Artist: Gillan, Ian
Label: Virgin Records
Release: 1980
Although Ian Gillan didn’t enjoy luck on a par with his Purple colleagues Blackmore and Coverdale in the post-Deep Purple years, we still can’t overlook the excellent achievements that, despite alarming signs already hinting at the first holes in his voice, helped the famous vocalist kindly heal the wounds of the ignominiously collapsed Ian Gillan Band adventure. Unlike his two aforementioned colleagues, Ian built around himself a unique combination of musicians with completely different characters, free of ego, forming a sharp, punchy whole, a homogeneous musical collective that, if nothing else, transfused a healthy dose of badly needed fresh blood into the visibly withered body of the late-seventies rock scene.
So what kind of musical approach did the ever-cheerful Uncle Gillan go for this time? First and foremost, of course, one that’s direct in a way that suits the times and, above all, considerably simpler. In short, it’s fundamentally a sharp contrast to the virtuosic, technical “shaking out of frustrations” that once, in the spirit of competition, entertained the singer’s vocal cords in his rosiest days. Guitar heroism in the style of the “man in black” is accordingly scarce, though Bernie’s qualities are of course not to be overlooked. The other story revolves around Towns’s ear-splitting keyboards, where you’ll look in vain for a worthy rival to his “annoying” jabbing. Colin is an old tomcat, greased with every trick in the book, so you can give yourself over to his innovative keyboard ideas completely and without a worry. Those two protagonists, with the exception of Ian’s charismatic vocal of course, totally dominate Glory Road. As for Ian’s voice, with Glory Road it’s slowly losing its status as one of the most impressive voices in the business. Except on the intensely wound-up Sleeping On The Job, Ian cautiously steers clear of his trademark “screaming” elsewhere, which you’ll notice first if you’re well acquainted with the gentleman’s Purple antics. “Slacking off at work” is a nice example of Ian’s sarcastically humorous interpretation, like a stuffed cabbage roll generously wrapped in the unstoppable onslaught of the playfully disposed duo Colin/Bernie.
The common denominator of Glory Road, apart from two mellow moments, stays the same throughout: sharp, uncompromising music, spiced with Gillan’s more-or-less unstable shrieking, which most of the songs surprisingly handle well! If there’s one thing Glory Road doesn’t lack, it’s definitely varied communication among everyone involved, built entirely on harmony and mutual understanding, something you’d hardly have expected at first given so much almost teenage-style bashing at times. Are You Sure, Unchain Your Brain in Running, White Face, City Boy form a strongly animated hard rock triangle, in the middle of which the ear-friendly Time And Again has made itself comfortable. Its laid-back vibe visits us at just the right moment, right before the arrival of the new rock tram No Easy Way, where the excellent Colin Towns reigns.
Gillan serves up one of the biggest surprises, you could even say of his career, with the thoroughly enjoyable blues If You Believe Me, for which he deserves all the congratulations. If not for the convincing interpretation, then simply for boldly strolling into territory that had been more or less uncharted for him until then. Ian beats the dangers lurking everywhere with astonishing courage and determination. Both elements effectively make up for his proverbial, chronic lack of receptiveness to “bluish” melodic motifs. Despite the unexpected success of the latter, the essence of Gillan’s message remains rock n roll in the style of On The Rocks. Undoubtedly the album’s favorite, it strongly recalls the earlier Mr. Universe thematically. An impressive intro from Towns’s keyboards creates a gloomy atmosphere, which the vocals and a constant exchange of sharp guitar riffs cunningly develop all the way to the end of the song. On The Rocks is Gillan’s great triumph, representing the next step in the singer’s musical evolution, and it’s at its dizzying height that Ian’s Glory Road bids farewell with the brilliant Nervous. Goodbye, but not for long..
Lineup
Ian Gillan: vocals
Colin Towns: keyboards
John McCoy: bass
Bernie Tormé: guitar
Mick Underwood: drums
Production
Ian Gillan
Tracklist
1. Unchain Your Brain
2. Are You Sure
3. Time And Again
4. No Easy Way
5. Sleeping On The Job
6. On The Rocks
7. If You Believe Me
8. Running White Face City Boy
9. Nervous
