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Glenn Hughes (w/Laurence Jones) @ Leeds University Union (Leeds, UK) on October 9, 2018 [Photos + Show Review]

To a packed house at Leeds University Student Union, Glenn Hughes showed he is still THE Voice of Rock! Check out our review and photos here.

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Laurence Jones is the support act for Glenn Hughes’ Classic Deep Purple tour, and his blend of classic rock, funk and blues are the perfect representation of this new generation of musicians. “What Would You Do” has a steady, grooving bass line which opens the setlist, followed up with a cover of “All Along The Watchtower” as “an homage to one of my heroes,” as Jones says.

“What’s It Gonna Be” and “Gone Away” are two staples of the set, both making a feature of Jones’ guitar playing, and it was a joy to watch the band jam together – their love for the music was infectious. The finale of “Fortunate Son”, a Creedence Clearwater Revival cover, had the audience primed and ready for the voice of rock!

Watch Laurence Jones perform the classic “All Along The Watchtower”:

Leeds Stylus was packed as Glenn Hughes walked onto stage, receiving a wild cheer from the audience. Hughes wore a Union Jack jacket, and the stage was a riot of colour with his backdrop lit up by an array of lights. Immediately, within the first song “Stormbringer”, Hughes was belting the top notes and he meant business. His voice is faultless, this wasn’t the first time I had seen him perform and he just gets better with age.

Check out Glenn’s Official Video for “Long Time Gone”:

Hit after hit, “Might Just Take Your Life”, “Sail Away”, “You Keep On Moving” – the set felt like a thundering train, only brief pauses between songs for Glenn to praise the fans exclaiming “you haven’t come to see me, Leeds, I’ve come to see you”. He thanked the city for giving him strength during a particularly emotional gig shortly after his mother had passed away, and for always making him feel at home. A rendition of “Smoke On The Water” even had the fans lining the stairways dancing and singing.
A long keyboard solo and drum solo punctuated the gig, and while impressive these solos were delaying the inevitable “Burn” and “Highway Star” which comprised the encore so many fans had been waiting for.

I arrived at this gig expecting a lot from the night, but I was taken aback by how fresh the set list felt. This was far from a tired recycling of old songs and Glenn Hughes’ voice firmly remains THE voice of rock.

What better way to end the review than Glenn Hughes performing some classic Deep Purple:

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