Never has there been a more loved band than Motörhead, the biggest, the baddest, the loudest, they are the epitome of rock n roll. So what the hell are they doing at Montreux Jazz Festival? Well Lemmy and the boys have never turned anyone away, fans of any genre from any walk of life can experience Motörhead, when they were asked to play the storied jazz festival that has always had its arms open blues, rock and other forms of music, and in 2007 it made perfect sense.
Luke Morley - Songs From The Blue Room (Conquest Music)
Luke Morley is the co-founder, chief songwriter, producer and guitarist of British rock institution Thunder (and Terrraplane) a position he has held since 1989. During the downtime of Thunder Morley founded blues/roots band The Union, who he released three albums with, two collaboration albums with Thunder frontman Danny Bowes and a previous solo album.
With Bowes recovering from his recent head injury, Thunder on hiatus, Morley set about writing anothe solo album. Finally released under the title Songs From The Blue Room, this is an eclectic, rootsy selection of cuts, reliant more on acoustics than the electric guitars he uses so regularly with his main band. The gospelinfluence I Wanna See The Light a joyous way to open up this album, Morley showing off his songwriting, guitar playing and his vocals too. First single Killed By Cobain, is introspective, telling of how bands such as Thunder were destroyed by the grunge explosion of the early 90's. He's not bitter though, a positive chorus reflecting the resurgence that the band have been having since they reformed in 2011.
From here it's waltzing ballad Enroll Flynn, about heroes of yesteryear, while Damage is rockier as Nobody Cares feels like a song played on a piano at the end of the night in a smoke filled bar. I said that the songs are eclectic here, Songs From The Blue Room, the songs that perhaps Morley felt didn't fit with Thunder, with Lying To Myself in the sounds of country, the funk influx comes on I'm The One You Want while Don't Belong bit The Beatles. Watch The Sun Go Down definitely could be a Thunder song though it also sounds like Del Amitri.
Morley has created an album that will please the Thunder cohort but also manages to highlight different sides of his songwriting. 8/10