Luther Grosvenor

Luther Grosvenor (aka �Ariel Bender�) can show off with a past that reads like a who�s who of the rock elite.
A former member of Spooky Tooth, Stealers Wheel, Widowmaker, Mott The Hoople and of course the Ariel Bender Band, he has constantly delivered a performance as a guitarist that rates amongst the finest � bending the rules in the guitar book of rock in the process.

Having released a couple of solo albums over the years, �If You Dare� is his third one and once again captures both his stunning guitar playing as well as his substantial song writing as well as vocal talents.

Opener, Dusty Track, is a song about lost love and yearning which thrives on a gardenia-sweet melody and heartfelt lyrics passionately delivered by Grosvenor, without turning it into a sickly-sweet affair. Think Joe Cocker, and you get the idea.
Title track, If You Dare, is in a similar vein though the passionate vocals are simmering here, while Mike Triggs exquisite keyboard play dominates.

Say Never, is more guitar-driven but still maintains a lot of soul, with simple yet effective shooby doo-a backing vocals to round it off. A joint effort in songwriting is the epic, Emis Song, (written by Grosvenor, Mike Triggs and Gary Lippett), a track that has it all: poetic lyrics, guitar solo, keyboard solo, penetrating backing vocals... Emi, by the way, is Grosvenors daughter and she better be proud of dad.

�Gentleman sat in the corner
Gently drinking his wine
Talking out loud about his daughter
Never crossing the line.

�20 years is a long time
We got bridges to build
Can we bring back all those blue skies
Turn those mountains to hills
Yes we can, when we walk in the sun.�

�Fire And Water� and �Kids� feature Marc Eden (Men & Gods and formerly of Ariel Bender Band) on main vocals, and what an inspired guest appearance it is, too! With his distinctive smokey voice (not to mention dashing rock star looks) Eden proves to be the perfect choice to take to the steering wheel here � both songs (both written by Grosvenor) are a fast track ride in good old guitar-driven rock n roll tradition.

If �Tears Run By� (co-written with Mike Triggs and Gary Oswell) is an almost melancholic sounding love song, then �Heroes� is Grosvenor�s bluesy tribute to, well, his musical heroes - Clapton, Jeff Beck, Peter Green, B.B. King, Hendrix, Hank B Marvin and Jimmy Page to name but a few. The result is predictably heavy on the riff work - impeccably played and sung by Grosvenor. �Heroes, they don�t die, just like me they fade away��. Hmm, still pondering over that one�

The opening line to �Nobody Knows� goes �Ain�t going nowhere, nobody knows. Doors will open then they will close��. Let�s just say that Luther Grosvenor�s new album is bound to not only open doors but judging from the sheer quality of the songs and musical talent involved, doors are likely to remain open for some time.

(Please read my interview with Luther Grosvenor in our �Interviews� section).