COLIN BLUNSTONE @ UNION CHAPEL, LONDON

For the first time in 53 years, Colin Blunstone performed his 1971 debut solo album, ‘One Year’, in its entirety. His solo tour came shortly after the possible end of The Zombies, which he co-founded, after more than 60 years. Blunstone’s American manager introduced him on stage, thanking the UK for gifting the world with his unique voice. Together with Blunstone’s band formed of The Zombies’ Søren Koch (backing vocals, bass) and Steve Rodford (drums), as well as Chaz Krok (bass) and The Strawbs’ Dave Bainbridge (keyboards), he did two sets, the first consisting of several solo covers and the second performing his album in track order.

Blunstone opened the first set on a Zombies cover with ‘Time to Move’ and Jim Ruffin cover, ‘What Becomes of the Brokenhearted’, which he guested on for Dave Stewart’s 1981 version of the single, now backed on vocals by Koch with the song featuring an organ and guitar solo. He moved onto the ’80s sound of Billy Bragg’s ‘Levi Stubbs Tears’ and, after another Zombies track ‘Hung Up On a Dream’, Blunstone performed one of two non-cover songs from his own catalogue with ‘Andorra’, albeit a song written by The Zombies’ Rod Argent and Chris White, from his second solo album, ‘Ennismore’, which demonstrated his pitched singing abilities and Koch’s romantic Spanish acoustic guitar. He then did an Alan Parsons Project collaboration, ‘Old and Wise’; a soft piano duet with an added prog-guitar solo.

For the second set, Blunstone performed ‘One Year’ in full in tracklist order beginning on ‘She Loves the Way I Love Her’; he also had a live string quartet accompaniment which suited the classical angle of the release. The strings became more suspenseful, also acting as an instrumental interlude in ‘Misty Roses’. Blunstone also sang his 1971 second single, ‘Caroline Goodbye’, steeped in strings, and his debut single from the same year, ‘Mary Won’t You Warm My Bed’, which saw a merry medley of strings and funky electrics. He performed the string pluck-backed ‘I Can’t Live Without You’ and then finished the tracklist on final album single, ‘Say You Don’t Mind’, a Denny Laine cover performed widely in The Zombies’ sets, underlined with deep cello. The band closed the night on one more Zombies’ cover, the lively 1965 non-album single rarity, ‘Just Out of Reach’, with Blunstone showing off the incredible versatility of his voice.

25/11/24: Colin Blunstone @ Union Chapel, London.