How do you think the lockdown affected your musical creativity? Do you think the complete slow-down helped or hindered creativity?
“I think lock-down was a double-edged sword for many musicians… but it depends what your lockdown circumstances were. For me, I was classified as an essential worker being news editor at Island FM so I was out of the house everyday. But the feeling of peace and serenity when out walking or in the garden was inspirational. Birds singing, no traffic noise, no vapor trails. The phone wasn’t ringing constantly and that is all good for creativity. It was a time for contemplation.
The down side was that I couldn’t get together and rehearse or gig with my band mates. I have played in bands since I was 14 and have never had such a long period without playing with other musicians. I really missed it. So the first rehearsal in my barn, with everyone together was a joy. Sometimes you don’t know how much you love something until you don’t have it anymore. So it was a real lesson for me and I’m really looking forward to playing St James on 11 July.
I will play songs from my albums but also talk about how songwriting happens. Where do songs come from? How do you decide what to write about? What comes first the music? Or the lyrics? I will also play great songs from some of the songwriters I really love.”