JOE LYNN TURNER – The Sessions (2022 reissue) *HQ*

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Legendary vocalist JOE LYNN TURNER has been a busy session man during his extensive career, and now some of these work is collected on this collection of studio recordings called “The Sessions“, released via Deadline Music.
Best known for fronting Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow during that band’s creative peak in the ’80s and later as the frontman for Yngwie Malmsteen, Turner has been called The Man With The Golden Voice, and it’s easy to see why; nearly everything Joe Lynn Turner records sound blessed by the Gods of hard rock.
His commanding presence, powerhouse range, and emotional resonance has made him the go-to vocalist for a number of artists.

This CD contains very good, supercharged versions of rock classics from Van Halen’s “Dance The Night Away” and AC/DC’s “Back In Black”, to The Door’s “Riders On The Storm” to Queen’s “Fat Bottomed Girls”. The album also features guest appearances by Michael Schenker, Steve Lukather, Steve Morse, Phil Collen, Brad Gillis, Reb Beach, Leslie West, and more.
While all these tracks have already appeared in one form of another, it’s really cool to have them all together into one CD and enjoy the many vocal facets of the great JOE LYNN TURNER.
Highly Recommended

01. Stone Cold (with Vivian Campbell)
We’ve heard Joe sing Dio-era Rainbow. How [heavy] metal is it to hear original Dio guitarist, Vivian Campbell, rocking Ritchie’s licks on this one of the most popular Turner/Blackmore hits? Players come and go and move on to other projects, but amazing songs like “Stone Cold” live forever in the collective consciousness of the hard rock community. With this song, Joe Lynn Turner was able to give Ritchie the one thing no other Rainbow (or Deep Purple) singer could — a #1 hit single on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart!

02. Lunatic Fringe
This obscure 1981 Red Rider deep cut written by Canadian Music Hall of Fame alum Tom Cochrane is actually a perfect song for Joe to cover. The way a hopeful hook cuts through the dark, misty tone in this synth-heavy rocker parallels the contrasts Joe would bring to radio waves previously saturated with feel-good yacht rock and bubble-gum pop.

03. Let the Music Do the Talking (with Al Pitrelli, Carmine Rojas & Pat Torpey)
While Aerosmith swears their farewell tour is for keeps, Perry & co. may want to keep JT’s number in their back pocket. He crushes this ‘Smith burner like it was written for him, fueled by the groove of Mr. Big basher, Pat Torpey, Bowie/Rod Stewart bassist, Carmine Rojas and 6-string monster, Al Pitrelli of Megadeth, Alice Cooper & TSO fame. A sick lineup that tears through this tune with a passion that’ll have you hitting the replay button more than a few times.

04. Mirror Mirror (with Icarus Witch)
The band Icarus Witch worships everything Blackmore. The pick up management from Diana Deville who worked for Niji Entertainment (yet another Dio connection to this tale). Diana is friends with Joe and, through her, they asked if he would do the honor of singing on Icarus Witch’s version of the Def Leppard classic song, “Mirror Mirror.” Not only was he gracious and accommodating, but the sheer professionalism with which he handled his end of the entire session was like a clinic in “how it’s done.”

05. Hellraiser (with Steve Lukather, Billy Sherwood, Jay Schellen & P. Taylor)
To be fair, how can you really compete with an Ozzy & Motörhead classic? Answer, you put the pedal to the metal and crank it the way Lemmy intended! While sticking closely to the hit formula that endeared a generation to this song, Toto shredder Steve Lukather rips in the lead section in a way that’ll have even die-hard ‘bangers searching their fretboards. Hurricane’s Jay Schellen lays a beat that pays homage to the late Randy Castillo while still bringing a fresh energy to this version.

06. 14 Years
A rare treat on an album of hits, this Izzy-penned blues rocker from Guns N’ Roses finds Joe in his element once again, showcasing the raspy swinging side of his vocal range.

07. Dance The Night Away (with Reb Beach)
Should the Van Halen brothers have called Joe Lynn Turner to man the microphone stand after Sam & Dave? Probably not, but after cranking this VH classic accompanied by Pittsburgh guitar hero Reb Beach of Winger and Whitesnake pedigree it’s clear that Joe could have added a bit of east coast grit to that Cali crew.

08. Back in Black (with Phil Collen)
Holy smokes, those vox! Again, the Jersey boy blows any doubters out of the water with a raspy raucous vocal rendition of this AC/DC classic that would make Brian Johnson tip his flat brim in approval. No stranger to Young infused riffs, Def Leppard’s Phil Collen blazes his bluesy ode to Angus with an authenticity that makes this one of the compilation’s stand out tracks.

09. All Shook Up (with Michael Schenker)
What is it about Joe’s voice that lays so perfectly in the mix with guitar gods? Having already fronted Yngwie & Ritchie, the singer certainly knows the art of weaving vocal wails between (often dense) tapestries of shredding wankery. Here, once more, with Maestro Schenker peeling out during an Elvis classic, JLT displays his mastery of the call & response (even when the other end of said conversation is an amazing but seemingly unending flourish of 6 string squeels).

10. Babe I’m Gonna Leave You (with Jeff “Skunk” Baxter, Tony Franklin & Doane Perry)
Though this song was originally written in the 1950s and popularized by folk singer Joan Baez — the arrangement most rockers are familiar with (and that Joe & co. cover here) is the Zeppelin version. Steely Dan / Doobie Brothers’ guitarist Jeff “Skunk” Baxter deftly creates an acoustic pastiche that crescendos into a balls-out rocker. Our man Joe alternates effortlessly between heartfelt blues sensitivity and arena rock range as the verses cycle into choruses.

11. All Day and All of the Night (with Brad Gillis, Rudy Sarzo & Simon Wright)
Before this track even starts, rock nerds might get a thrill imaging what this monster lineup of Turner, Gillis, Sarzo & Wright would be capable of if locked in a stu-dio for a few weeks to cut a full album! The Kinks provide a tight pop rock framework, so instead of overindulgence, we get a clinic on how solid these cats can keep it in the pocket. Okay, maybe Brad wanks his whammy a bit, but would you have it any other way?

12. Bloody Well Right (with Dave Kerzner)
Having worked with Alan Parsons, Genesis, Neil Peart and Keith Emerson keyboardist/producer Dave Kerzner was the perfect call to tickle the ivories on this proggy Supertramp staple. Forget about “don’t bore us, get to the chorus,” remember the days when you could be over a minute and a half into a song before you heard from the singer…and still be a radio smash?

13. The Seeker (with Leslie West)
On this cut, Joe’s keen rasp and homespun attitude plays authentically off of the wayward Pete Townshend lyric. The vocal drives the recording while Mountain man Leslie West lays back in the pocket conjuring a cauldron of tasty, trademark licks.

14. Jungle Love (with Steve Morse)
With roots as Deep as Purple’s family tree, it’s inevitable that the stars will cross paths and collaborate. For this uptempo take on the Steve Miller Band radio hit “Jungle Love” former DP crooner, JLT pairs up with at the time Purple axeman, Steve Morse, for a rockin’ romp. While you can imagine the guys burning through this version at a NAMM party, the real show stealer is multi-instrumentalist Billy Sherwood who propels the tune with pumping bass lines from start to finish.

15. Two Minutes To Midnight (with Richie Kotzen)
This unexpected burner undoubtedly provides the most metal meat of this compilation with Turner stretching his chops into Dickinson’s rarified air. Former Poison/current Winery Dogs shredder Richie Kotzen lays down some sick, grooving leads over “Fretless Monster” Tony Franklin’s bass gallop. Maiden never sounded so funky!

16. Fat Bottomed Girls (with Reb Beach)
File this under “Is there nothing Joe can’t do?” While other singers have taken a swing at rocking a Queen cover, Mr. Turner sounds like he could jump onstage and front the band with confidence and swagger. Those harmonies are absolutely Mercurial.

17. Riders On The Storm (with Tony Kaye & Steve Cropper)
What a cool way to close out this collection of dusky rock classics — Turner invoking the Lizard King! If you’re thinking that the keyboard/guitar duels sound es-pecially epic on this track, it’s because they are played by ex- Yes / Circa ‘boardist Tony Kaye and Booker T. & the M.G.s guitar legend, Steve Cropper.

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www.amazon.com/Sessions-Joe-Lynn-Turner/dp/B0B59VTH2N