Veteran frontman Joe Lynn Turner has oft been called a journeyman – adescription that, we’d argue, is completely misleading. Because out of the numerous bands and artists JLT has sung with – from Malmsteen to Mother Earth, from Rainbow to Rated X – Journey has never been one of them.
…We must admit, we wrote that intro before actually listening to Belly Of The Beast, and must now apologise for its jokiness. Nay, facetiousness. Because this is a very serious album indeed, and not only on a musical and lyrical level.
To coincide with its release Turner decided at long last to embrace the fact that he suffers from the hair-loss condition known as alopecia. He consigned his wigs to the waste-bin; his toupées to the trashcan. And, my God, doesn’t he look great in the new promo photos? A cross between Richard Fairbrass and Nosferatu, with a hint of Marc Almond thrown in for good measure. Well done, my son.
As for itself, well, it’s a far-distant galaxy away from past perceptions. Turner, the soft-hearted smoocher who warbled ‘Please on Rainbow’s now occupies a completely different space-time continuum.
