been left to my own devices, I'd be sitting at home with my acoustic guitar and my piano, writing dreary folk songs - if I had given that to my record company, they would have said, 'Very nice, but where's the rock?'"

Rock the record does, especially out of the gate with Lost For Words (a bit of a misnomer, as Wetton is surely not in any way lost for words) and the album's title track, which finds Wetton in top form. His voice sounds fantastic, and his bass playing is aggressive and melodic as ever. He has called the album, "an Anglo-American music document, a true autobiographical journey," which indeed it is. Lyrically the album sees the singer with his heart upon his sleeve and well ready to expose a darker side than one may be used to finding on his albums with Asia:

"It's very much a statement of how I am today. It's a lot more personal than I would get with Asia - the reason being that I can get kind of personal with an Asia record, but I can't drag the guys into the corner that I go to sometimes. Where, with my more personal stuff, you know they don't deserve it, they don't need to go there.

"If I'm acting as a spokesman for the group, I don't believe it should be just my stuff - on a solo album I can do whatever the hell I like, and it is a great barometer of where I am, right now. It's often moody, and it's very honest."

Alongside the broadside rockers sit some of Wetton's most melodic moments, and his most poignant poetry. As I sat and chatted with John, I realized that I saw the man as being quite professorial - he's equal parts bard, troubadour, and rock star. While he is obviously best known for his tremendous ability to craft a three minute piece of pop melody, he cannot avoid his sense of equally impressive harmonic sophistry. His lyrical prowess has also never been in short supply, and he reckons it certainly is on display throughout Raised In Captivity:

"It's verbal dysentery, is what it is," he laughs. "Lyrics to me, are just as important as the music - it is, after all, what I'm saying!"

Amongst the more melodic and poetic to be found is the folkish ballad, Steffi's Ring, a tune that largely features Wetton's voice, acoustic guitar, and the keyboard embellishments of fellow Asia member Geoff Downes. This sounds like Twenty First Century Shakespeare Man. A beautiful, and too brief ( a mere 2:35 - I could have stood at least twice that) ballad that is sure to be a fan favorite.

Goodbye Elsinore is another lovely ballad that starts with just Wetton, and an acoustic guitar. The song then builds from verse to verse, leading to a soaring chorus of harmony expounding the song's title, only to be lifted even further by a perfect solo from ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett.

Throughout the entire recording, Wetton successfully straddles the genres he has embraced over his career and he has succeeded tremendously in giving nod to all, but being a slave to none. Mighty Rivers, which closes the album, is sure to become a modern prog-rock classic - a duet with Anneke Van Giersbergen, formerly of Dutch proggers The Gathering - the song is a bit over five minutes of brutal beauty. Wetton is doing some of the best singing of his career on this cut, and when he and Anneke join together, the result is gorgeous. This cut alone is worth the price of the album. It is truly breathtaking in its majesty. Wetton hits astounding notes for a gentleman of 62 years, in both pitch and duration. If you've ever enjoyed a note of his singing, you need to hear this.

"I'm glad that my voice is still intact! If it goes, I am absolutely screwed," Wetton grins, "I figure that's God's way of telling me that this is what I should be concentrating on.

"I can't see myself ever, you know, Tony, playing golf or anything like that, so I can never see an end to that, in terms of music. There will not be a day when I would say, right - I'm not gonna do that anymore, I can't see that."

Wetton has truly escaped being raised in captivity, having withstood the tortures of an empire, alcoholism, open heart surgery, and carpal tunnel syndrome. He has not merely escaped, but has risen above all this, and made an album as good as any of his career. And while he claims to not be excited by the thought of jumping right out on the road after a busy year of touring with both Asia and UK, I would not be shocked to see him take this one to the stage. As he said, it would be nothing to throw together a band and take it to some select cities to play this record live. The man is a worker, not one to rest on his laurels, perhaps not to rest, period:

"Well, I am still of the opinion that if I am not working on a Saturday night, something is terribly wrong. If I'm not playing on Saturday night, I'm not doing my job. That's the work ethic I've had since I was 16 - I suppose that's why I have always stayed so busy."

That is what being Raised In Captivity will do for you. We're very lucky that that is what it has done for John Wetton. He has not rested, and he has made one of the best records of a career filled with great music.

There are some cuts and cameos I didn't cover here, that I will leave it to you, the reader, to discover.


Raised In Captivity is being released July 1st in Europe, and July 12th in North America, by Frontiers Records.

Thanks to John Wetton, Dustin Hardman of Frontiers Records, and Libby Sokolowski.

Uriah Heep - Still 'eavy, Still 'umble - Concert Review

Uriah Heep sounds better today than ever before. Last night in Dayton, Ohio, they had a crowd of almost 4,000 on their feet - singing, shouting, and raising their fists for two hours of incredibly inspiring rock and roll. The band smiled as much as the audience, and it could best be described as a love-fest. This is not a band that rests on its longstanding laurels - their new album is remarkably fresh, and they played with more excitement and energy than bands a third of their age.

Mick Box still leads the band, and is as animated and exciting a guitarist as he was the first time Uriah Heep played in Dayton, back on April 1, 1976. By then, the Heep had been gigging for six years, longer than the lifespan of most rock bands. If you have ever wondered where the name Uriah Heep came from, he is a famous character from Charles Dickens novel David Copperfield, whose signature phrase, "very 'umble," led to the title of the band's first album, Very 'eavy, Very 'umble, back in 1970. Box has been on board since the beginning, and shows no sign whatsoever of slowing down.

The band boldly started the show with I'm Ready, a hard charging rocker off their new Frontiers Records release Into The Wild. From then on, longtime vocalist (25 years) Bernie Shaw put it like this:

"We're gonna spend the next few hours playing some of our new album, and some of our classics, some new, some old, some new, some old...."

Shaw is still seen by many as the new guy in the band, but make no mistake - Bernie is a pro's pro - a great voice, a confident front-man, and a great entertainer. His voice is powerful and crystal clear, not missing a note all evening, nor shying away from even the highest peaks in the band's catalog. The passion that Shaw brings to the table is palpable, as he utilizes every skill he has learned over a long career, including a tremendous amount of sheer horsepower, and a soulful vibrato that rivals the best of the classic British hard rock royalty.

I am amazed to report that the audience seemed not to be able to delineate the old from the new, as they cheered on tunes from the new record with as much enthusiasm as they did on classics such as Rainbow Demon, The Wizard, July Morning, Stealin', Look At Yourself, Lady In Black, and their highest charting single, Easy Livin'. Quite often, a crowd will merely tolerate a seasoned band's new stuff to get to the old - but when the Heep played Kiss Of Freedom, a song off of Into The Wild, the fifty something rocker next to me asked, "Is that old or new?"

The sound of Uriah Heep has remained pretty consistent over the years. Couched upon the thick and sophisticated mix of Box's trademark guitar tone, tasty keyboards, and thundering drums are the band's great harmony vocals, which so wonderfully support the ever melodic efforts of their lead singer. This band is as tight as it gets, an amazingly well oiled machine. This show was the third concert of a tour that will see Box and company play across America for most of the summer.

Bassist Trevor Bolder is still as captivating a performer as he was when he tread the boards with David Bowie as part of Bowie's best band, The Spiders From Mars. His bass playing is the pinnacle of the art. He maintains a very steady bottom end, and his phrasing is fabulous, as he makes great note choices, adds many cool fills, and frequently flies up the fretboard with great daring and dexterity. His performance on the classic July Morning is nothing short of sheer brilliance. Watching Trevor pluck the strings of his well worn P-Bass was a sight to see - his right hand attack making the bass's large strings look like rubber bands. His Ampeg SVT amps must be some of the happiest in the business, as he puts them through the paces.

Bolder also supplies a good deal of the classic Heep harmonies, and he hits every note, every time. My only regret was that the bassist did not sing his song from the new album, Trail Of Diamonds. This song makes me ache for a Bolder solo record. It is a great tune in the UH mold, with the veteran singing as well as any lead vocalist out there, and is reason enough for you to buy Into The Wild, which is as good an album as any in the band's catalog.

One of the recurring high points of the evening was when Bernie Shaw would sidle over to Bolder's microphone. This created a very cool scenario, in which Shaw and Bolder were harmonizing, and just above and behind them stood keyboardist Phil Lanzon (another 25 year veteran), adding a third, or sometimes fourth harmony. These guys sing like birds, and they do it while they are playing their instruments and entertaining 4,000 adoring fans. This is one of the hallmarks of the Uriah Heep sound for these last 40 years, and makes you wonder what rock critics sometimes think, and say. A Rolling Stone reviewer once infamously promised to commit suicide if the band made it big. How opposed to that is this comment from Def Leppard vocalist, Joe Elliott:

"Uriah Heep were the best band that we've ever toured with, either as a headline or support, because there was no ego, no pretentious kind of stuff. They were great, and we learned a lot from them”

While they were never the critic's darlings, the band have remained fan favorites, and I can't tell you how many people I heard, as I passed through the crowd, reminiscing about seeing the band over the last four decades. Stealin', the band's hit single follow up to Easy Livin', had the crowd on their feet and singing, early in the set. It was apparent from the huge smile on Bernie Shaw's face that while the band didn't know what to expect out of a Midwest audience on a sizzling June evening, they were tremendously pleased and gratified. Ever 'umble, Uriah Heep looked like they had just won the lottery. Again, and again Mick Box wore the grin of a school-boy, and he had this to say:

"After tonight, we've a thousand miles to drive for the next show, but the sound of this crowd will ring in our ears the whole way."

The adoration was being passed around like a bottle of Ripple at a hobo's ball - it gets passed, but each party partakes sweetly. I'm not sure who got the better deal, but everybody came away a winner.

Uriah Heep has always been a synergistic entity, with each component serving the greater whole. Drummer Russell Gilbrook is the kid of the band at just 47 years of age. While not quite as seasoned as the rest, he is a tremendously deft drummer, supplying equal parts of power and finesse. A favorite of the European drum clinic crowd, he has also worked with Tony Iommi, Van Morrison, and skiffle legend Lonnie Donnegan, as well as replacing Cozy Powell in the band Bedlam before being chosen to succeed a nearly irreplaceable Lee Kerslake as Heep's kit sitter. He takes a solo early in the set, and had the crowd contributing instantly. This band's love of their audience is always apparent, and they thank their fans repeatedly, and with huge smiles.

Phil Lanzon fills out the roster, and his expertise on the Hammond organ, various synths, and background vocals is astounding. As he whips his hands feverishly across the keyboards, he supplies great harmonies, then slings the microphone away to go back to the ivories. Lanzon is a masterful musician, and his sound is huge - his organ work ranks with the best. He also serves as a great cheerleader from his riser that sits above and behind Shaw and Bolder for most of the show.

After going off to thunderous applause, the band returns for their encores, which include 1977's Free 'n' Easy, a song which sees the band invite some 20 people on to the stage for some old school headbanging. 'Til the very end Heep delivers the goods, giving their fans what they want - a great night of rock and roll by any measure.

And so it was, on this balmy Friday evening in Ohio - a crowd of 4,000 well wishers, a band nowhere near past its prime - all uplifted by the spirit of rock and roll, Uriah Heep style - none more so than myself.

Live At Last - Black Country Communion in Indy

Black Country Communion took Indianapolis by storm last night, delivering a fantastic live offering of a host of tunes from the band's two albums, and a couple of classic nuggets. They sound like a mature band that has been gigging for years, not just a few shows. Glenn Hughes and Joe Bonamassa may be leading the charge from out front, but drummer Jason Bonham, and keyboardist Derek Sherinian are clearly two facets of this hard rock diamond.

The Voice of Rock, Glenn Hughes sings the lion's share of the material, while Bonamassa sings a few tunes and supplies an endless barrage of cutting edge rock guitar work. This is a super-group full of love and respect - there are no apparent issues of ego, or one-upmanship. When Bonamassa performs his solo classic, The Ballad of John Henry, Hughes works the audience magnificently, and sings every word of the song as he roams, smiling beatifically at the young guitar star. The entire band looks as if they are having a blast, and having collectively played with an amazing array of rock and roll royalty, they know they are a very powerful machine at work.

Derek Sherinian may be the least well known member of BCC to the casual listener or fan. The keyboardist has 10 albums of his own under his belt, and a resume that includes Dream Theater, Billy Idol, Alice Cooper, KISS, Al DiMeola, and practically every major rock guitarist of the last 20 years. On BCC's first record, many fans complained that the keyboards were under-utilized, and under mixed. This has been more than rectified on the band's new album, which is out this week and garnering near unanimous rave reviews.  The record heavily features Sherinian's awesome skills at both playing and arranging. On stage, Sherinian is as loud as Joe and Glenn, and actually has the only unaccompanied solo of the show, which was loud, dynamic, and allowed Sherinian to flex his musical muscle.

The show kicked off with the band's self titled opener, Black Country. Glenn Hughes's performance gave great credence to my habit of late, that of describing him as "the last rock star." I'm hard pressed to name another 70s rocker who is still in as fine a voice, or as energetic on stage. In an age where many have lost some high range, and a step or two on the boards, Hughes is still hitting every note of the 1973 Deep Purple classic track, Burn. Watching him run the stage is like viewing someone ice skating on a cliff. Before the show, Hughes had this to say:

"On the stage, I am fearless. This isn't arrogance, or ego, I'm like anyone else - I have fears all day long. But they disappear the moment I walk on stage."

Fearless indeed! The man never once retreats from a high note, or a low growl - the dynamics of his vocals go in an instant from a tender whisper to an impassioned wail. In this band, Hughes has chosen to keep the focal point on the songs, and the band. His incredible histrionics are kept to a minimum, and his melodicism is maximized. Even the hardest rockers in the set have their fair share of melodic beauty.

Guitarist Joe Bonamassa continues to evolve before the public eye. In his role here as axe star and occasional vocalist, the six stringer seems to relish the role of full time rock guitar hero. His solos are incendiary and masterful in their technical wizardry, but for me, where he is shining the most is in his sophisticated rhythm work, his single string song signatures, and his writing. His composition, The Battle For Hadrian's Wall, off the band's new album is a great example, as Joe switches seamlessly between the necks of his custom Music Man Doubleneck 6/12. This song has it all, and a great vocal from Joe as well.

On The Ballad of John Henry, the tune Total Guitar Magazine named as one of the ten best riffs of the last decade, Bonamassa takes a solo that is completely unhinged, as he effortlessly spits out volleys of rapid fire modal forays that end with howling bends of the lower strings, before he takes on his theramin with what I can only describe as heavy metal bliss. His aggression and verve even made the guitarist himself smile,  as his wizardry is thrown around the room in stereo by long time tour manager, and extraordinary live sound-man, Warren Cracknell. Cracknell has been expertly mixing Bonamassa shows for years, but now he's dealing with the sophisticated effects required by the new band's records, and the added burden of starting fresh each night on a new P.A. - far from the luxury of having his custom designed solo Bonamassa rig. The mix was great - vocals were crystal clear, the keyboards were prominent in the mix, and of course, the guitars sounded like a aural text-book of classic tube amp tones.

Before the show, Bonamassa kindly took the time to carefully walk me through his self designed rig (completely re-tooled for BCC). Then, after a tour of his guitar selection, he took apart his newly acquired 1959 Gibson Les Paul Junior double cut to remedy a noisy potentiometer. Joe knows his rig inside out, and spends endless hours making his magic seem effortless. He's joined in his mission for tone by long-time stage crew member Colin Moody, who has now assumed the role of guitar tech to the chief. You can see the confidence Bonamassa has in Moody, and they even agree to work together the next day installing a Hip Shot Bass Xtender machine head on Hughes's new acquired Rickenbacker 4001 bass (in a stunning azureglo blue finish). Bonamassa also talks Glenn into trying a Way Huge overdrive pedal with his bass rig - this guy is all about the never ending search for killer tones.

Some of the shows best moments are when the seasoned bassist jousts with the blues rock icon (that's Brick to the band). Hughes prods the guitarist to ever dizzying heights of daring do, and Bonamassa rises to the occasion - and on several of these occasions Hughes looks both pleased and amused by his cohort. The magic between these two is as palpable as the respect that they both confide when the other is not around. These guys fairly gush about the pleasure they are deriving from this partnership, hardly the hallmark of super-groups past.

Jason Bonham does not dodge Bonamassa and Hughes's effusive praise, either. The axeman reckons that the drum gods are smiling down upon him - he has the thunderous Tal Bergman in his solo band, and now has Bonham playing the best drums of his career in BCC. He drives the band mightily from behind his see-through yellow DW drum kit, and acts as a constant cheerleader for the band. Smiles are not off the faces of this bunch for long - they know what they are, and how good they sound. All ready, arrangements are stretching out as the band begins to gel.

The evening ended with a two song encore. The Man In The Middle is the band's lead video/single, and you couldn't ask for a funkier driving rocker. This is a staccato rhythm machine, and again you get a big sweet, melodic hook of the sort that Hughes writes so effortlessly. Once more, the enthusiastic crowd goes wild. The night then comes full circle as Bonamassa rips through the intro of the aforementioned Deep Purple classic, Burn, and the audience is again off their feet, singing, screaming, and thrusting fists. Bonamassa improvises a hot solo, and then proceeds to feed the adoring crowd Blackmore's famed arpeggios,as Sherinian contributes a huge slice of Hammond B3, also nailing the tone and feel of the Cal Jam classic. Hughes is brilliant right to the very end. I can't imagine a better ending to a fantastic show. It is scary to think what these guys will sound like in a month at High Voltage - England, prepare to be invaded.

There are other highlights throughout the show, with tunes such as Cold, or One Last Soul that are sure to become BCC classics, but I'll let you discover them for yourself. A wealth of quality clips have shown up on Youtube this week, and should sufficiently wet your whistles.

Everyone in Black Country Communion is at the top of their game, and with two excellent albums under their belt they are primed to make the world of hard rock their own. Producer Kevin Shirley was right, "This band is viral."

This was one of the best hard rock shows I have ever seen, and judging from the enthusiastic response from the packed house, I'm not alone in that opinion. The band still has three shows in the Eastern US before heading off to 25 shows in Europe, including that prestigious High Voltage Festival in London, England on July 24th. God bless Black Country Communion.

Live at last. I first wrote about Black Country Communion before a note had been recorded. I spoke with Glenn Hughes before a single note had been sung. I reviewed the first record first, and am now more convinced than ever that indeed BCC may well be the most exciting and important thing to happen to real rock music in the last twenty years.

All photos provided by Libby Sokolowski.