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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Finally re-released on CD! Long overdue for old rockers like myself, Mr. Universe was the album that really started it all for Mr. Gillan.
Honest-to-goodness rock from 1979, there isn't a filler track on this album. I grew up with this stuff and it would be fair to say that it's dated - except that it hasn't. In today's world of manufactured pop, this album is as refreshing now as is was almost 30 years ago.
Buy it and buy the other albums that have been re-released. Get a crate of beer in, sit back in your favourite armchair, enjoy the whole lot and thank Mr. Gillan for letting this lot out into the public domain once again.
What more can I say? Highly recommended!
Honest-to-goodness rock from 1979, there isn't a filler track on this album. I grew up with this stuff and it would be fair to say that it's dated - except that it hasn't. In today's world of manufactured pop, this album is as refreshing now as is was almost 30 years ago.
Buy it and buy the other albums that have been re-released. Get a crate of beer in, sit back in your favourite armchair, enjoy the whole lot and thank Mr. Gillan for letting this lot out into the public domain once again.
What more can I say? Highly recommended!
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I've never really got Gillan in his main day job - you know, the Deep Purple thing. Don't get me wrong, I love Deep Purple, but it's the post Gillan albums that get me hot under the collar. Which meant that back when I was a callow teenage boy, the notion of the Ian Gillan Band never got me worked up. But in my usual illogical manner, I had warmed to the IGB albums, a sound that prodded me in the direction of jazz rock and all its wonders. Now remember, this was back in ye olde days and the idea of import albums never crossed my schoolboy head. So the first I knew that the IGB was now Gillan was when "Mr Universe" was released. I didn't buy it immediately as money was tight and there were Whitesnake singles to be bought from Ezy Ryder, but when I did nothing, nothing had prepared me for the utter magnificence of those ten tracks. To this day it remains the finest album Mr Gillan has ever put his name too and if you have any pretence to liking adventurous hard rock then you simply have to own it. It's augmented here by a rambling live in the studio B-side of 'Smoke In The Water' but nothing can spoil the wonders of 'She Tears Me Down', 'Fighting Man' and more. An actual 5 star album!
Continues on Glory Road
As reissue packages, these are well done, although there is absolutely nothing new or unreleased on offer for the serious collector. But it will save me digging through the crates of vinyl, something that makes life a whole lot easier, and with brief notes from Ian Gillan with each one alongside the lyrics and plentiful photos, Edsel have done a bang up job.
Continues on Glory Road
As reissue packages, these are well done, although there is absolutely nothing new or unreleased on offer for the serious collector. But it will save me digging through the crates of vinyl, something that makes life a whole lot easier, and with brief notes from Ian Gillan with each one alongside the lyrics and plentiful photos, Edsel have done a bang up job.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
The legendary Ian Gillan had a few jobs after leaving Deep Purple, going from being a car salesman to reviving his musical career with a superb jazz rock outfit, the creativly named "Ian Gillan Band". However, it was with the (even more creativly titled) "Gillan" band that he returned to his hard rock roots.
Bringing on board legendary bald and bearded bass player John Mccoy (later of samson), drummer Mick Underwood, Irish guitar wizard Bernie Torme and former "Ian Gillan Band" keyboard player Colin Towns, gave "Gillan" a distinct sound, one akin to classic Deep Purple material but with a more exciting and ethereal atmosphere.
This is their debut album, and in my opinion it greatly eclipses anything Deep Purple did without Ian Gillan
It begins with the deceptively euphoric and calm instrumental " Second Sight", which all of a sudden blasts into the unexpected high speed thrash metal assault of "Secret Of The Dance", a song way ahead of its time, played at a speed rarely heard in 1979, and predating speed metal by about 4 years. Its a no holds barred statement of intent, featuring the keyboard/guitar battles that would become a trademark of "Gillan's" sound on future albums. The bluesy "She Tears Me Down" is next, followed by the blistering riff fest that is "Roller".
Now we reach something truly incredible..... the title track "Mr Universe". It creeps in with a highly melodic keyboard hook, and kicks into fast paced six minute epic in which Gillan questions the very nature of our existance. Its the jewel in the albums crown, and one of the finest tracks to ever be graced by Ian's voice. The next three tracks, "Puget Sound", "Dead of Night" and "Message in a Bottle" all display the bands perfectly crafted commercial side, each having single potential, while the album closer "Fighting Man" fittingly rounds off procedings in an epic fashion.
The bonus tracks included are mostly recorded live at the 1981 Reading Festival, and event which became a yearly home for the band, and feature an excellent version of the Purple classic "Smoke On The Water".
All in all this is an incredible album by a criminally forgotten band, who during their short existance created a run of near perfect albums, and had a very respectable amount of chart sucess in the uk. Its a very rare album, and you'll probably pay through your nose to get it on cd, but its well worth it.
All Ian Gillan and Deep Purple fans should own this..... so if you can, buy it!!!!!
I've never understood the cover though..............................
Bringing on board legendary bald and bearded bass player John Mccoy (later of samson), drummer Mick Underwood, Irish guitar wizard Bernie Torme and former "Ian Gillan Band" keyboard player Colin Towns, gave "Gillan" a distinct sound, one akin to classic Deep Purple material but with a more exciting and ethereal atmosphere.
This is their debut album, and in my opinion it greatly eclipses anything Deep Purple did without Ian Gillan
It begins with the deceptively euphoric and calm instrumental " Second Sight", which all of a sudden blasts into the unexpected high speed thrash metal assault of "Secret Of The Dance", a song way ahead of its time, played at a speed rarely heard in 1979, and predating speed metal by about 4 years. Its a no holds barred statement of intent, featuring the keyboard/guitar battles that would become a trademark of "Gillan's" sound on future albums. The bluesy "She Tears Me Down" is next, followed by the blistering riff fest that is "Roller".
Now we reach something truly incredible..... the title track "Mr Universe". It creeps in with a highly melodic keyboard hook, and kicks into fast paced six minute epic in which Gillan questions the very nature of our existance. Its the jewel in the albums crown, and one of the finest tracks to ever be graced by Ian's voice. The next three tracks, "Puget Sound", "Dead of Night" and "Message in a Bottle" all display the bands perfectly crafted commercial side, each having single potential, while the album closer "Fighting Man" fittingly rounds off procedings in an epic fashion.
The bonus tracks included are mostly recorded live at the 1981 Reading Festival, and event which became a yearly home for the band, and feature an excellent version of the Purple classic "Smoke On The Water".
All in all this is an incredible album by a criminally forgotten band, who during their short existance created a run of near perfect albums, and had a very respectable amount of chart sucess in the uk. Its a very rare album, and you'll probably pay through your nose to get it on cd, but its well worth it.
All Ian Gillan and Deep Purple fans should own this..... so if you can, buy it!!!!!
I've never understood the cover though..............................
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
An Old Flame
I can remember picking this up in the local record shop (remember them?) and thinking "is this more of the jazz rock or something else? Read more
Published 15 months ago by Mr. R. L. Haddon
Gillan Rocks!
For me, this is one of my all time classic rock albums. It is the first of Ian Gillans 'heavy' rock style solo albums after the initial more bluesy style solo stuff after he first... Read more
Published on 23 July 2009 by Nick Wright
Glorious!
I discovered this album after Glory Road was released, being a 15 year old at school back then Gillan became my first 'band' fixation. Read more
Published on 16 May 2007 by Simon J. Hill
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