Lovers and Friends is too soft for my tastes and, while Only the Good Die Young and Grace aren't, I have to say that they're not far away. With a brand-new album ‘Road To Eden’ singer/keyboardist Darren Wharton and his band Dare give the rock world a welcome sign of life.

Dare was formed in 1985 by former Thin Lizzy keyboard player Darren Wharton after Phil Lynott had dissolved the band. Their sound could be summed up as a sort of classic hard rock/AOR with intelligent and introspective . They may have taken the scenic route but Cardinal Black are finally here, and they've got plenty of stories to tell. Previously he has said of Hawaii, “It is dedicated to everyone going through tough times on the journey of life, with the person they care for the most.To me personally, it's another reminder that, while I was focusing on increasingly heavy material in the eighties, there was so much softer and quieter rock music that I should have found worthwhile too. And if the luminous final solo of 'Thy Kingdom Come' with its masterful rise in intensity and its assumed Celtic pride finishes dazzling us, it also installs in us the melancholy of a journey that ends when we would have liked to see it go on and on. Dare is an English rock band from Oldham, fronted by former Thin Lizzy keyboard player Darren Wharton. BAND LINE-UP: DARREN WHARTON-VOCALS, KEYBOARDS / VINNY BURNS-GUITARS / NIGEL CLUTTERBUCK-BASS GUITAR / KEV WHITEHEAD-DRUMS / MARC ROBERTS-KEYBOARDS. Road To Eden is likely to be best appreciated, played in full, as summer turns to autumn, where there’s still warmth and happy memories felt as the seasons slowly change colour.

One or two songs more in that vein would have given ‘Road To Eden’ more body, as most of the songs are reasonably laid back, smooth and not really that much different from earlier work. Sometimes more biting ('Fire Never Fades'), playing on the contrasts between the softness of the verses and the energy of the choruses ('Grace') or switching from a ballad-like introduction to a ride across the moor ('The Devil Rides Tonight'), each track invades the listener with a beneficial warmth. To my mind, things pick back up with The Devil Rides Tonight, which fits so well with those first four tracks, even with a quiet opening, that I couldn't help but wonder why it wasn't shifted up to play alongside them.The track is filled with big drum sounds and gold-standard Les Paul tones, as nature intended great rock songs to be, and will send you scurrying for your controls to immediately turn it up and play it again. The admiration Darren had and has for the legendary singer/bass player is once again displayed in the great rocking track ,,Only The Good Die Young’’. Getting the fire burning on Come On, this sultry blues number showcases Redferns prowess on his trusty Resonator guitar.

When Darren was just 18 year old he became the keyboardist for Thin Lizzy and Phil Lynott took him under his wing, showing him around in the scene. Instead of entering uncharted territory, Dare stay in their comfort zone and evolve their sound instead of approaching more radical changes. Pocket Melodies takes you on a journey of glorious melodies leading you through love, romance, nostalgia, regret and unity. A kind of revamped “Blood On Blood” by Bon Jovi, but its difficult to shake the thoughts of Phil Lynott here.Guitarist Vinny Burns provides the enticing riffs as the melody takes hold of its audience, there’s a ginormous burst of applause as Darren rips into a Sea of Roses.

The latter went right into the charts in the UK and gave Dare a solid platform for a continuation of this winning streak. With previous DARE albums now having well over 4 million streams on Spotify, it’s clear that for the growing army of DARE fans, the wait is nearly over, as they prepare to join DARE on The Road To Eden. The Title track ‘Road to Eden’ though is something else – its simply beautiful and has a slight Gaelic leaning to it that just sets it off right. Good, pleasant, listenable stuff; on the other hand, there is no a trace of originality or something.Most notable has been the well-earned rise of guitarist Chris Buck, named in 2019 as ‘Best New Guitarist in the World’, who has forged a reputation as one of the most inventive and recognisable guitar players in music; winning plaudits from peers and the industry’s most iconic players alike. For example if you enter Black Star Riders the results will include all instances of "Black" "Star" and "Riders".