Brazen Abbot’s studio albums Live And Learn and Guilty As Sin will be reissued on 12th December via Frontiers Music Srl, with the debut album’s title track out now as a single, featuring Glenn Hughes on vocals.
Brazen Abbot was originally conceived as a studio project by Bulgarian guitarist, producer, and songwriter Nikolo Kotzev. The band has since performed live on several occasions, particularly in the early 2000s.
Commenting on the ‘Live And Learn’ single Kotzev said: “Having Glenn Hughes in my studio was an out of worldly experience. He was the first global star I had a direct contact with. I can’t describe the feeling of hearing my songs performed by him. He was very humble and extremely efficient in the studio and was well-prepared, so he nailed most of it on the first take.”
“I often read comments from Glenn’s fans, that ‘Live And Learn’ is one of the best songs he ever sang,” he added. “Don’t know if that’s true, but I don’t mind hearing that. It is a track, combining rock, blues and soul in one explosive extravaganza. And it happened right in front of my eyes. Nothing beats that
“Live And Learn was the first Brazen Abbot album, released originally in Japan and other Asian countries. It packed a fantastic lineup of musicians – Glenn Hughes, Göran Edman, Thomas Vikström, Ian Haugland, Svante Henryson and Mic Michaeli. Wow. Even to this day it sounds like a crazy mountain of talent… It contains some extraordinary songs, which sound surprisingly fresh even today. Don’t miss that one – it’s the one, that started it all.”
Tracks featured are: ‘Extraordinary Child’, ‘No Way Out of Nowhere’, ‘Live And Learn’, ‘Russian Roulette’, Clean Up Man’, ‘When November Reigns’, ‘Miracle’, ‘Big Time Blues’, ‘Feeling Like A Rolling Stone’, ‘Children Of Today’ and ‘Shadows Of The Moon’ – You can order it here.
“Guilty As Sin says a lot about a tough period in my life,” he continued. “Many of the songs are written after true events and reminiscent of my state of mind. Extraordinary musicianship as always by the Europe guys and all the singers. There are quite a few memorable ones on this one and as Joe said himself – the production and writing quality is extraordinary. Not bad to hear it from someone like him, eh?”
Tracks featured are: ‘Extraordinary Child’, ‘No Way Out of Nowhere’, ‘Live And Learn’, ‘Russian Roulette’, ‘Clean Up Man’, ‘When November Reigns’, ‘Miracle’, ‘Big Time Blues’, Feeling Like A Rolling Stone’, ‘Children Of Today’ and ‘Shadows Of The Moon’– You can order it here.
A unique feature of Brazen Abbot is its use of multiple singers on each album. Göran Edman and Joe Lynn Turner have contributed with vocals on most of their records. Initially, Kotzev planned to work with a single vocalist, Göran Edman (ex-Malmsteen) but, due to contractual restrictions, he could only record two songs for the debut album. The Voice of Rock Glenn Hughes was then lined up to sing the remaining tracks, but similar issues limited him to three songs.
To complete the album, Thomas Vikström (Talk Of The Town, then later Therion) was brought in, and Kotzev was so satisfied with the outcome that he decided to continue the multi-singer approach for future albums. However, during live performances, Joe Lynn Turner (ex-Malmsteen, Rainbow, DeepPurple) usually handled all lead vocals.
Several Brazen Abbot members also participated in Kotzev’s rock opera Nostradamus (2001). During the rock opera’s development, Brazen Abbot was temporarily on hiatus. Former members of the band include Mic Michaeli, John Levén, and Ian Haugland, all of whom are also members of the legendary rock band Europe.
