Photos by Arnie Goodman
That voice.
“The Voice of Rock” is the moniker he has been given, and appropriately so. After forty years of rock and roll, he’s finally embarked on this, his first solo tour of the U.S.A. His voice has not changed. As many singers (due to their age) lower the key of their songs from the original recordings when performed on stage, the 64 year old Glenn Hughes can still easily reach octaves higher than most singers half his age. Amazing!
Supported by tasteful guitarist Soren Andersen and drummer Pontus Engborg, the bassist/vocalist from bands such as Trapeze, Deep Purple and Black Country Communion lit up the packed house mostly consisting of fans of bands from the Deep Purple family (easily spotted with their Deep Purple, Dio, and Rainbow tee shirts). With a set list covering all phases of his career, Hughes put on a show powerful enough to have worked well in larger venues than that of a club. But the intimacy of a smaller venue still worked quite well for the band and Glenn’s dedicated fans in the audience.
New material will be on his first solo album in eight years, scheduled for release this September. But standouts of the night were his song “Medusa” from his period in the band Trapeze (which he said he wrote when he was 17 years old), the Black Country Communion song “One Last Soul” and the two songs that got the biggest crowd reaction, “Stormbringer” and “Burn,” both from his stint in Deep Purple in the mid 1970’s.
Look for more touring from Glenn Hughes in 2017. Rock music as it should be!
-Barry Fisch
Um…..Mr.Hughes did not play any new material….The new CD will be released in November….don’t know what you thought was new,but it was all old stuff….check the setlist…