The Zombies’ lead singer looks back at his solo career…
By Ian Woolley
Published in the February issue of the Beat, we talked with Colin Blunstone about his long friendship and respect with Rod Argent, conserving that amazing voice and the inevitable split of the Zombies. Here in part 2, we look back at his solo career…
“I didn’t start my solo career until the band were finished”, Colin tells me.
The Zombies
“When I was in the Zombies there was some interest in me doing some solo stuff but it wasn’t greeted with much enthusiasm by the rest of the band. So I let it go when there was a bit of interest and I didn’t start doing solo stuff until after the band was finished. When “Time Of The Season” was a hit in the States there was a lot of interest in me singing again”.
His collaborations included being introduced to Alan Parsons who worked on the final Zombies album.
“It’s interesting to me that when the Zombies recorded their final album “Odyssey & Oracle” which Rolling Stone Magazine named as one of their 100 best albums of all time, the assistant engineer on a lot of those sessions was Alan Parsons. That was when I first met him when he worked at the Abbey Road studios a lot in the late 60’s and of course, we all know he went on to become a world-famous engineer and then producer. Also now he’s a very good recording artist as well”.
“When he started making the Alan Parsons Project albums with his silent partner Eric Woolfson, he remembered the time when we used to work together and asked me to sing on four or five of the ballads. I was especially pleased to do it and a particular favourite of mine was “Old And Wise” from the album “Eye In The Sky”. It’s been a hit around the world but also for a lot of people, it’s a very special song. Eric (Woolfson) wrote it but it’s such a wonderful, special and emotional song and people are always talking to me about it and what it means to them. I can’t take any plaudits for the song as Eric is another genius writer and I was thrilled to put some vocals on that song”.
The Zombies 2023
Last year, after their UK tour had finished, Argent and Blunstone performed a few songs together at the Woodstock Film Festival before a gruelling US tour with the band. In November, the first of what will become a planned annual event in their home city of St.Albans. A special weekend of all things Zombies drew fans of the group from all around the world. Most of the original members of the group were there as Colin recalls.
“It was a special weekend for us all with most of the old group there. Sadly Paul Atkinson died about 20 years ago in California. Rod and I sang a few songs and it was very exciting to go back to the place where it all started. I didn’t live in St.Albans but I went to school there as did the rest of the band so that was the start of the Zombies. Hugh Grundy the drummer and myself lived in Hatfield and Chris White lived in a little village called Markyate. The other two, Rod Argent and Paul Atkinson lived in St.Albans and all the surviving band members still keep in contact 60 years on to this day”.
“I plan a new solo album as I wrote and recorded some tracks on the recent US tour and maybe do some solo dates this year if there is time fitting it in with the Zombies schedule. A lot is going on and it’s the last thing I expected at my time of life if I can be honest. I’m constantly surprised at how much work we’re doing. I thought I’d retire some years ago and here we are working probably more now than we were as teenagers. I’m eternally grateful for this opportunity as very few people get the chance to do something like this that they love doing at this time in their lives”.
I also put it to him that he still has kept both his voice and his hair!
Colin laughs, “I’m desperately hanging on to both but I’m doing my best”.