THIS WEEK I’M LISTENING TO...TYKETTO – Closer To The Sun (Silver Lining Music)

Formed in 1987, Tyketto are nudging their way to their 40th birthday, and although there’s just one original member in vocalist Danny Vaughn in the line-up – and even he quit in 1995 for a few years – there’s a solid consistency to the band’s sound. ‘Closer To The Sun’ could easily be the follow-up to Tyketto’s breakthrough debut, 1991’s ‘Don’t Come Easy’, and it’s almost as if the intervening years – and the musical fads that have come and gone – have never happened. The sweat ’n’ swagger of opening cut and lead video clip ‘Higher Than High’ does a pretty good job of setting the scene, with its toe-tapping melody, phased middle 8 and easily memorable singalong chorus: if you wanted a template for creating a catchy slice of melodic rock, ‘Higher Than High’ fits the bill nicely.

photo by Davey Rocks

But that’s not to say that ‘Closer To The Sun’ is a one-trick pony. The offbeat ‘Donnowhuddidis’, imbued with a bar-room honky tonk feel, shimmies along nicely, and ‘Bad For Good’ is an infectious schmoozer, coming across like prime-time Bon Jovi on steroids. The album’s title track tries to hit the dizzy heights attained by THAT single – ‘Forever Young’ – from way back when, and with its soaring vocals and a solo that fades way too early it does come close. ‘Harleys And Indians (Riders In The Sky)’ boasts both a wacky title and a beautiful shuffle (although I think is omitted from vinyl pressings, which is a shame) and ‘Hit Me Where It Hurts’ (a lively rocker in its own right) gains a bonus point for the used-and-abused lover referring to his unfaithful partner “telling porkie pies” – a rhyming slang reference which might go over a few people’s heads but shows a playful take on lyric writing (as does the “I want my records back” throwaway line at the song’s conclusion). Who says you can’t have fun?

On the downside the power ballads ‘Starts With A Feeling’ and ‘The Picture’ are a little too saccharine for their own good, despite some nice guitar licks from Harry Scott Elliott, but that’s the nature of the melodic rock beast and you’ve got to take the rough with the (very, very) smooth. ‘Closer To The Sun’ is a very strong release, not a nostalgia trip, and shows that Vaughn and his bandmates have neither lost their chops nor their direction.

Video Clips:
‘We Rise’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vHIt2uo6Hk
‘Higher Than High’ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xN9V8M0GDgU&list=RDxN9V8M0GDgU&start_radio=1

John Tucker March 2026