ABOUT
Hi. I'm a singer/songwriter with plenty of songs looking for musicians bass/drums/keys/lead guitar/backing vocals to form a band in Reading. I'm in my 50s so it's mainly for the fun of playing live.
- Screen name:
- ando387337
- Member since:
- Jul 30 2020
- Active within 1 week
- Level of commitment:
- Just for Fun
- Years playing music:
- 35
- Gigs played:
- 50 to 100
- Tend to practice:
- 2-3 times per week
- Available to gig:
- 2-3 nights a week
- Most available:
- Nights
Influences
Elvis Costello, Aztec Camera, Prefab Sprout, First Aid Kit, The Staves, 60s, Dusty Springfield, Ricki Lee Jones, Motown, Paul Simon, Emmylou Harris
Instrument experience:
- Acoustic Guitar:
- Moderate
MUSIC
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STUFF OF DREAMS
STUFF OF DREAMSUnashamedly happy love song!
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Mothers Day - 25:03:2019, 17.09
Mothers Day - 25:03:2019, 17.09For my mum.
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OUR HOUSE IS IN FLAMES
OUR HOUSE IS IN FLAMESMy song for Greta
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STUCK IN LIMBO
STUCK IN LIMBOWhen you're trying to move on to somewhere else, sometimes life puts everything on hold and there's nothing you can do! My gratitude goes to Will Barker who composed and performed the amazing solo in this one. Thanks Will. Photo credit: Emile Seguin at unsplash.com
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FOREVER GIRL / JAN MIX
FOREVER GIRL / JAN MIXA slightly different mix with a bit more of a groovy jig :)
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HUMMINGBIRD
HUMMINGBIRDHummingbird Hummingbird I kept my word But I can’t hang around Times have changed Shapes rearranged Fly by without a sound I won’t forget Our beautiful regret We can’t have lost what we never found Hummingbird Your face is blurred Just like your wings It won’t be long Before your song Is lost between these strings I won’t deny I tried to make it last But your movements were too fast Hummingbird The wind sweeps in To brush the clouds away And there’s no doubting we’ll live for another day Nothing’s gained No clarity observed Just the joy of a Hummingbird Hummingbird I overheard You’ve found another home I’m pleased for you If you’re happy to Leave my heart alone Hold your breath It’s wasted on me Hummingbird go silently
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WATER INTO WINE
WATER INTO WINEThis song seemed to be just waiting to be written. Like the sculpture sees a shape inside a block of wood waiting to come out. It all just came together painlessly in a few short hours. Thanks to anyone who has liked my tracks so far. Please let me know if you enjoy this one. All my songs are just demos created on GarageBand - feel free to share. Photo: Viktor Omy on unsplash.com
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LAST WEEKEND OF SUMMER
LAST WEEKEND OF SUMMERI’d tried writing songs in my 20s when I was out to ‘make it’ in pop music with my friend Ben. The trouble was, I was the Andrew Ridgeley to his George Michael. I just couldn’t quite work out how to do it. One title I had tinkered with was ‘last weekend of summer’. I thought it sounded evocative of an ending, that sadness you feel inside when the days start shortening and leaves start turning. I can still hear the melody I wrote back then. But it wasn’t right. So I rewrote it. Turns out the birds know when it's time to go. Image: Frank Mckenna on unsplash.com
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11:20
11:20Sunny days wandering the streets of Notting Hill, meeting friends in cafés for breakfast on Saturday mornings hoping to fend off the nagging remnants of a heavy night. The sounds of a city suburb softly impregnating the air with a culture mix of reggae, pop, rock, house, garage, you name it. Pop stars around every corner. And of course George Butler, our one-time drummer, who knew everyone and who everyone knew. You still owe me for about 360 pints of Guinness by the way! W11 was my home for nearly ten years. The first time I ever went there I thought it must be the centre of the known universe. And I nearly left my heart there. Sunny days wandering the streets of Notting Hill, meeting friends in cafés for breakfast on Saturday mornings hoping to fend off the nagging remnants of a heavy night. The sounds of a city suburb softly impregnating the air with a culture mix of reggae, pop, rock, house, garage, you name it. Pop stars around every corner. And of course George Butler, our one-time drummer, who knew everyone and who everyone knew. You still owe me for about 360 pints of Guinness by the way! W11 was my home for nearly ten years. The first time I ever went there I thought it must be the centre of the known universe. And I nearly left my heart there. Photo by Damiano Baschiera on Unsplash
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SHOOT FOR THE MOON
SHOOT FOR THE MOONThis song is a complete fantasy. None of this ever happened to me. I’m putting it down to influences such as Betty Blue, Jamón Jamón, watching too many road movies, listening to Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run, and all my own crazy near misses! Everyone should be a little less sensible sometimes I reckon. Image: Jordan Steranka, unsplash.com
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WAY OUT WEST
WAY OUT WESTThis song began with a riff on 26 November 2017. I can picture exactly where I was as it was the day after my birthday and Philippa and I were in North Cornwall – our first time away together. The weather was cold but beautiful, the extraordinary sharp light that lures so many artists to the area, stunning. We were sensible enough to be well insulated, experiencing biblical winds and even sleet at times. My favourite walk is over the cliffs between Port Quin and Port Isaac. If you’ve ever done it you’ll know just how tough it is. On a windy day it’s exhilarating! But we managed it there, and back, with cider and chips the reward midway. Philippa’s 13-year-old dog Teddy made it too. (He passed on the cider though.) It was a perfect holiday and this unashamed love song tells the story.
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LOVE ME RIGHT (SONG FOR GAIA)
LOVE ME RIGHT (SONG FOR GAIA)I wrote this song in October 2016. I’d enjoyed being in a band in my late twenties and had been thinking about writing and performing songs again for fun. So I bought a beautiful new Fender Paramount acoustic to encourage myself. (Not that I can really do it justice mind!) This was the first song that popped out. I was thinking about how tough recent romances had left me feeling and drew on Beatles inspired references of peace and love. But a second, hidden message emerged: a lament from our planet, how we don’t love it enough, and our ambivalence towards what’s going on. When a friend died in early 2017, the ‘wake’ was a musical celebration held in a church in the next village. I was asked to perform some songs so I played this one – its first public airing. Although nervous (I hadn’t played live for over 20 years) I really enjoyed performing again. Gotta do more of this, I thought. A week later I broke four fingers on my left hand. Thanks to P for backing oohs and aahs!
