Hughes has carved a distinctive vocal style blending the finest elements of hard rock, soul and funk. That astonishing voice is Hughes' calling card. He's known as a singer's singer: in fact, Stevie Wonder once called Hughes his favorite white singer.
Hughes, a native of Cannock, England, absorbed all kinds of influences, including early British hard rock, the Beatles and, most importantly, American soul and R&B. The sleek Motown sound from Detroit and the gritty Stax/Volt sound from Memphis left their mark on him.
The first important band Hughes was a member of that achieved notable success was Trapeze, while in 1973 he joined one of the most popular bands in the world, Deep Purple. The trailblazing hard-rock legends had just weathered the departure of vocalist Ian Gillan and bass guitarist Roger Glover, but guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, keyboardist Jon Lord and drummer Ian Paice continued with the addition of Hughes and David Coverdale. Any skepticism was squelched with the 1974 release of Burn. This stunning album rejuvenated the band and stands tall among Deep Purple classics.
In the halcyon days, Purple headlined at the famous California Jam in 1974 in front of quarter of a million people. World tours via Purple's own jet plane, 'The Starship' and two more studio albums later, (the Hughes influenced Stormbringer and Come Taste the Band), Deep Purple finally split in 1976.
Now living in Los Angeles, Hughes' first solo album Play Me Out was released in 1977. He joined former Pat Travers guitarist Pat Thrall to form Hughes/Thrall, which released an acclaimed self-titled album in 1982. Throughout the '80s and '90s, Hughes made countless guest appearances (both credited and un-credited) as a vocalist, bass guitarist or songwriter on other artists' albums, in particular he appeared on the vastly underrated Seventh Star, was officially credited as 'Black Sabbath Featuring Tony Iommi'. Hughes and Iommi remained friends and in the past few years they have released one brand new studio album together.
More commercial recognition came when the KLF dubbed Hughes 'The Voice of Rock', proudly featuring him on their international best selling hit single America- What Time is Love'
Since 1992, Hughes has toured extensively in Europe, Japan and South America in support of solo albums such as Blues, From Now On..., Feel, Addiction, The Way It Is, Return Of Crystal Karma, Building The Machine, Songs In The Key Of Rock, Soul Mover and Music For The Divine.
Soul Mover saw the continuation of the successful creative partnership with Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith that began with Glenn's live DVD Soulfully Live in the City of Angels (2004). Soul Mover was voted 12th best album of the year by highly influential UK magazine CLASSIC ROCK.
After the release of his album Music For The Divine in 2006, 2007 saw Hughes make successful tours of Russia, South America, Italy, Norway and Spain, along with solo dates in London - at the prestigious Shepherds Bush Empire - Bulgaria and Greece. 2007 also saw Hughes headline at festival appearances in France and Norway. Hughes also took part in the Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp in New York, which was highly successful and he also appeared as a guest presenter at the Classic Rock Awards in both 2006 and 2007. Another highlight of a diverse and colorful year were the 2 sold out solo shows at the famous Whisky in Los Angeles and BB King's in New York.
2008 saw Hughes undertake another extensive European tour; including a month long trek across Russia, festival appearances, and his first live shows in Belarus, Estonia and Romania. Another highlight was Hughes' appearance in London at the Childline Charity concert in March 2008 where he performed a short set of Deep Purple classics with Purple drummer Ian Paice. This was particularly poignant as it was the first time the pair had played together since the Purple days. Ironically, in June 2008, Hughes played in Liverpool, England for the first time in over 30 years; a triumphant and emotional return to the city where Deep Purple Mark IV played their final ever concert before disbanding in 1976.
Other highlights of 2008 include Hughes' live on air performance on the USA radio show Rockline, and his first appearance in New Zealand since 1975 with Deep Purple, when Hughes brought the house down at the G-Taranaki Festival in July.
Hughes' album, the 2008 release "First Underground Nuclear Kitchen"
Chad Smith again plays out of his skin on the drums, and Hughes has rarely - if ever - sounded more inspired, written with such grace, or sung with more passion.
Another world jaunt accompanied the release, carrying on into 2009 with tours of Europe, Russia, South America and selected shows in the States including sell out shows in LA and NYC.
2010 was one of the most exciting and prolific years in Hughes' career as it saw him recording and touring in a new supergroup project, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION with guitar star Joe Bonamassa, keyboard player Derek Sherinian (Dream Theatre) and drummer Jason Bonham, son of the late Led Zeppelin legend John Bonham. The band released their debut album on September 20th, 2010. The album went to #13 in the Official UK Album Chart and #1 in the Official UK Rock Album Chart. Produced and mixed by Kevin Shirley (Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, The Black Crowes, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, Journey etc), this is yet another world-class musical statement that raises the bar for rock singing.
In November 2010, Hughes was awarded the ChildLine Award at Classic Rock's Roll of Honour.
Hughes and Black Country Communion released their second album, "2", in 2011, followed shortly afterwards, by their debut live tour encompassing the USA, UK and Europe. Their third release, "LIVE OVER EUROPE", recorded live while on the European leg of their debut tour, reached the Top 5 spot world-wide with releases on DVD, CD, Blu-ray and Vinyl.
Hughes had his AUTOBIOGRAPHY published in 2011, in both hard and soft cover editions. The Number 1 best seller is available at all good retailers, both online and at traditional brick & mortar stores!
In November 2011, Black Country Communion won the prestigious Classic Rock Breakthrough Artist of the Year award at the Classic Rock Awards in London, with Glenn collecting the award on behalf of the band.
2012 saw Hughes touring Russia as a solo artist and also South America as a member of the Rock and Roll AllStars, featuring his good friends Gene Simmons, Matt Sorum, and Joe Elliot amongst others. Hughes also did solo shows and guest appearances in the UK, Israel, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Russia, Ukraine, China and Armenia but his main focus in 2012 was the writing, recording and press promotion for the third Black Country Communion album, "AFTERGLOW". Released worldwide in late October 2012, and again produced by Kevin Shirley, the album was another huge success for the band, and is possibly the most Hughes dominated album of the three, with many of the songs written solely by Glenn.
2013 saw Hughes embarking on some exciting new projects, with the best yet to come from this most eclectic, talented and inspired musician and songwriter.
I'm The Man
Glenn Hughes Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let me take you by the hand
Let the Sunday win the light
I hope you understand
My salvation
I do the best I can
[Chorus: ]
I'm the one you will be seeing
I'm the man
You got to be at the station
If you want to be with me
You know that I love you
You are my destiny
Invitation
So wont you take my hand
[Chorus: ]
Let me make it clear
Your fear will disappear
Tell me you believe
And wipe away my tears
My salvation
I do the best I can
[Chorus: ]
You know I will be waiting
So be there if you can
One way or another
You got to understand
My salvation
I do the best I can
[Chorus: Repeat 5X]
I'm the keeper I'm the keeper
I'm the man
You know that I am
I'm a man
The song "I'm the Man" by Glenn Hughes is full of poetic verses that are open to interpretation. The song starts with the lyrics "You got the right information, Let me take you by the hand, Let the Sunday win the light, I hope you understand". These lyrics seem to suggest that the singer knows something that the listener does not, and they are offering to guide the listener towards a better understanding. The mention of Sunday winning the light could symbolize hope or enlightenment, and the singer hopes that the listener will understand this message.
The chorus of the song is where the title "I'm the Man" comes from. The singer claims to be "the keeper of a dream" and "the one you will be seeing". This could suggest that the singer is a guide or mentor figure who is helping the listener towards achieving their dreams. The repetition of the title phrase "I'm the man" adds emphasis to this claim of authority and power.
The rest of the song continues with similar themes of salvation, invitation, and love. The singer seems to be offering a hand to the listener, encouraging them to have faith and believe in themselves. Overall, the song can be interpreted as a message of hope and encouragement to those who may be struggling or feeling lost.
Line by Line Meaning
You got the right information
I have the correct knowledge to guide you
Let me take you by the hand
Come with me and I will lead you
Let the Sunday win the light
Let the goodness prevail over the darkness
I hope you understand
I hope you comprehend the message
My salvation
The act of being saved
I do the best I can
I try my hardest
I'm the keeper of a dream
I am the protector of a vision
I'm the one you will be seeing
I will be the one you encounter
I'm the man
I am a confident and able person
You got to be at the station
You need to arrive at a specific location
If you want to be with me
If you wish to accompany me
You know that I love you
You are aware of my affections
You are my destiny
You are fated to be with me
Invitation
An offer to join me
So won't you take my hand
Please hold my hand
Let me make it clear
Allow me to be unambiguous
Your fear will disappear
Your anxiety will fade away
Tell me you believe
Let me know you have faith
And wipe away my tears
And take away my sorrow
You know I will be waiting
You know I will remain patient
So be there if you can
Therefore, join me if feasible
One way or another
Regardless of the circumstances
You got to understand
You must comprehend
I'm a man
I am an individual
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GLENN HUGHES, CRAIG ERICKSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Six-String Steve
Awesome song. Glenn's vocal performance is stellar, especially during the outro.
Jess Philip Rodriquez
I love the part when Hughes plays the solo bass and then it goes into the lead solo. So bad and so cool!
Dwhizzle Dizzle
I love after the solo when he hits those higher notes.
ded2rite
And Tony Franklin is an evil bass player..no doubt. The guy plays a Chapman Stick like nobodies business!
MrCherryJuice
The bass here is by Tony Franklin on fretless. He plays 7 of the 12 tunes, Glenn does 5. The guitar solos are John Norum and Warren DiMartini (Ratt) respectively. Gary Ferguson is drumming.
Cova Rasa
Unbelievable voice !
György Márkus
This is incredible! GH is fantastic as always. The whole band is perfect. The guitar solos are mesmerizing! Noone could imagine after john Norum Warren could put up any resistance, but he could! So gently, smoothly pushes the button and we can hardly recognize how wonderful he is. Thanks for the pleasure.
Jose Marcelo nuñez cortez
The Voice of rock..
Michelle Gilmour
such a kick ass album!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Paula Regina Pinto Neto
The real dino classic rock vocal very good!!!