Post by maddogfagin on Jan 1, 2010 10:10:21 GMT
This interview with Maartin Allcock was at the Half Moon, Putney, 15 August 1989 for Greenwich Community Radio Meridian (GCRM) in Woolwich. This was at one of Fairport Convention’s warm-up gigs for Cropredy that year. The interview was never broadcast due to some excessive background noise towards the end of the tape.
Maddog: So who were your earliest influences?
Maartin Allcock: Err drink! (laughs all round). Beatles, Lindisfarne, Fairport, Deep Purple, Zeppelin, Beethoven.
MD: When I spoke to Dave [Pegg] he said that you used to correspond with him, when you were at school, and send tapes and so really you learnt from Fairport.
MA: Yeah, I learnt how to play off the records.
MD: When you joined you had some quite illustrious forebears to follow. Did you find it easy?
MA: Well the difference was they could do it well and I played the mandolin and the bouzouki which they didn’t so it was actually quite different. It wasn’t like stepping into a guitar hero’s shoes.
MD: You bought keyboards to Fairport which you had to learn for Jethro Tull. Had you not played any keyboards before?
MA: No. I knew where the basic cords like C and G were then when Tull played at Cropredy the other year I had a lot of stuff to learn so I just worked hard and I got some nice sounds to use on the records and had to take them out on the road then. Also I can play them from the guitar thanks to the wonderful technology.
MD: That’s that little box there.
MA: Yeah.
MD: I notice you’ve got a double necked guitar/bouzouki. Can you tell me a little about that?
MA: It’s very new. It’s made by Rob Armstrong who made Simon’s little guitar and made my fretless bass. It’s an electric/acoustic bouzouki on the top and then guitar and midi guitar on the bottom. The balance and the weight are really nice.
MD: The one I played many years ago wasn’t . . . right.
MA: Yeah, neck heavy.
MD: It looks comfortable to play.
MA: The wood for the necks has been matured since the twenties so it’s not going to move anywhere and it’s quite light mahogany and the balance is right and the weight is right.
MD: What do you think of “Rock Island”?
MA: I think it’s great I really do. I’m still learning it at the moment.
MD: You didn’t play on all of the tracks but how did find recording the ones you were on?
MA: What we did was last November we went into Peggy’s studio and Ian told us what to play. That was all the backing tracks and that was honed and I was then away in America with Fairport for six weeks when the keyboard were being done and that’s how come I’m only on two tracks otherwise I could have done more.
MD: You’re obviously enjoying playing with Fairport and Jethro Tull - they go so well together.
MA: It’s great as has been shown in America when both bands have been on the stage at the same time and last year when Simon and Rick supported Tull and then Doane, Peggy and myself came out and made the five piece.
MD: And I’ve got a tape where Simon is playing bass for Tull so everyone’s involved.
MA: Everyone was on stage, nine musicians.
MD: What did you think of last night’s performance? [at the Half Moon] It sounded good.
MA: It was a good sound man (laughs). It was very hot and there were a lot of volume things we weren’t used to - different line-up we weren’t used to and it was the first time out for some of those.
MD: Now at one time you were in “Bully Wee”, a group I’ve got fond memories of. Can you tell me a bit about them because they were always a group that promised a lot but that never seemed to materialise.
MA: It was management that basically went wrong and it kind of put a finish to the band. The fiddle player was getting married and he wanted to settle down and get a proper job so then there was three of us left so we decided to knock it on the head and then Fergus [Feely] and myself went out as a duo.
MD: You also go out as a duo with Kieren Halpin. I heard you on the radio and it sounds as though you enjoy playing fretless bass.
MA: Oh it’s my first instrument. The thing with Kieren is that there’s no lead guitar player so you get complete free range to do what ever you want. Hopefully we don’t get in the way of the music and songs.
MD: He really writes fine songs.
MA: He had a really bad contract with a record company and it closed him down for four years but he’s just putting the finishing touches to an album in Dublin at the moment.
MD: Are you on it?
MA: Yeah, half a dozen tracks.
MA: I asked Dave Pegg what he thought the future of Fairport was and he said that as long as everybody was happy they’d carry on and I assume you feel the same way.
MA: Yeah, as long as it works and it seems to be getting better and better all the time so there’s no reason to knock it on the head.
MD: And you’re looking forward to Cropredy.
MA: Oh yeah, definitely.
MD: Thanks Martin for the interview.
Maddog: So who were your earliest influences?
Maartin Allcock: Err drink! (laughs all round). Beatles, Lindisfarne, Fairport, Deep Purple, Zeppelin, Beethoven.
MD: When I spoke to Dave [Pegg] he said that you used to correspond with him, when you were at school, and send tapes and so really you learnt from Fairport.
MA: Yeah, I learnt how to play off the records.
MD: When you joined you had some quite illustrious forebears to follow. Did you find it easy?
MA: Well the difference was they could do it well and I played the mandolin and the bouzouki which they didn’t so it was actually quite different. It wasn’t like stepping into a guitar hero’s shoes.
MD: You bought keyboards to Fairport which you had to learn for Jethro Tull. Had you not played any keyboards before?
MA: No. I knew where the basic cords like C and G were then when Tull played at Cropredy the other year I had a lot of stuff to learn so I just worked hard and I got some nice sounds to use on the records and had to take them out on the road then. Also I can play them from the guitar thanks to the wonderful technology.
MD: That’s that little box there.
MA: Yeah.
MD: I notice you’ve got a double necked guitar/bouzouki. Can you tell me a little about that?
MA: It’s very new. It’s made by Rob Armstrong who made Simon’s little guitar and made my fretless bass. It’s an electric/acoustic bouzouki on the top and then guitar and midi guitar on the bottom. The balance and the weight are really nice.
MD: The one I played many years ago wasn’t . . . right.
MA: Yeah, neck heavy.
MD: It looks comfortable to play.
MA: The wood for the necks has been matured since the twenties so it’s not going to move anywhere and it’s quite light mahogany and the balance is right and the weight is right.
MD: What do you think of “Rock Island”?
MA: I think it’s great I really do. I’m still learning it at the moment.
MD: You didn’t play on all of the tracks but how did find recording the ones you were on?
MA: What we did was last November we went into Peggy’s studio and Ian told us what to play. That was all the backing tracks and that was honed and I was then away in America with Fairport for six weeks when the keyboard were being done and that’s how come I’m only on two tracks otherwise I could have done more.
MD: You’re obviously enjoying playing with Fairport and Jethro Tull - they go so well together.
MA: It’s great as has been shown in America when both bands have been on the stage at the same time and last year when Simon and Rick supported Tull and then Doane, Peggy and myself came out and made the five piece.
MD: And I’ve got a tape where Simon is playing bass for Tull so everyone’s involved.
MA: Everyone was on stage, nine musicians.
MD: What did you think of last night’s performance? [at the Half Moon] It sounded good.
MA: It was a good sound man (laughs). It was very hot and there were a lot of volume things we weren’t used to - different line-up we weren’t used to and it was the first time out for some of those.
MD: Now at one time you were in “Bully Wee”, a group I’ve got fond memories of. Can you tell me a bit about them because they were always a group that promised a lot but that never seemed to materialise.
MA: It was management that basically went wrong and it kind of put a finish to the band. The fiddle player was getting married and he wanted to settle down and get a proper job so then there was three of us left so we decided to knock it on the head and then Fergus [Feely] and myself went out as a duo.
MD: You also go out as a duo with Kieren Halpin. I heard you on the radio and it sounds as though you enjoy playing fretless bass.
MA: Oh it’s my first instrument. The thing with Kieren is that there’s no lead guitar player so you get complete free range to do what ever you want. Hopefully we don’t get in the way of the music and songs.
MD: He really writes fine songs.
MA: He had a really bad contract with a record company and it closed him down for four years but he’s just putting the finishing touches to an album in Dublin at the moment.
MD: Are you on it?
MA: Yeah, half a dozen tracks.
MA: I asked Dave Pegg what he thought the future of Fairport was and he said that as long as everybody was happy they’d carry on and I assume you feel the same way.
MA: Yeah, as long as it works and it seems to be getting better and better all the time so there’s no reason to knock it on the head.
MD: And you’re looking forward to Cropredy.
MA: Oh yeah, definitely.
MD: Thanks Martin for the interview.