Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Black Country Communion
Label: Mascot Records
Released: 2010
Length: 72:36
Rating: 4/5
Black Country Communion was born as a supergroup project under the wing of renowned producer Kevin Shirley (Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Rush), who brought together under one roof the legendary singer/bassist Glenn Hughes (ex-Trapeze, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath), guitar superhero Joe Bonamassa, keyboard wizard Derek Sherinian (ex-Dream Theater) and all-round drummer Jason Bonham (ex-UFO). These virtuosos, who are also hugely respected as solo musicians, put out their self-titled debut in 2010, and it instantly got every heavy rock fan buzzing. Hughes and Bonamassa wrote most of the songs, sharing lead vocals here and there. Sherinian, Bonham and Shirley also chipped in with songwriting ideas in places. Stylistically, »Black Country Communion« is a thrilling but at times fairly predictable hard rock and blues rock blend of influences from cult bands, led by Deep Purple and Trapeze, where Hughes once played, and Led Zeppelin, who are tied to Jason, son of the unforgettable John Bonham, though you can’t miss a few traces of Free and Bad Company either.
The opening track, »Black Country«, kicks off with fiery bass lines, then comes a blazing guitar ‘grind’, dynamic drum fills and vocal acrobatics from the master singer Hughes, and it goes all-in on maximum punch. It’s a slightly fussy intro that doesn’t exactly leave the best first impression. »One Last Soul«, one of the album’s highlights, is far more subtle, melodic and just plain more likable, and it’s where the instrumental eclecticism of this virtuoso quartet finally shines. Bonamassa backs Hughes’ vocal beautifully in the lovely chorus, and casually treats himself to a crunchy solo on the side.
»The Great Divide« has a few more funk elements, which have always suited Hughes’ voice perfectly, while »Down Again« is a pure retro hard/blues rocker with an iconic guitar riff and a pretty successful attempt at reviving what Deep Purple, Trapeze and Led Zeppelin used to do back in the day. The slightly repetitive but still really solid »Beggarman« opens with a furrowed guitar solo in typical Bonamassa style. The next piece is a lot more interesting. The eclectic »Song Of Yesterday«, another album highlight, opens as a ballad with symphonic arrangements and Bonamassa on lead vocals, then shifts into a hard-hitting section with stormy guitar passages, combative drum fills and excellent harmony vocals. The key moment of the composition is the epic guitar solo in the middle. Even though Hughes and Bonamassa ‘sold their souls to the blues’ and we’re used to more compact creations from them, writing longer compositions with an eclectic structure has never been a problem for them.
»No Time«, which again leans a bit more toward funk, could easily pass for a Hughes solo track, if it weren’t for the characteristic Bonamassa guitar passages all over it. »Medusa« is a modern take on the best-known classic by Hughes’ former band Trapeze, which celebrated the fortieth anniversary of its release in 2010, and that’s perhaps the main reason Glenn and his buddies decided to have another go at it. This version is a bit less dark and much more subtle and eclectic, with better guitar passages and a somewhat more varied solo, though it’s not an overly radical departure from the original.
»The Revolution in Me« has a driving guitar riff and rhythm that remind you a bit of early Uriah Heep, though once Glenn’s vocal comes in, it suddenly starts sounding more like some of his past bands. »Stand (At the Burning Tree)« is a pretty standard hard rocker, where the guitar and keyboard solos in the middle are the most exciting part. Sherinian shows off with some colorful hammond organ passages, Bonamassa is once again in outstanding guitar form and Hughes shines with his usual vocal acrobatics, but technical chops aside, this one doesn’t leave any deeper emotional mark.
On the fairly successful but too long »Sista Jane«, where the band tries to get a bit dirtier, naughtier and more scandalous with lyrics about a femme fatale, even though it doesn’t quite suit them, the lead vocals trade off really nicely. »Too Late For the Sun«, where Glenn and Joe once again swap places at the mic with great results, is a slightly overlong, eleven-minute closer to the album with plenty of energetic moments and loads of room for all four heavyweights to show off their virtuoso skills. Each of them gets their turn ‘in the spotlight’ with a solo spot. Their fans will be in ‘seventh heaven’ over it, while everyone else might start to get a little bored because of the slight sprawl.
Hard rock and blues rock connoisseurs got to witness the birth of one of the most exciting bands in the genre with Black Country Communion. Their ambitious debut was worthy of the famous names that made up this star-studded collective, and on most of the tracks you could tell the songwriters already knew each other well. Their next effort, »Black Country Communion 2« (2011), was even better and further cemented the exceptional chemistry that had taken hold inside the supergroup, though over time, as expected, creative friction between Hughes and Bonamassa kept growing, so it surprised almost no one when they went on hiatus in 2013 before returning to the scene in 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omYoANJRbEI
Line-up
Glenn Hughes – vocals, bass guitar
Joe Bonamassa – guitar, vocals
Derek Sherinian – keyboards
Jason Bonham – drums
Production
Kevin Shirley
Track list
1. Black Country
2. One Last Soul
3. The Great Divide
4. Down Again
5. Beggarman
6. Song of Yesterday
7. No Time
8. Medusa
9. The Revolution in Me
10. Stand (at the Burning Tree)
11. Sista Jane
12. Too Late for the Sun
