In 2010 I wrote a song called “I Have A Dream” ( you can hear it in the video below) and very recently (about a month ago) I started re-arranging the music I already have with orchestral arrangements and writing some new stuff. So now the scene is set for the journey through music of massive soundscapes intertwined with piercing guitar solo’s, and a rollercoaster ride through my story.
Sit back and enjoy the ride.
While you are at it, why not download a free track with the story behind the song of “The Long Road” re-arranged to an orchestra, to get a feel for what the eventual album will sound like. I will keep you updated with progress and when the shows are announced, where you can see them.
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.I started writing poetry when I was 13 and put my first song to music when I was 15 years old – the irony is that the song I wrote was called “Smoke Without Flame” and was a protest about Britain’s Nuclear Deterrent – and 7 years later I was the missile Control Centre Supervisor on a Polaris submarine – the very deterrent I had written a song about.
I also played in a band on that submarine.
I didn’t really start taking music seriously until later on in life. I had moved to Spain and was preparing for a birthday party (38th I believe) and decided to learn ten songs (I only played my own at the time) that people would know so they could sing along at my birthday party.
At the party it was a great BBQ and everyone was singing along with me. A number of people were surprised because they didn’t even know I played the guitar let alone sing.
The owner of the bar right across the road from me (The bar is called Spinach and the Owner called Francois) was outside the bar listening and asked me afterwards to come and play in his bar the following Friday. So I did.
I had a great time and the 15 people or so in the audience did too. It went down great – even though I only knew those ten songs.
A few years later – 2009 and I was playing for the last day of Summer on August 31st – it was a Sunday night and the next day everyone would be leaving the town (as they did every year) to go back to their houses in Madrid, Valencia, France, Albacete and all over the place.
At the end everyone was banging their bottles and glasses asking for one more song. So I duly obliged. There was a standing ovation afterwards and it was that moment that made me think that this is what I wanted to do – to entertain people and play music. You can hear more about that night here {INSERT LINK TO “THE NIGHT THAT CHANGED MY LIFE”}
That’s when the journey began – my Saul on the way to Damascus moment – my epiphany.
2.My Return To UK
After that moment in Spain, I decided I really wanted to make music my living – but how?
I knew it would never happen in Spain, the music scene was great out there and a lot of fun, but trying to get serious musicians who wanted to play original music and NOT play covers, was very difficult.
I decided to come back to England.
I have had a few line ups of the band along the way and mostly had people who were not so committed as I was – it was after all my dream, not theirs.
The last line up of the band before we disbanded, consisted of my Brother Phil, on Drums (see the story of his entry to the band), my nephew Aidan on bass, my girlfriend, Urszula, on keyboards and a great local guitarist called Roger Cooper, who sadly, after a 2 year stint, could no longer play because of arthritis in his left hand (not great for a lead guitarist) so he left the band.
We had a replacement guitarist come in for our last few gigs but I think by then I had become very disillusioned with the band and after we launched our album on June 30th 2018, I decided to hang up my guitar and microphone. The flame of passion had burnt out and I was no longer hungry for music.
In November 2019, I went to see the Solent Symphony Orchestra in Portsmouth and absolutely loved it. Ever since I was a young boy I have loved orchestral music – there is so much power and passion and it stirs so many emotions. Through the concert my mind was racing as I was hearing different overtures – it really was a musical journey. I was also thinking about how that particular sound I just heard with hat instrument right there, would sound great in this song of mine.
I came out of there buzzing, so high that I could almost walk on the ceiling!
My mind was racing about how I could put orchestral music to my music. That lasted for a few days and then work and the day job got in the way of things, as it tends to do.
Then we were put into lockdown in March 2020 and I had no excuse. Although it took me a good month or so before got around to it, when I did put orchestral music to the first song – Don’t Say Goodbye – it sounded awesome . When I got the orchestral arrangement back and listened to it- I was blown away by it. You can hear that sample by clicking HERE {INSERT SAMPLE OF DON’T SAY GOODBYE}
In May 2020, I spoke to a good friend of mine (who managed the band for a little while) and who puts on events. Some of the bands he has been involved with read like a who’s who of the music business. Anyway, I called him to say I had my next grand idea. When he called me back he said “Yep, I’m in”. To which I replied – “But I haven’t told you what it is yet!” He responded that it didn’t matter because he knew I wouldn’t take no for an answer.
And so the seed was planted for this new project – “I Have A Dream” and the idea of putting together an epic album, the likes of which have not really been seen since Tommy, The Wall, a Rock Album with an orchestral backing – Orchestral Rock.
In 2010 I wrote a song called “I Have A Dream” ( you can hear it in the video below and read the story about how it evolved here {INSERT LINK TO I HAVE A DREAM STORY } and in May 2020 I started re-arranging the music I already have with orchestral arrangements and writing new songs. So now the scene is set for the journey through music of massive soundscapes intertwined with piercing guitar solo’s, and a rollercoaster ride through “I Have A Dream”.
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