As one of the most instantly recognizable voices in all of rock -- in a career that has spanned four decades -- there isn't much for
Deep Purple's
Ian Gillan to prove. But to his credit, he's still at it, as the frontman (to this day) for
Purple, as well as returning to his solo career when the mood hits, as evidenced by the release of his 2009 offering,
One Eye to Morocco. And while there are indeed some rockin' moments heard throughout
Morocco, it won't be confused anytime soon with the heavy metal thunder of such early-'70s
Purple releases as
Fireball or
Machine Head. That said,
Gillan is still in fine voice (in fact, it's eerie how much his voice sounds comparable to his vintage
Purple days), but musically, it's more mature and varied, as evidenced by the
Beatles-like album opening title track, the
Dire Straits-esque "Don't Stop," or the bluesy "Girl Goes to Show." Some hard rock vets have a hard time not coming off as trying too hard as they progress in years. As evidenced by
One Eye to Morocco,
Ian Gillan is very comfortable where he's at. ~ Greg Prato