Glad All Over

The Wallflowers have not said their last word

The Wallflowers released their new long player Glad All Over after a long seven-year hiatus. The evanescence of this ensemble was so sudden, so untimely, if you consider that many had already redirected them to the category of the elite performers thank to just one song, One Headlight. This hit has remained The Wallflowers biggest success up to this day, and the musicians seem to have given up trying to make something as glorious as their debut album, and after producing a streak of good albums which still failed to be as good they parted their ways. The leader of the band Jacob Dylan was never going to waste his time and spent it on making two decent solo records, and then he managed to gather The Wallflowers one more time, sending the musicians to the studio and having them preparing another album. Rest from one another certainly did good to the members of the ensemble, and the return to the roster of keyboardist Ramy Jaffee, as well as the appearance on the lineup of drummer Jack Irons (ex-member of Pearl Jam, and Red Hot Chili Peppers)give is reason to speak of this formation as the strongest in the entire history of The wallflowers.

The musicians rock

The comeback must be loud, convincing and powerful. As if keeping this in mind, The Wallflowers decided to make their fresh record the most rock and roll effort in their discography which has always been associated with folk- and country rock fused with sweet pop sounding. SingleReboot The Mission, released a few months before the full-length CD, marked the new guidelines followed by the resurrected ensemble. The clearly outlined guitar and standout impressive chorus, but most importantly, the vibe you can hear only from a young band playing when they are still hungry for big success. The single is not an exception on the album, and the opener, Hospitals For Sinners, proves it. Blues intonations layered on mighty rhythm section give a remarkable outcome setting the right mood for the whole record. Misfits And Lovers reminds us of the fact that a huge contribution to the making of the record was also made by Clash guitarist Mick Jones. In this track, he delivers some solid riffs, and in It’s A Dream creates a masterful solo.

Jacob Dylan remained the same

Despite all the temper and vigor of certain rock and rollers, Glad All Over is filled with nostalgia, an inevitable circumstance since Jacob Dylan does not and is not going to sing in any other manner than he always has. And this album does have a few songs which are adorable only because of his vocals. First One In The Car is a warmhearted mid-tempo track that seems to be molded up for Jacob’s voice. Constellation Blues brings the music of the band back to dusty roads and atmosphere of vast territories and endless roaming. Probably this balance between the stylistics of the early works and the band’s new creative experiments is the main tool that works so well to make Glad All Over so interesting and living. The album fails to bring another hit to equal One Headlight, but we can and should put up with it. In the discography of a band there can hardly be a lot of songs to be listened to and remembered throughout decades. Elsewhere, Glad All Over is a triumphant return and beautiful illustration to show that The Wallflowers are still capable of much and willing to prove it.