John Miles
Upfront

THE REVIEW

Regarding underrated musicians and those less fortunate compared to their actual worth, John Miles (real surname Errington, from the northeast of England) is among those most intolerably owed by fate. His career started with a bang in 1976 (album "Rebel" and the single "Music" topping the sales charts), only to soon scale down and turn into an honorable sideman role, supporting "captains" like Alan Parsons, Joe Cocker, Tina Turner, Jimmy Page, and with increasingly sporadic solo album releases, which garnered limited success.

Then, one happens upon this "Upfront" from 1993, the penultimate(!) album released under his name, and it becomes evident on the first listen that this man is great: a sure surprise for anyone (I believe most enthusiasts) who only know his pop and grandiose career beginnings.

In this record, Miles places himself halfway between Eric Clapton and Gary Moore, presenting himself as a singer/guitarist of orthodox rockblues but with excellent writing, linear yet physical, retro yet classy, recycling the usual rock, blues, and rhythm & blues airs but with a voice that resonates, a Gibson Les Paul that barks with a magnificent sound, not as overwhelming and brimming as Moore's but sharp and lively, and finally a nice alternation of strong or funky or slow episodes, with ballads that only sporadically have a pop taste, a drum that always beats convincingly and no frills in sight.

Records like this add nothing to the history and evolution of popular music, but they are composed, played, sung, and produced so well, they are so sincere and well-done that it's a pleasure to keep them in one's collection. It is a valid proposal, in the full swing of the nineties, of music focused already at the end of the sixties, but with the utmost respect and with all the necessary grit, despite the extreme cleanliness and economy of notes and arrangements, a synonym of clear ideas and impeccable technical preparation.

Almost no filler in the thirteen tracks on the list, also because Miles' original compositions are integrated with others crafted by professional songwriters. There's ample opportunity to indulge in individual preferences: personally, I have a soft spot for the compact and piercing rockblues of another era "Can’t Get Through", for the airy semi-acoustic ballad "One More Day Without Love", for the blues "Now That The Magic Has Gone" a great showcase for John's resonant, full, expert, passionate voice and finally for the ode, it’s unclear whether to a girlfriend or the favored guitar, "Body Of My Brunette", in whose chorus our hero shows everyone how to hit the high notes full blast at forty-something and after twenty years of career, with full power but without straining the vocal cords.

Class, honesty, humility, experience, sensitivity, respect, consistency: John Miles.