Rightfully so, George Lynch has more than earned his place on the Mt. Rushmore of guitar heroes. But can we take just a minute to reflect on the rock and roll genius that is Jeff Pilson?
Best known as Lynch’s longtime bandmate in Dokken and now as the bassist and musical director of Foreigner, Pilson is a multi-instrumentalist who also plays guitar, cello, keyboards, piano and mellotron, all while lending some of the best backup vocals and songwriting ability in the business.
His songcraft and musicianship are permeated through the fabric of bands including Wild Horses, MSG, Dio, T & N, Lynch Mob, The End Machine and Black Swan. He even stretched his talents onto the big screen in 2001 by playing fictional heavy metal bassist Jörgen in the film Rock Star.
This dynamic duo have once again converged for the follow-up to their first album. Heavy Hitters II is a collection of reimagined cover songs representing classics of soul, modern alt-rock, new wave and blues. The album arrives in all formats on 8/11.
The previous volume of Heavy Hitters featured a mix of guest vocalists. On this one, Lynch and Pilson brought in longtime Rolling Stones backing vocalist, Bernard Fowler. The power grooves on the album are courtesy of highly acclaimed drummer Brian Tichy, who always delivers the goods.
The album’s new single is a reworked version of Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive.” Professor Lynch offers a master class on how a guitar solo and galloping riff can elevate a song to new heights.
Sly & The Family Stone’s classic “Thank You,” with its ultra funky bass line is an unexpected treat. You may have heard this song a thousand times before, but I guarantee you’ve never heard it like this!
Lynch shares “Jeff and I have always cherished any opportunities to work together over the 40 something years we’ve been playing together. Writing original records is wonderful but doing an album of covers is a different and refreshing experience for us. It’s very liberating and affords us more time to experiment and have fun with the tracks.”
If there’s a miss here, it’s the lead vocals. Fowler falls short when trying to keep pace with the melodic rock energy of Lynch, Pilson and Tichy. Guest vocalists or perhaps one of the many gifted young singers of today’s rock scene would have been a better call.
The album closes with an early Christmas gift. An original holiday song entitled “It’s A Wonderful Life.” This may be the best track on the album for one reason – Pilson grabs the mic and delivers lead vocals that float above Lynch’s tasty licks like Santa on his sleigh!
Cover tunes are dicey. Some are great. Some, not so much. Heavy Hitters II walks a fine line. There’s enough sonic goodness here from these rock and roll icons to make it worth a listen.
I’m Music Magazine Writer Steve Pawlowski
Order the CD/vinyl: https://cleorecs.com/store/?s=heavy+hitters+ii&post_type=product
Orderthe digital: https://orcd.co/lynchpilson_heavyhittersii
