Glenn Tilbrook - Happy Ending

  by Tony Gaughan

published: 28 / 2 / 2014

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Review

The Squeeze front man returns with his fifth non-Squeeze record and with it delivers a really eclectic collection of fine songs delivered with his normal charm. The collection is described as "acoustic" and "homegrown", and was recorded in his own Charlton studio and released on his own record label. It features no electric guitars and no full on drums, a concept that would seem unthinkable if you reference tracks such as the classic 'Pulling Mussels (From (the Shell)'. The album is organic in nature, and from the opening track ‘Ray’ to the Chas and Dave-esque seaside knees up of closer ‘Ice Cream’ the album features Chinese drums, sitar, harmonium, kazoos, the humble bongos and his own kids! Don't let this put you off though as it is a compelling listen . ‘Persephone’ kicks off with a backward vocal, and a beautiful string section follows his every vocal twist. ‘Mud Island’ is as close as you can get to bhangra or Punjabi folk. ‘Hello There’ is a stripped back acoustic track and ‘Dennis’ refers back to a meeting with Beach Boy Dennis Wilson at a music festival in Jamaica, while ‘Everybody Sometimes ‘is typically Tilbrook, a great story put to a terrific tune . ‘Bongo Bill’ is a co-write with his ten year old son Leon and with a vocal contribution by seven year old Wesley. The strongest track for me was the simple but infectious ‘Rupert’. Another great effort from Glenn, and well worth owning as it is packed with quality. Even towards the end ‘Fruit Cake’ will have you reaching for the repeat button before the track ends.

Track Listing:-

1 Ray
2 Persephone
3 Mud Island
4 Rupert
5 Everybody Sometimes
6 Dennis
7 Hello There
8 Bongo Bill
9 Kev and Dave
10 Fruit Cake
11 Peter
12 Ice Cream

Band Links:-

http://www.glenntilbrook.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Glenn-T
https://twitter.com/glenntilbrook
https://instagram.com/glenntilbrook/
https://www.youtube.com/user/FluffersT

Label Links:-

http://www.quixoticrecords.com/