GLENN HUGHES: 'I Have To Be Immersed In The Song Completely To Sing It'

Legendary bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION) was recently interviewed by Atma Nambi, a contemporary spiritual master from India, widely respected for his profound knowledge and practice of meditation and spirituality. Asked how his "singing itself is functioning like a meditation," Glenn responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, when I'm singing, I'm definitely immersed in the song. I'm immersed in the lyrics I'm singing.

"I may have written some of these lyrics 50 years ago, but I don't go back in form, but when I'm singing a song, I'm in the song," he explained. "I have to be immersed in the song completely to sing it. And by the way, I don't have any thoughts when I'm singing. I'm in the song and I'm inside the music. And that's two hours of my life every day. If I could have that in the other 22 hours, everything would be fine.

"People ask me, 'What's going on up there when you sing?' And I said, 'I don't know.' I don't think about the next indicated thing I'm going to sing," Hughes added. "I never think about the next note because that note may be really high or low. If I think about the next note, I'm not gonna sing it. Now, I know a lot of soccer players, very famous soccer players, that told me if they're gonna make a really great statement with the game on the pitch, if somebody is gonna take a penalty in soccer, if they think they're gonna miss, they're gonna miss. So I never think about what I'm gonna sing. I know the melody I'm going to sing, but I never think about anything other than… I'm in the moment singing. I am completely in the moment… I am at the most blissful. Because when I walk up on the stage, I'm free. I'm free all the time, but I'm free up there. And people ask me, 'Well, how do you do that?' I said, 'How do I do what?' I guess I'm expressing myself. So, if you're a musician and you're genuinely in the moment, if you are in the moment, or even if you're not a musician, if you're just doing whatever you do, if you can stay in the moment, and this is something I've been working on now for 10 years, about staying in the moment, in that next breath — the breath is vital for me."

Hughes recently completed work on his new studio album, tentatively due in early 2025. The long-awaited follow-up to 2016's "Resonate" was recorded in June in Copenhagen, Denmark. Accompany him during the sessions were guitarist Søren Andersen, drummer Ash Sheehan, and keyboardist Bob Fridzema.

"Resonate" was released in November 2016 via Frontiers Music Srl. It featured Glenn's then-live solo band members, Søren Andersen (guitars and co-producer),Pontus Engborg (drums) and Lachy Doley (keyboards),in addition to longtime friend Chad Smith (RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS),who joined them in the studio for the opening and closing numbers.

Last year, Hughes launched his solo tour under the banner "Glenn Hughes Performs Classic Deep Purple Live – Celebrating The 50th Anniversary Of The Album Burn". Glenn performed DEEP PURPLE's legendary rock album "Burn" and also ran through DEEP PURPLE MKIII and MKIV songs.

Hughes spent key years of his career as the beloved bassist and vocalist of DEEP PURPLE, appearing on the classic albums "Burn", "Stormbringer" and "Come Taste The Band".

Hughes, who was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016 along with fellow DEEP PURPLE members Ritchie Blackmore, David Coverdale, Jon Lord, Rod Evans, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover and Ian Paice, spent more than three years recording and touring as the frontman of the supergroup THE DEAD DAISIES.

Glenn's BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION supergroup with guitarist Joe Bonamassa, drummer Jason Bonham (LED ZEPPELIN) and keyboardist Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER, ALICE COOPER, BILLY IDOL) released its fifth album, "V", in June.

Image credit: George s Pogacich