David Coverdale

Into The Light (Dragonshead)
by Martin Popoff

Kudos to the man and his plan, David Coverdale swirling together all of his past colors but one: The odd Kiss-ness of select but numerous heavy and simplistic Whitesnake songs. Mature, self-aware and highly enjoyable, Into The Light proves that Coverdale was a true blues’n’ballad artist incredulously flung into hair band stardom. Many bands from that era come back with the same cliché-stuffed Gucci bags, but Dave comes back with the old ’70s rock that I guess was always his roots-rich calling card, creating classic rock not so much updated but never out of date, loose analogy being Bon Jovi, but Coverdale offering so much more.

Reinforcing this cause is the fact that ’70s staple Earl Slick co-writes much of the album and appropriately plays, Coverdale also utilizing drum journeyman Denny Carmassi and bass journeyman Marco Mendoza. What Into The Light subsequently delivers is a high relief tour of styles very comfortable for this man, a few with highly creative and obtuse Zep touchstones, some expansive, convincing blues, and surprise of all surprises, probably four of the very best ballads of the man’s entire catalogue. Compositions that are stuffed with integrity, sweet, sweet vocals, and melodies reminiscent of The Beatles, Motown, southern soul, and Whitesnake, a history-rich cauldron of blessed tones. Distill it all down, and what you’ve got here is a gesture from a Whitesnake world befitting of a man 50-ish, a man who has drunk deeply from all sorts of traditional musics all his life, delving into and transforming numerous under-rated characteristics of his past band, emerging out the other end with solid, skillful, intelligent, expensive-sounding rock’n’roll that points to a graceful, positive use of advancing years.
(www.davidcoverdale.com)