Black Country Communion – Black Country Communion

Black Country Communion [CD/DVD Edition] (2010, J&R Adventures)

1. “Black Country” … 3:15
2. “One Last Soul” … 3:52
3. “The Great Divide” … 4:45
4. “Down Again” … 5:46
5. “Beggarman” … 4:52
6. “Song of Yesterday” … 8:33
7. “No Time” … 4:19
8. “Medusa” … 6:57
9. “The Revolution in Me” … 4:59
10. “Stand (At the Burning Tree)” … 7:02
11. “Sista Jane” … 6:55
12. “Too Late for the Sun” …. 11:21

Band:
Glenn Hughes – Lead Vocals, Bass, Backing Vocals
Joe Bonamassa – Guitar, Backing Vocals, Lead Vocals
Jason Bonham – Drums, Percussion
Derek Sherinian – Keyboards

Producer: Kevin Shirley

BCC is one of the year’s best surprises for me. I like Hughes, I like Bonham but even when I heard about this band getting together and it wasn’t anything for me to get excited over. I love Glenn Hughes’ voice but other than Deep Purple and the one Black Sabbath album he did, the music he’s been a part of has never really impressed me. Nothing terrible just nothing that stood out and with him fronting the band and seemingly the leader of the group as well, I was afraid BCC would venture into the “unremarkable” category.

Not so! As Hughes himself has said this album is a “traditional classic rock record with a modern twist”. I definitely agree. Many of these songs would sound right at home on your local classic rock radio station, other than the production, some of these songs you wouldn’t even be able to tell they were new! That’s a huge compliment in my opinion. BCC is a complete throwback to the hard working British bluesy hard rock bands of the ’70s, which isn’t a surprise considering the members. The only oddball seems to be Sherinian, who I am only familiar with through Dream Theater and the various session/touring work he has done. Didn’t realize a band like this would be his kind of thing.

Hughes sounds just as powerful as ever. His performance on “The Great Divide” is my favorite on this album. The production is great and gives off a nice meaty sound and the funk/blues influences you would expect from a Hughes/Bonamassa collaboration is all there. Despite Classic Rock magazine’s constant hype for Bonamassa, I’ve never listened to him. He’s primarily a blues artist but this guy can really rock out, he does a fantastic job all throughout the album and even handles lead vocals on “Song of Yesterday” (a classic rock epic if there ever was one) and “The Revolution In Me” while sharing vocals with Glenn on “Sista Jan” and “Too Late for the Sun”.

There’s no reason for anyone who is a classic rock fan to NOT own this album. The album is worth picking up for “One Last Soul” and “The Great Divide” alone. Unfortunately, at least as far as the mainstream and commercial outlets are concerned, this album has gone unnoticed in the States but has done pretty well in the UK. Easily another one of the year’s best albums and I’m glad Hughes has already stated he is working on album Number Two right now. Forget Chickenfoot, this is a “supergroup” that can actually turn in a great album!

I’m not sure if this is a “limited” edition or not but my copy from Amazon came with a DVD that features a music video, photos and interviews. It runs about 40 minutes, that’s a pretty good deal. Sometimes these DVDs that get thrown in are only 15-20 minutes of material. Truth be told, I haven’t watched it yet but because I like this album so much, I’ll probably pop in it in the DVD player soon.

Highlights: “Black Country”, “One Last Soul”, “The Great Divide”, “Down Again”, “Song of Yesterday”, “Sista Jane”, “Too Late for the Sun”

http://www.bccommunion.com/
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Buy Black Country Communion (CD/DVD) at Amazon.com