Delta Deep - Delta Deep (2015)

Genre - Hard Rock / Melodic Hard Rock

 

Track listing:

01. Bang the Lid
02. Whiskey
03. Down In the Delta
04. Treat Her Like Candy
05. Miss Me
06. Burnt Sally
07. Private Number (feat. David Coverdale)
08. Shuffle Sweet
09. Black Coffee (feat. Paul Cook & Simon Laffy)
10. Feelit
11. Mistreated (feat. Joe Elliott)

Def Leppard guitarist Phil Collen has just released the self-titled album of his side band DELTA DEEP, a super-group featuring terrific singer Debbi Blackwell-Cook, Stone Temple Pilots bassist Robert DeLeo and drummer Forrest Robinson (Bob Baldwin Band), featuring stellar guests such as Whitesnake’s David Coverdale, Paul Cook (Sex Pistols) and Joe Elliott (Def Leppard).
Delta Deep’s debut features a mix of covers and originals, and stylistically it isn’t confined to any one genre, however it's a strongly blues-infused material with some electrifying moments.
The CD begins with the enticing rock-fueled ‘Bang the Lid,’ which features a jolting introduction that mixes compelling guitars and percussion. The track’s vocals are then dynamically jump-started with the strong and intense lyrics from Blackwell-Cook, a superb singer. It's very uptempo with a stomping bass drum beat from Forrest Robinson with added handclaps and some cool bass. A song impossible to listen to without tapping your feet.
'Whiskey' is quieter, a slower song but not a ballad, full of bluesy atmospheres. The album’s third entry, ‘Down in the Delta,’ reverts back to the group’s classic hard-rock guitar introduction, energetic and moving.
‘Treat Her Like Candy’ is an interesting blues-infused rock song that features a calming electric guitar and bass line, where Blackwell-Cook passionately duets with Collen on lead vocals.
‘Miss Me’ features a dynamic, hard-rock drum and guitar beat that’s reminiscent of Collen’s other side band Manraze, and why not, Def Leppard. Delta Deep’s two lead singers emotionally reveal that they’ll miss each other when they’re gone from each other’s lives. The song is a nostalgic tribute to classic hard-rock love songs from the '80s, but with a twist.
The record’s next track, ‘Burnt Sally,’ features the first guest in the form of Jeffery "CJ" Vanston on Hammond B3 Organ. Phil's bluesy playing is great on this track, and Robert Deleo provides solid deep bass lines.
David Coverdale shares vocals with Blackwell-Cook on 'Private Number', a soul classic written by William Bell and Booker T. Jones. Originally, Collen had his eye on having Coverdale contribute vocals to their version of Deep Purple’s Mistreated, but those plans were revised once he learned that Coverdale had already recorded a new version of the song for his own album.
But the legendary singer wanted to be a part of the project and suggested that they give 'Private Number' a shot.
I hadn’t heard Coverdale sing like this for years, very soulful, like in the very early Whitesnake records, or in the underrated Restless Heart album. His vocals were recorded pretty straight, appropriately raw without any added effects. Great version and an album's highlight.
The next several songs on Delta Deep, including ‘Shuffle Sweet,’ ‘Black Coffee’ (featuring Simon Laffy which Collen played in the band Girl before Def Leppard) and ‘Feel It,’ deliver more enthralling rocking vocals. The tracks also emphasize their captivating instrumentals, including moments of up-tempo guitar notes that are set against gritty bass and drums.
Then the band covers Deep Purple's classic ‘Mistreated’. There's a great guitar work by Collen, the rhythm section is stupendous, and the vocals are shared between Blackwell-Cook and Def Lepp's Joe Elliott. Joe does a nice part, but Blackwell-Cook blows him out of the water.
Delta Deep is a project made up of some rock and roll super stars to create music that revives an appreciation for classic rock, rocking blues and traditional hard rock. I think the mission is more than accomplished.
I would say this is album will surprise many people, especially anyone who thought it would feature a lot of very traditional or old sounding blues songs. Instead this is very much a Rock album but with more of a pop / melodic sound mixed in with the obvious blues / soul / funk influence. A couple of blues song included and lots of lead vocals from Debbi Blackwell-Cook who has an amazing voice, but there is plenty of Phil collen in here too.
It is different enough to be nothing like Def Leppard but not different enough that it won't appeal to Def Leppard and Manraze fans alike. It rocks, the musicianship is first rate, and production, handled Phil Collen, and mixed & mastered by expert Ronan McHugh, is really crisp.
Highly Recommended.
Rating - 10/10

Line Up
Phil Collen - Guitars, Vocals (Def Leppard)
Debbi Blackwell-Cook - Vocals (Luther Vandross, Michael Buble)
Forrest Robinson - Drums (Bob Baldwin Band)
Robert DeLeo - Bass (Stone Temple Pilots)

Special guests:
David Coverdale (Whitesnake) - vocals
Paul Cook (Sex Pistols) - drums
Simon Laffy (Girl) - bass
Joe Elliott (Def Leppard) - vocals
Jeffery "CJ" Vanston (Toto) - Hammond B3

BERNIE MARSDEN - Shine (2014)

Genre - Hard Rock / Blues Rock / Melodic Rock

Label -

Track listing:

01. Linin' Track

02. Wedding Day

03. Walk Away

04. Kinda Wish She Would

05. Ladyfriend

06. Trouble

07. Who Do We Think We Are?

08. Bad Blood

09. Shine

10. Dragonfly

11. You Better Run

12. Hoxie Rollin' Time

13. Nw8

### The following review is not my work but I couldn't agree more so I reproduce it here. All credit to the original author ###

Ex Whitesnake guitarist BERNIE MARSDEN new album "Shine" to be released next August 18, explores a wide ranging musical horizon including a cleverly updated bluesy, slick AOR, kick ass boogie, riff driven and twin guitar rock, a steaming bluesy shuffle and a book-ended instrumental.
By his own admission "Shine" includes some stockpiled material, but it’s subtly shaped, polished and nicely sequenced by his former Alaska band member turned producer Rob Kass.

Recorded in studio 3 in Abbey Road (where the Beatles cut ‘Revolver’), "Shine" sparkles with confident songs, sumptuous guitar tones, potent harmonies, magisterial playing and Bernie’s best ever lead vocals.
Producer Rob Kass strikes the prefect balance between the album’s song driven focus and the possibilities that an array of guests – including David Coverdale, Jimmy Copley, Ian Paice, Don Airey Cherry Lee Mewis, Joe Bonamassa and Mark Feltham – and a big studio offers him.
"Shine" is a coherent album that plays to Bernie’s strengths. He’s always been a consummate guitarist and a prodigious songwriter, but a combination of different vocals textures injects the steely arrangements with style and gusto.

Listen for example, to the airy, west coast vocal sweep of Danny Kirwan’s "Dragonfly" – included here as an ode to Peter Green – and the standout title track. The Cream style vocal harmonies are underpinned by Ian Paice’s pounding stick work and topped by Don Airey’s keyboard riffs and Bonamassa’s scintillating solo. All the elements coalesce seamlessly as if building to a naturally defining moment on the track.
But this is such a well paced album that the final four tracks find their sequential place as part of an integral whole, before coming to rest on Bernie’s acoustic instrumental outro.

"Shine" opens with a sledgehammer groove of Leadbelly’s "Linin’ Track" which mirrors the song’s lyrical muscularity, while the hot picking on "Wedding Day" has a lively feel, as part of an enveloping production.
The kick ass boogie and ZZ Top influenced "Kinda Wish She Would" is effectively a counterweight as Bernie’s slightly distorted vocal gives the track an extra bit of edge on a riff driven rocker with huge radio potential.

My absolute favourite is the AOR, keyboard led "Walk Away" (awesome Don Airey) with its '80s keyboard motif, uplifting hook and catchy chorus. It's a sister track to the eco message and vocal tour de force "Who Do We Think We Are", a mid-tempo melodic rocker full of magic.

The guests all make their mark, as Mark Feltham’s lyrical harp line colours the extended groove of "Ladyfriend", as it smolders, sparkles and envelops you.
It sets things up nicely for the percussive reworking of "Trouble" predicated on David Coverdale guttural phrasing. Bernie has never been reticent to explore his back catalogue and he’s rarely bettered himself than on this blast from the past.
Cherry Lee Mewis adds gritty vocal contrast on the laid back blues-rocker "Bad Blood" and just when you think the whole album has run its course on the hook laden "You Better Run", Bernie launches himself into a dirt tone wah-wah inflected Americana shuffle "Hoxie Rollin’ Time", which is surely destined to become a live favourite.

Shine" is a career high for Bernie Marsden. 

It’s an album glued together by his own deeply embedded imprint of harmony driven songs with significant hooks and burning solos. It’s almost as if he’s successfully pursued his own mission statement of cutting a definitive solo album. It may have taken him 40 odd years but it’s been worth the wait.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Rating - 9/10

The Players

Bernie Marsden - Guitars, Vocals

Ian Paice - Drums

Don Airey - Keyboards 

Joe Bonamassa - Guitar

David Coverdale - Vocals

Jimmy Copley - Drums

Mark Feltham - Vocals, Harmonica

thanks to Pete Feenstra

Whitesnake - Forevermore

Genre - Classic Rock / Hard Rock / Cock Rock / Bluesy Rock
Label - Frontiers Records

Track Listing -
01. Steal Your Heart Away
02. All Out Of Luck
03. Love Will Set You Free
04. Easier Said Than Done
05. Tell Me How
06. I Need You (Shine A Light)
07. One Of These Days
08. Love And Treat Me Right
09. Dogs In The Street
10. Fare Thee Well
11. Whipping Boy Blues
12. My Evil Ways
13. Forevermore
14. Whipping Boy Blues (Swamp Mix)

Forevermore pucks up exactly where Good To Be Bad left off, whilst not quite as heavy, and slightly more melodic. The album finds messiah Coverdale in fine voice, sure his voice hasn't quite got the power it had in his heyday of the 80’s but Mr Coverdale knows how to work within his limitations and deliver a powerful soul lifting performance.
I’ve got to be honest, Forevermore could be the strongest album Mr Coverdale has put his name to in years. There’s not a weak track here, and there’s enough variety to satisfy the fns of all eras of Whitesnake’s illustrious past.
With Good To Be Bad, Whitesnake rediscovered their blues based rock roots, something that continues here on Forevermore.
The line up changes have continues, unfortunately, but importantly the guitarist line-up has remained unchanged, with Doug Aldrich and Reb Beach forming a formidable partnership, whose riff’s and solos, really drive this album along and bring it to life!
David Coverdale has really pulled out all the stops on this one. A great album from a legend!
Possibly one of the albums of 2011!

Website - Whitesnake
Rating 10/10