Ian Gillan says new album not forced

Ian Gillan is really proud of his new solo album called Gillan's Inn, which came out this week. It spans the four decades of his professional life and includes some of his friends as guest performers, including his mates in Deep Purple, the Goo Goo Dolls, and singer-guitarist Jeff Healey, among many others. Gillan recorded new versions of all the songs on the album, and he told us that he and the band kind of got back to basics in the studio: "Nothing contrived. It's all about people playing their instruments in a group together, and delivering a combination of power, and texture, and dynamics, and all of those subtle things that have been forgotten over the years."

The album is a DualDisc, and the DVD side has a track-by-track commentary from the man himself, along with scenes from the recording sessions, rare live footage, and other extras.

The vocalist hopes to play some solo gigs this year, if the Deep Purple schedule opens up the way he thinks it will.