Retired musicians are making a big comeback

Be it in the West or the East, musicians are often not ready to retire. But there are only a handful who can live upto their glorious past

It was a question waiting to be answered: Are Western artistes really “superior” to Indian ones I don’t know if I have found an answer, but the recent spate of “reunions” or “comebacks” in the West makes me wonder whether retirements are genuine or just a marketing ploy of making money for their not-so-productive years.

Look at the international artistes that have returned to the live circuit in the recent past in an obvious effort to compensate for a life style that they have become accustomed to but, with the money drying up, what better manner than to relive nostalgia and have older/faithful fans pay top money to ensure that the artiste’s pension is taken care of until it’s time to make yet another comeback Britpop stars Blur returned with fresh material in 2015 in form of the well-received The Magic Whip album — their first since 2003’s Think Tank — and a string of live appearances across the globe. Then, earlier this year, there was the after-years-of-animosities Guns N’ Roses reunion featuring vocalist Axl Rose and guitarist Slash — both of whom have performed live in Mumbai, independent of each other — while Axl also doubled up as the vocalist for AC/DC. While ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson made a brief cameo at a U2 show in 1992, performing Dancing Queen, the original quartet reunited on June 6 this year, at a private party in Stockholm, to celebrate 50 years to the day since Andersson and Ulvaeus first met when they, along with vocalists Agnetha Fältskog and Anni-Frid Lyngstad, all took to the stage and performed the ABBA track, The Way Old Friends Do together, a live recording of which first appeared on the group’s 1980 Super Trouper album.

Meanwhile, let us also discuss the Indian psyche here. I do not recall a single band or singer ever announcing their retirement. Although there are some that just faded away or, as the case is, should have faded away, artistes continue to remain part of the industry, commencing from launching solo albums after which, if lucky, Bollywood music industry beckons them. But their touring never stops, after which they perform at private functions, and some take the ridiculous step of considering themselves competent enough to attempt turning into Bollywood stars.

But one band that made a deserved comeback was Indus Creed, the erstwhile Rock Machine. It seems just like yesterday when I heard Indus Creed’s self-titled debut album but, alas, it was back in 1994. Cut to 2012, and Indus Creed returned, and how.

With an album appropriately named Evolve (Universal Music), the biggest upside of the band’s changed line-up was that their sounds were contemporary. The five members made no effort to reproduce the sounds from the past, and the eight songs featured were all new with no gimmicks in terms of “bonus tracks” or remixes.

Similarly, another artiste who remains an exception to the rule and still continues his first innings, as it were, is Mumbai-based Gary Lawyer who, through the years, has been a versatile singer-songwriter performing across multi-genres such as pop, rock, and jazz.

While Gary’s career has been too well charted across multiple media platforms to reproduce here, I have been witnessing his live performances since the ’80s across various Mumbai venues ranging from the now obsolete Rang Bhavan and [Not Just] Jazz By The Bay.

Nevertheless, the limitations of established venues thereafter has not curbed Gary’s musical enthusiasm and ambitions — thank goodness for that! — as he has just digitally released the title track of his forthcoming album, Heaven's Child, which is due on Nirvana Digital Studios.

The song is supported by a marvellous video — featuring child actor Pranav Sakpal and directed by Claver Menezes —with most of the instrumentation handled by Gary. The album will have an edge over most others released in India due to its production quality as Gary has made arrangements to have it mastered in the U.S., with 11 songs appearing on his impending new album.

Gary continues to rock the audience too — as also jazz, soul, and roll them — as he is scheduled to do so at a private club in Mumbai on July 29.

Against all odds, while Indian musicians still want to make an effort for their talent to be heard and, be it as a new initiative or as a comeback/reunion, one musician who appears to be everlastingly young —both physically and musically — remains a true advocate for infectious music by the name of Gary Lawyer!

The writer has been part of the media and entertainment business for over 23 years. He continues to pursue his hobby and earns an income out of it.