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Sun Records (Release Date 21.04.23)
Ian Hunter has taken into unchartered territory the concept of what rock n rollers are like when they reach a great age. Having celebrated his 80th birthday in 2019 with a Mott the Hoople 74 reunion tour, even the pandemic could not stop his indomitable career.
Quite the reverse in fact, as he wrote a load of new songs and, unable to get his settled Rant Band together other than long time cohort Andy York, it was suggested that he call on his many contacts and admirers in the business to help out. The result is one of the most star studded guest lists ever, sadly with a couple who have already left us in Taylor Hawkins and Jeff Beck.
The advantage of bringing in guests is also to widen the musical base and the opening title track is a prime example of that with some trademark guitar runs from Slash allied to Metallica’s Robert Trujillo on bass and possibly the closest to out and out hard rock that ‘Unter has ever got. In contrast ‘Bed of Roses’ features Ringo Starr and Mike Campbell and has the feel of early seventies Rod Stewart mixed with the Traveling Wilburys.
‘Pavlov’s Dog’ boasts a stonesy raunch with some fine slide guitar from Dean DeLeo, one of a trio of Stone Temple Pilots guesting, while others have a country rock flavour such as ‘No Hard Feelings’, with one of Jeff Beck’s last recorded appearances and slide guitar from Johnny Depp.
On some, though by no means all songs, his voice is starting to sound every inch its 83 years, rather tired and whispery and some way from his trademark sound, which takes a little getting used to. However it also works- an example being ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ where a rich but careworn voice reminds me of latter day Springsteen.
He has always tackled subjects beyond the usual range of rock topics in an original way and one such is ‘Guernica’ written from perspective of Pablo Picasso painting his anti-war masterpiece. It is a sparse arrangement, led by his piano but with the most sensitive of solos from Mike Campbell. The possibly over long ballad ‘Angel’ features the backing band to end all backing bands in Waddy Wachtel, Brad Whitford, Duff McKagan and the late Taylor Hawkins.
Both ‘I Hate Hate’ and ‘Kiss and Make Up’, while insidiously catchy, lack a bit of weight, but then the same could have been said of ‘Once Bitten Twice Shy’. The album ends though ends on a real high with a late period Hunter masterpiece in ‘This is What I’m Here For’. With a great up-tempo grove, it is clearly autobiographical with its life-affirming lyrics ‘from the womb to the tomb…might as well enjoy it’.
Incredibly there is a ‘Defiance part 2’ in the works, so the defiance at work is one of the ageing process and the assumption that creativity declines with age. ****
Review by Andy Nathan
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