Certain songwriting collabs have left a lasting remark, and while the Lennon-McCartney partnership is one of the most popular ones, the one between Doug Aldrich and Glenn Hughes is also one for the books. The members of the Dead Daisies not only have great harmony on stage, but they also write their songs together during jam sessions. This creative collaboration has truly inspired Aldrich, as he revealed in a recent interview with VW Music.
“Well, it’s different with everybody that I write with,” said the musician before recalling his previous collaborations. “When I was writing with Jimmy Bain for Ronnie [James Dio], that was one way. When I had written for my projects, that was a little different. When I joined the Dead Daisies, we were all doing everything together.”
He continued, “Like, we didn’t bring a finished song in, per se. We would sit down with acoustic guitars, jam through people’s ideas, and try to develop each person’s ideas a little bit. Then, little by little, we’d get in a room and start to play through it. When Glenn joined the band, he said, ‘Hey, I’ve got some music that I wanna present.’ And I knew that he was a very astute and talented songwriter, so I decided, ‘Okay, maybe this is a situation now where I should bring in some more completed ideas.’”
“So, that’s how I did it when Glenn joined,” said the musician, recalling how Glenn Hughes’ recruitment changed his approach to songwriting. “I just started to think, ‘What would Glenn like to play? What kind of songs could we do that we haven’t been doing in the past?’ And I would bang out a few more full-blown demos and present those to Glenn, and Glenn would give his ideas to me, and then we’d work on them together.”
Doug Aldrich has been with the band since 2016. He rocked the stage with many giants up until this final stop, including David Coverdale and Ronnie James Dio. However, it seems like Dead Daisies’ in-group dynamics have opened up a space for him to be more creative. Especially his partnership with Glenn Hughes, who joined the band about three years later, nourished him as a songwriter during the jam sessions.
The final product of these jam sessions reaching us is ‘Radiance.’ Judging by the feedback it received after its release, this album seems to be one of the band’s strongest ones. It also became Doug Aldrich’s favorite. He especially thought the songwriting was one of its strongest aspects, and of course, the return of Brian Tich took the album to a different level. Setting off with the excellent feedback they received, they will continue to promote their album in the UK throughout December.
