Corey Glover

Rip It Up, Issue 250, 1 June 1998, Page 12

Corey Glover

They sold millions of albums worldwide, won two Grammy Awards, and boasted a frontman who wore lycra bicycle shorts on stage at the Auckland Town Hall on their final tour. But after It was ’time's up" for Living Colour tn 1995. with a. "not particularly amicable, but necessary." split, nothing much was heard of them. Since packing away those bike shorts for the last time, the band's former vocalist Corey Glover has been busy working on his solo album Hymns, which Is released worldwide this month on LaFace/Arlsta.

In case you’ve forgotten what Living Colour sounded like, there’s a reminder with ‘Do You First — Then Do Myself’, the opening song on Hymns. It’s pure Living Colour — fluid, midtempo funk rock riffs, with Glover totally recognisable as the voice that sang ‘Cult Of Personality’ and ‘Open Letter’. But that track is an anomaly, with the rest of the album venturing into soul, full-on brassy funk, and gospel-tinged R&B. “Well, there are clues as to why that song’s where it is. After the song, there’s a little speech about, ‘gliding between the tallest buildings,’ and the ‘many mysterious forces at work,’ and this is just to show you that all these songs are as much me as the Living Colour stuff was.” A solo career can be difficult in the aftermath of a successful band, where inevitable expectations from both the public and the record companies may quickly turn to disappointment. “There’s always gonna be the pressure of being part of that group, and the wonderful experience that it was. I can’t deny Living Colour is part of why I’m here, and why you’re speaking to me right now, but I wanted my record to stand on its own merits, and the songs to have a life of their own. That’s why Hymns took so long to make.” While Glover is aware of the hurdles, he feels his proven track record could be an advantage in a flooded musical market where new performers appear and disappear overnight.

“Exactly. But the onus is on me to come up with the goods, so I had to really get in the woodshed and make it happen.” Glover says all the songs are a collaborative effort (though many of the songwriting credits go to Peter Lord and V. Jeffrey Smith of the Family Stand), and the hat-tipping to Isaac Hayes on ‘Hot Buttered Soul’, the Stevie Wonder-vibe of ‘One’, or the old Prince flavour of ‘April Rain’ were all an incidental result of this woodshedding. It may be timely, but Glover says it’s nothing to do with the public rediscovery of classic funk and soul (brought about in part by films like Jackie Brown and Boogie Nights). He didn’t think about making Hymns in terms of what flavours might appeal to these times, he just wanted music that made sense to him. “I grew up liking music, it didn’t matter where it was from or what it was. I just liked whatever I could get my hands on,” he says. “I just want my music to say as

much emotionally as possible, with whatever it takes to get that point across.”

Glover’s final choice of songs were judged on the criteria of how the songs touched him emotionally when he took a step back, but they also definitely fit into a specific context.

“There’s a string that rides through Hymns of the emotional and spiritual responses you get from the songs as it progresses, in the way it crescendos, works it way down and it works it’s way up again.” Glover adds that the title was part of the overall design. “In my definition, hymns are songs of inspiration and praise, in praise of life and inspired by it.” And to Glover, life is all about the exchange of ideas, whether it be through music or conversation, and to those ends it’s necessary to take the show on the road. He says you have to have the right musicians to go out with, and prefers pals to seasoned session professionals. “The musicians that I chose were friends of mine, people who I grew up with, people from my neighbourhood — people that I thought deserved a shot.”

The band are currently rehearsing for an upcoming tour to promote the album, having played some isolated dates in the last few months.

“\Ne’\/e been out some. We did the South By Southwest music festival in Austin, and we’ve played Atlanta and Seattle. It’s gonna be an extensive tour this time, club shows and a few outdoor festivals.” It may be a far cry from the arenas he used to play with Living Colour, but Glover says he actually prefers the intimate venues. “I’ve always said that I like the smaller clubs where you can really touch people, or at least land on them.”

You’d assume that stagediving activities and bike shorts go hand in hand, but Glover’s not wearing any of that, good-naturedly laughing off any aspersions on his previous sartorial tastes. “Well, you grow up. It happens about every five or six years. I’ve matured out of those pants into something else. I just can’t fit them any more.”

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TROY FERGUSON