Jorn: Heavy Rock Radio II – Executing The Classics (Frontiers, 2020)

Norwegian super-vocalist (and “striking Viking”) Jorn Lande is back with another covers collection. It’s the sequel to his well-received Heavy Rock Radio album and it’s called Heavy Rock Radio II – Executing The Classics. From the very start of his solo career, Jorn has shown an incredible aptitude for covering classic rock and metal songs, and all these years later you almost take for granted just how effective he is at re-imagining such familiar material. With Heavy Rock Radio II, Jorn follows the formula he used on the first Heavy Rock Radio album: some safe choices, some left field choices, and of course another Dio tribute. Here’s the breakdown:

Lonely Nights (Bryan Adams)
Winning (Russ Ballard)
New York Minute (Don Henley)
Needles And Pins (The Searchers)
Love (Santana)
I Do Believe In You (Pages)
Nightlife (Foreigner)
Bad Attitude (Deep Purple)
Quinn The Eskimo (Bob Dylan)
Mystery (Dio)
The Rhythm Of The Heat (Peter Gabriel)

Not surprisingly, the highlights here are the “safer” choices like Dio’s “Mystery” and classic rock staples like “Nightlife,” “Bad Attitude” and “Winning.” Leadoff single “Lonely Nights” is arguably the best song on the album, with Jorn breathing new life into the Bryan Adams classic. He also reimagines Don Henley’s “New York Minute” in a very metal manner to great effect. A few of the tracks fade into the background, and despite his best efforts there’s really no point covering “Quinn The Eskimo” after Gotthard set the standard for it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S51mzNc6lqI

Sure, another batch of cover songs from Jorn is pretty predictable at this point, but dammit they’re a fun way to pass the time until he’s ready to deliver an album of original material. And really, how many artists could legitimately serve up this many covers albums and still have fans wanting more? That’s why Jorn is the man.