We have all, at one time or other, picked up a CD and halfway through the first track, smiled and said to ourselves, “This is pretty damned good.” The next thought, of course, is, “I just hope the other tracks are decent.” And so, once in a blue moon, there is that rare feeling of exuberance when you realize every track is just as good. That’s a rarity, especially in today’s music, but Shine, guitarist Bernie Marden’s solo outing for 2014, restores a lot of lost faith.
Marsden is more or less a well-kept secret, something quite common with blues guitarists. That might also be because Marsden isn’t a show-off-ish, razzle-dazzle-type musician, preferring instead to stay rooted in the blues. And quite probably he would rather be more of that rare gem, catering to his fans and staying true to himself, rather than selling out and headlining major arenas. But, that’s just my personal assumption.
His biggest claim to fame (despite his amazing resume of solo albums, and guest appearances) would be his contributions and tenure with Whitesnake. That, of course, would be back when they were churning out some legitimate hard rock / blues music and not when they were a hair metal sensation in the 80s. Marsden contributed to eight Whitesnake albums from 1978-1983.
My first exposure to him was on 1977’s Malice In Wonderland, an underrated album by Paice/Ashton/Lord I highly suggest checking out. Later I picked up Whitesnake’s Love Hunter, released in 1979, and 1982’s Saints & Sinners, which included among Marsden’s many writing contributions is the song “Here I Go Again.” The re-recorded version, of course, became a huge hit that got tons of MTV airplay and catapulted the band to superstardom.
Shine is Marsden’s 19th solo outing where he continues to display his blues roots, be it on slow tracks or driving rock and roll. “Trouble” is a delta-blues inspired track, complete with steel lap guitar. If one closed their eyes, visions of swamp-land would come to mind. “Kinda Wish She Would” has a honky-tonk-meets-boogie feel. “Walk Away” is a very catchy track with a very polished, commercial shine to it – without becoming too glossy, predictable, or, thankfully, safe. “Lady Friend” is driven by Mark Feltham’s amazing harmonica work. “Linin Track,” which actually kicks off the album, may sound familiar to Aerosmith fans as “Hangman’s Jury,” but it’s actually an old blues ditty that been performed by Taj Mahal and Ledbelly. Here, it’s a down-and-dirty gritty blues rocker that starts slow and quickly becomes a hard rocker.
“You Better Run” is dominated by catchy guitar hooks, “Who Do You Think We Are” is mellow and soulful, while the title track is a driving, no-frills rocker with a 70s R&B Hammond organ. “Bad Blood” paints a picture of a grimy dive bar, it’s air filled with stinky cigarette-smoke and the aroma of cheap beer, and features country-rock vocals by Cherry Lee Mewis. “NWB” is a haunting instrumental that ends the album on a melancholic note.
Shine was produced by Rob Cass, who was the lead singer in Alaska, one of Marsden previous outfits. Every guitar note is crisp and clean, which is Marden’s style, but a lesser producer could have tuned it into a muddled mess. Cass knows how to properly deliver Marsden’s tone. The drums are heavy without being overbearing, and the bass guitar has a nice funk tone. a less-is-more approach has Marsden’s playing coming off clean and heartfelt, rather than cluttered and overwhelming.
Shine gets a little help from some of Marden’s well-known friends. As talented as he is, these friends merely make Shine all the more impressive. Joe Bonamassa adds in some more blues guitar work, while a vocal from David Coverdale on “Trouble,” the Marsden/Coverdale title track from Whitesnake’s debut, doesn’t hurt whatsoever. Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice and keyboardist Don Airey also add their talents, in addition to drummer Jimmy Copley (Jeff Beck, Graham Parker), and the previously mentioned harmonica wizard Mark Feltham (9 below Zero, Rory Gallagher, Roy Harper).
My verdict is that Shine is an amazing collection of skillful songs (And, as a bit of trivia, the album) The moods on Shine run from mellow, to driving hard-rockers, but never does Marsden abandon his roots. Recorded at Abbey Road studios, Shine is pretty much a sure bet if you are looking for an album that you can put on and not have to skip over any tracks to get to the good stuff. Highly recommended for lovers of blues-rock, this is an amazing collection of material for longtime fans and those not yet familiar with Bernie Marsden.
~ Bruce Forrest
