Whaddaya mean who’s Corey Glover?!?! You know the song “Cult Of Personality”? Well it’s performed by the Grammy award winning band Living Colour, and Corey Glover is their singer.
I must admit up front that Corey is my number one favorite vocalist of all time. His range and musical diversity are top notch, but it’s the way he makes me feel when he sings. It is truly an experience for the soul.
I would literally pay to hear him hum while he’s taking out the garbage, but I don’t have to resort to that because Corey never stops working. The frontman of the tragically underrated Living Colour has a stacked resume. He portrayed Francis in Oliver Stone’s film Platoon and played Judas Iscariot when he co-headlined a tour of Jesus Christ Superstar. As Reverend Daddy Love he formed the band Vice, releasing the powerful LP “Hymns” and the fan-funded follow up, “The Pledge”. He took a turn at the helm when he sang for, and toured with, the bands Galactic and Soul Rebels Brass Band. Corey teamed up with the beast on the axe, George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob), to form the group Ultraphonix, releasing “Original Human Music”. A few years ago he formed a metal project, Disciples Of Verity, which produced the LP “Pragmatic Sanction”. Not to mention the six studio albums with Living Colour that went on to sell more than 2.6 million copies worldwide. I’d also like to acknowledge that Corey was voted one of “The 10 Sexiest Rockers of 1990” in the October 1990 issue of Playgirl magazine. In real life, this factoid makes Corey roll his eyes in an annoyed fashion but I had that pic of him on my bedroom wall. Corey himself would like you to know that he is in no way related to the actor Danny Glover. (he gets that question a lot!)
If Corey is performing anywhere in my atmosphere I’m 100% going, so this wasn’t my first time experiencing The Soul Experience featuring Corey Glover. The gig was five days after Corey performed “Cult Of Personality” in a round of “Kellyoke” on The Kelly Clarkson Show. Ya know, cuz the guy never stops. Corey doesn’t go it alone though, he surrounds himself with talented musicians. The Soul Experience is Dan Kottmann on guitar, Jeremy Baum on keys, Neil Spitzer killin it on the sax, Cleveland Love (great name!) on drums and Ivan “Funkboy” Bodley on bass. Ivan has a book out called “Am I Famous Yet? – Memoir of a Working-Class Rock Star” and the title alone makes me wanna grab a copy. The band started jamming without Corey, with Spitzer announcing, “We are the Experience! Feel free to get outta your seats and dance, the floor is open!” The winery/venue only had a capacity of 300 and everyone was seated around small tables or at picnic tables. The “dance floor” was a small rectangular strip in front of the stage. The crowd was on the older, mellow side. They finally introduced the legendary Corey Glover and I lost my shit. He was still sporting the red/pink/white dreads he wore during his “Kellyoke” appearance. The soulful seventeen song set kicked off with “Them Changes” – Buddy Miles, “Before I Let Go” – Maze and “To Love Somebody” – Bee Gees. Corey addressed the room, “Y’all feelin alright?” Half the room stopped drinking their wine to respond. “I can’t hear ya!” This evoked a more suitable reaction. “Ya gotta feel it deep down, ya gotta let it out.” “This is your fun, y’all understand? Ya gotta participate for it to work.” Corey stated the next song would be a Living Colour tune. Someone in the crowd yelled “Cult”. Corey explained that the band has an agreement that they don’t perform that song unless they’re all together. The song on deck was one of their other hits, “Love Rears Its Ugly Head” which Corey could render flawlessly in his sleep. It was his rendition of Donny Hathaway’s “I Love You More Than You’ll Ever Know” that sent me to the moon. The experience continued with “Backstabbers” – The O’Jays, Sam Cooke’s “Little Girl” and “Stand!” – Sly & The Family Stone. Corey shared a story prior to wrapping the first set. “I remember being in my parent’s car and hearing this Bill Withers’ song on the 8-Track. I love this song by the way.” The tune was “I Can’t Write Left-Handed”. A short intermission followed but when the guys took the stage again they got it rollin with Sam & Dave’s “Hold On I’m Coming” which I recalled was on the Blues Brothers soundtrack. “Send Me Some Lovin’”, originally by Little Richard, gave me a doo-wop era vibe. I might have to bring my Motown loving Mom next time. Bobby Caldwell’s “What You Won’t Do For Love” was followed by Bobby Womack’s “If You Think You’re Lonely Now” which had some of the older ladies shakin’ it. Corey shouted “All the aunties love it!” “Buy a shirt and tell your friends about the fun you had here tonight.” “Skin Tight” by the Ohio Players was a segue to band introductions and solos. Then Corey invited a couple on stage to assist with vocals on “Talkin Loud & Sayin Nothing” by James Brown. Corey shed his coat after that which elicited a coupla “WooHoos”. He responded with “I put a tie on for this.” He then yelled for his son Indigo, who is usually in charge of selling t-shirts at the gigs. FYI – I buy one every time I go and it’s been cash only. “Y’all want more sax?” Everyone cheered for Spitzer. “I dunno why but they want more sax!” Earth Wind & Fire’s “Mighty Mighty” had the strip of dance floor filled up. Corey made his way around the room, singing with fans and sampling some food before declaring “We got one more song then we’re outta here.” “I got a sandwich comin.” The set wrapped with Sam Cooke’s “Shake” and the fans did in fact shake.
Whether you catch Corey covering classic tracks with The Soul Experience, or go heavier with Living Colour, I guarantee you’re going to encounter all the feels. You may even hear him spontaneously singing at a sporting event or collaborating on a hardcore metal track like he did with the band Inverter on “400 Beats Per Minute”. Living Colour has dates through the end of June. The Soul Experience will be performing at Small Batch Cellars in North Haven, CT on 5/25, at Milkboy in Philly on 6/20 and at My Father’s Place in Roslyn, NY on 7/18. Follow their socials for the latest info.