Ben Jackson

"Here I Come"
(Indie release)  

This is the first solo offering from former Crimson Glory guitarist Ben Jackson. Crimson Glory were a great band, and it's a shame they split up, and that their reunion a few years back didn't last. However, it's good to see Ben is still in action. He is a great guitarist, and has done a good job with this album. As well as playing guitar and bass, he also sings, wrote most of the songs, and co-produced it, doing a fine job with all these tasks. Not a bad day's work! However, the album does not sound like Crimson Glory, and really has more in common with the Beatles and the Stones than it does with heavy metal. The music is very 60's/70's influenced, and many of the songs are quite mellow. These include "To My Surprise", "Closer To Soul" (which features a sax solo), the title track, "Touched", "Flesh And Blood" (an instrumental), "Misty Rain", and "Whistle In The Wind". All are ballads with a lot of acoustic guitar and Beatle influence. There are some harder rocking songs an here too. Opener "Feel Me", as the title may suggest, is a crotch thrusting cock rock tune; "The Bold One" is a Stones-y little number; "The Bomb" is the heaviest song on the album, where Ben is joined by two of his former Crimson cohorts, vocalist Wade Black and bassist Jeff Lords. This is the one song on the album that reminded me of Crimson Glory, and that is probably the reason, that three fifths of the band played on this track. Almost like a reunion (Hey guys, why did you have to stop there?). All in all, this is quite a good album. It's not as heavy as Crimson Glory, but Ben's guitar talents still shine brightly throughout. Any CG fan who liked Ben's playing in that band should also get into this. Hopefully the Crimson ones will decide to have another shot at a reunion one day, but until then, we at least have this to tide us over.

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