Zombies comes back to life

LONDON — True to its calling, the legendary pop band Zombies relived the glory era of the ‘60s British Invasion by performing to sell-out crowds in three shows to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the group’s second album Odessey and Oracle at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire theater here recently.

It wasn’t exactly a rising from the grave since the Zombies lead singer Colin Blunstone, 62, and keyboards player Rod Argent, also 62, have been touring with a back-up group since a revival four years ago. But the resurrection was evident as Blunstone and Argent were reunited with two originals, bassist Chris White, 65, and drummer Hugh Grundy, 63, in the second half of the concert to do the Odessey and Oracle songs, including the hit Time of the Season, in sequence.

Two years ago, the Zombies were in Manila for Steve O’Neal promotions at the Hard Rock Café, Araneta Coliseum and Ynares Center and drew rave reviews. The reception wasn’t quite like in 1966 when the band made its first appearance on Philippine shores with at least three singles dominating the local charts and 30,000 fans jamming at the Big Dome to watch the St. Albans musicians sing She’s Not There, Tell Her No and The Way I Feel Inside. But the reception — after 40 years — was warm enough for O’Neal to invite the Zombies back, perhaps to do five shows before the year ends.

To rehearse for the Empire, the Zombies played two gigs at Wavendon, just outside the English capital. Easing White and Grundy back in the groove went smoothly. The original band would have been complete but guitarist Paul Atkinson died four years ago and his spot was taken over by Keith Airey who with bassist Jim Rodford (formerly of the Kinks) and drummer Steve Rodford form the backing band for Blunstone and Argent on tour.

Tickets went for the equivalent of P1,360 apiece and the 1,250-seat Empire was filled to capacity. Standing room only tickets were also gobbled up.

On the third and final show last March 9, Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin and Paul Weller of the Jam were in the audience.

The set list for the three shows didn’t change. The touring band, without White and Grundy, mounted the stage at exactly 8 p.m. and broke into I Love You. Blunstone went on to sing Sticks and Stones, Can’t Nobody Love You and What Becomes of the Broken Hearted before he was accompanied by a string quintet for a stirring rendition of Misty Roses, Her Song and Say You Don’t Mind from his first solo album One Year. Argent then took over to finish the first half with Keep On Rolling and his own band’s anthem Hold Your Head Up.

A 30-minute intermission gave fans the chance to check out the merchandise for sale in the theater lobby — T-shirts, CDs, DVDs and souvenir programs.

Before the start of the second half, Al Kooper went on stage to pay tribute to the band he personally recommended for signing when he was an A&R executive for Columbia Records in New York City in 1968.

Kooper recalled visiting London at the height of the British Invasion to binge on clothes and LPs by Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll and Trinity, Edgar Broughton Band, Downliners Sect and of course, the Zombies. He said he convinced his Columbia boss Clive Davis to take a chance on the album Odessey and Oracle which received massive US playup even in Boise, Idaho.

After Kooper’s remarks, Blunstone and Argent were back in business, this time with White, Grundy, Airey and Brian Wilson’s “musical secretary” Darian Sahanaja on memotron. One by one, they performed the 12 songs from the celebrated concept album, Care of Cell 44, A Rose for Emily, Maybe After He’s Gone, Beechwood Park, Brief Candles, Hung Up On A Dream, Changes, I Love Her, She Loves Me This Will Be Our Year (which Nike used for a 2006 TV ad dedicated to Tiger Woods’ late father), Butcher’s Tale, Friends of Mine and Time of the Season.

To oblige the fans clamoring for more, the Zombies wound up the show with Tell Her No and She’s Not There. In all, the Zombies performed 23 songs in two hours of an exquisite musical experience.

Blunstone said a third trip to Manila would be wonderful, realizing the Zombies huge Filipino fan base dating back to the ‘60s. But it would be after a 30-gig UK tour with the Yardbirds from May 14 to June 27, a US tour starting July 4 and concerts in the Ukraine, Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Holland up to November.

Traveling all the way to Manila is a backbreaker, said Blunstone, and Argent isn’t too keen on long flights. But if there’s a break along the way, maybe in Dubai, Blunstone said he might be able to sell the idea to Argent. A package tour to include a stop in Australia, where they have never performed, would be enticing, he added.

The incredible thing about Blunstone is his breathy delivery and high voice remain in excellent quality. He’s now in the process of recording another solo effort to follow in the footsteps of previous albums Echo Bridge, The Light Inside, Never Even Thought, Planes, Journey, Late Nights in Soho and One Year.

In all the shows, Blunstone’s wife Suzie, a former British Airways flight attendant now employed in a school outside of London, and their daughter Rosie, working on a degree in a Glasgow University, were in the stalls cheering their legendary hero.

Reviews of the shows were extremely favorable. David Sinclair of The Times said, “Blunstone sang in a voice still as high and sweetly innocent as a schoolboy’s” and “with interest in the group at a new high, this could turn out to be one of the longer goodbyes.” Alexis Petridis of The Guardian wrote, “Blunstone’s inimitable voice is intact and Odessey and Oracle sounds fantastic, some of it even gaining in translation — they got a standing ovation — a triumphant reception Odessey and Oracle always deserved, 40 years after the event.”

Blunstone admitted the Zombies are now earning as much from royalties as they did in their heyday, belying a resurgence of interest in the band’s music. From all indications, the Zombies — as the name implies — could live on forever.