SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: JAKKO M. JAKSZYK – SON OF GLEN

JAKKO M. JAKSZYK
SON OF GLEN
INSIDE OUT MUSIC/SONY

As well as being a guitarist with King Crimson, from 2013 until they called it a day in 2021, Jakszyk’s resume reads like the history of rock ‘n’ roll. He has played with The Kinks, Level 42, Tom Robinson and many others. He has also released a number of solo albums, with Son Of Glen being his latest and his first since 2020’s Secrets & Lies. Son of Glen picks up, lyrically and musically, where Secrets & Lies left off. It is also his first album since his brilliant, and very open and honest memoir Who’s The Boy With The Lovely Hair? The Unlikely Memoir of Jakko M Jakszyk. As such, Son Of Glen is an equally moving, emotional, personal, and brilliant album.

Jakszyk gets help from very talented musicians, including his son Django on bass who teams up with drummer Gavin Harrison (King Crimson/Porcupine Tree) and Ian Mosley (Marillion) to form a tight, and pounding rhythm section. Also featured on the album are cellist Caroline Lavelle and Louise Patricia Crane who provides vocals. Although it is a Jaksyzk solo album, it is very much a collaboration and in many regards the musicians for a band with him.

SPILL FEATURE: SON OF GLEN – A CONVERSATION WITH JAKKO M. JAKSZYK

This is a very complex album, full of very melodic songs. It has shades of many styles and genres, but at the root, this is an album that is full of strong songs, both lyrically and musically. There is prog, but rock, folk, classical, and other sounds flow throughout the songs. Jakszyk opens the album with the piano-based, jazzy/classical song “Ode To Ballina”. A short, but impactful song that sets the stage for the album. It is an incredible instrumental that leads into the majestic “Somewhere Between Then And Now”. The song features beautiful acoustic guitar from Jakszyk. The song, an incredible nostalgic look at his life builds into a brilliant rock song.

The cornerstone of the album is the title track, “Son Of Glen”. It is a song to his biological father that he never knew or that knew him. But lines like “A future haunted by the past” or “Right the wrongs, address the past” are just brief glances into the beauty and melancholy of this incredibly powerful song. As good a guitarist as Jakszyk is, his vocals are equally noteworthy, and the end result is an incredible piece of art.

Son Of Glen is a brilliant album, and I would argue his best solo album to date. Lyrically it is fantastic, and the instrumentals and other layered songs bring so much to make it a complete and fantastic work. Son Of Glen is a strong album, and Jakszyk has a lot to say and a great deal to express. The feelings come through the music and the lyrics, it is not one or the other, the two are a perfect marriage. Jakszyk has created something very special with this album. From the beautiful sleeve to the flawless production, the album excels. Jakszyk should be very proud of his accomplishment.

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