Interview With Cloudberry Records
Roque from Cloudberry Records interviewed recently about my old band Christopher and The Tempest.
Or you can read the entire interviews below.
Christopher
From left to right: Wayne Booth, Jon Brown, Ian Finney, Andy Starkey.
Thanks so much to Ian for the interview! I wrote about Christopher not so long ago and just a week ago Ian got in touch with me! He was very kind to let me listen to more of the wonderful songs he recorded with Christopher and even better was up to tell me the story of the band on this interview! Hope you all enjoy this!
++ Hi Ian! Thanks so much for being up for this interview! How are you? Still making music?
Thanks Roque I’m good, thank you. Yes I’m still making music.
++ Let’s go back in time. What are your first music memories? Do you remember what was your first instrument? How did you learn to play it? What sort of music did you listen at home while growing up?
My first musical memory is of me and my family visiting an aunt when I was about three years old and seeing her upright piano. I went nuts. I’m not sure why but I had to get on it and play. They literally had to drag me off it. A few years later I saw The Osmands performing Crazy Horses on TV and I made a pretend synthesizer out of an old shoe box. When I was fourteen a friend of my sister had an ARP Odyssey (a retro synth) and I spent five minutes on it and was blown away. Despite my interest in keyboards the guitar was my first instrument. When I was thirteen my first girlfriend dumped me while I was sick with a cold so I wrote a song about it and taught myself to play on an old acoustic guitar.
When I was growing up, radio was my main thing and I loved music. It was music typical of that era which was pop, soul, rock, punk, disco, new wave and easy listening. I got turned onto other stuff through my brother’s record collection, like prog and classic rock. When I was teaching myself guitar I’d play along to Rush, Blue Oyster Cult, Santana and Sex Pistols albums.
Age 15
++ Had you been in other bands before Christopher? If so, how did they sound like? Are there any recordings?
I formed my first band with Lee (Latch) Parker and Simon Deakin when I was fourteen and we were a punk band. I was also in a great band with Jim Free and Barry Cox when I was briefly at college. It was a freeform rock band and we made a few practise tapes. I got expelled from college then got an audition and ended up with a record contract. I was in The Tempest. We were signed to Magnet Records which is now part of Warners but at the time it was the biggest independent label in the UK. I was seventeen years old when I signed the contract and my parents had to co-sign it too because I was legally a minor. The Tempest were an 80’s acoustic pop band, I guess similar to Aztec Camera. I found out we have a kind of cult status in Japan and Spain. Japanese fans go nuts over memorabilia and the vinyl is quite collectible. The unreleased album sells for over a thousand dollars. We made four singles and an album and were produced by Gus Dudgeon who had produced David Bowie’s Space Oddity and all of Elton John’s 70’s classic stuff. Glenn Tilbrook from the band Squeeze produced our album and first three singles and Steve Levine produced our last single. I’m lucky to have worked with some really great producers and musicians and I learned a lot from them, especially in sound production and studio recording.
After I left The Tempest I formed a band called The Snakeskins with some new friends I made at my old college. I didn’t tell anyone I’d previously been signed. We sounded mostly like indie guitar pop but the sound eventually changed into something more like REO Speedwagon and I left. The Snakeskins were together on-and-off for about six years and we made quite a lot of demos but never released anything. We nearly got signed by Island Records and I think we lost out because we didn’t have any management. The MD of Island Records asked us all why should he sign us and we just sat there saying nothing. I left The Snakeskins around December 1989.
Snakeskins gig 1987
++ What about the rest of the band members?
Jon was in a band with the drummer Andy McClure who went on to form the indie band Sleeper with Louise Wener. I’m not sure about the other guys.
++ Where were you from originally?
I was born in an area of Liverpool called Prescot but I was brought up in the town of Widnes in Halton. I’ve lived here all my life.
++ How was the Halton at the time of Christopher? Were there any bands that you liked? Were there any good record stores? Or what about the pubs or venues to go check out up and coming bands?
Halton was thriving musically at that time and we had great nightlife. Everyone was listening to REM, The La’s, The Stone Roses and ‘Madchester’ was going full throttle. The Stone Roses Spike Island gig was a couple of miles away from where I lived. I didn’t go but I heard it. There were at least three indie clubs in Halton – The Cherry Tree in Runcorn and Storeys and Players in Widnes. With the pubs also doing indie music nights you could party from Wednesday to Saturday – four full nights, and we often did. It was crazy. I had some of the best times of my life then.
My favourite band at that time was Jennifer Fever, Jane Weaver’s first band. I’d hang out with Jane in a small cafe and shop called The North. It was kind of idyllic. A couple called Adrian and Nikki ran it and they sold records, tie-die clothing, food and hippy paraphernalia. I spent entire afternoons in there with a coffee talking about music and comic books. At first I had no idea that Jane played or wrote music until there was a gig by her band in the cafe. They were great. I thought she had something good going and asked if I could produce them.
++ When and how did the band start? How did you all meet? How was the recruiting process?
I called the local newspaper asking to put out an ad and instead they ran a story on me. I was kind of locally famous a few years before for signing a big recording deal when I was in The Tempest and I guess they remembered me.
A few people contacted me. Jon was already an old school friend and I asked him personally. We found Wayne and Andy through the newspaper. Mark Kinsella was also a member but he left before we started playing live in ’91. Around October 1990 we began the first rehearsals. By December we were ready to gig.
++ Were there any lineup changes?
Later on we recruited Martin Burns from Jennifer Fever but I guess the biggest lineup change was when I left ! The band hung together for a while but eventually split.
++ How was the creative process for you? Where did you usually practice?
With Christopher the songwriting process was pretty much how I’ve written all my life, except that I’m not as lazy or scatter-brained these days. I’d get an idea, some kind of inspiration, and I’d run with it musically. Everything was written in my imagination or on guitar. I’d record ideas on a small tape recorder or a portastudio – a multitrack tape recorder. We practised in a local rehearsal place called Pentagon Studios, run by Ade Sleigh and his father, Stan and it was a great place. One day I walked into the studio and Alan Crookes from the hit band Poacher was sat there with Ian McNabb from The Icicle Works listening to my Christopher demos. Alan showed interest and invited me to record but after he copied my drum patterns from a drum machine he avoided my calls. I never heard from him again. A few years later one of those Christopher riffs from the demo also appeared on an Ian McNabb song. It’s always great to inspire people.
++ What’s the story behind the band’s name?
It was a solo thing for me at first and I didn’t want to use my own name so I settled on using my middle name Christopher instead. Then when I recruited the other guys I just stuck with it. Trying to find a good name for a band that hasn’t already been taken is the hardest thing.
++ And who would you say were influences in the sound of the band?
From my point of view as the songwriter it was everyone who I’d been listening to at that time like REM, The Byrds and The Beatles. I’ve never really been that conventional a songwriter to be honest. I don’t listen to a lot of music, don’t play any covers and I discover new artists very slowly. Popular music at that time also had an effect on my writing, especially the production style. I was also listening to The Bangles album ‘Different Light’ throughout the summer and that guitar sound got into my head. They took the 60’s influence from The Byrds and Beatles and mixed it with west coast sunshine pop vocal harmonies and I loved it. Coincidently a few years later I was briefly in the Coal Porters with Sid Griffin, who had been in a relationship with The Bangles’ Micky Steele and had also shared a house with their drummer Debbie Petersen.
++ As far as I know there were no releases by Christopher, is that right? Why was that?
Well apart from the track on the Idea album, we never got that far. I had a knack back then for giving up easily. I wasn’t ego-driven and I’d get downhearted quickly. We had my brother-in-law managing us and he really helped us out a lot and I’m still grateful for that, but we didn’t have the right breaks when I was in the band. We sent demos out to lots of major companies but heard nothing back. I think we sent around thirty or forty tapes out to every major and big independent label in the UK. I left the band even though I was writing prolifically at the time. Months later I heard from Wayne that the major label Polydor had contacted the band after I’d left and were interested in us but our manager told them I’d left and the band was finished. If he’d called me at the time I would have been straight back in a flash.
++ Was there interest by labels at any point to put your stuff out? Did you consider self-releasing?
As I mentioned, Polydor was interested but it wasn’t followed-up. Self-releasing in those days meant considerable costs,for recording, artwork and pressing. It was an expensive business, not like today where anyone can release something digitally and get it distributed globally for almost nothing.
++ So the song “Touch” appeared on the “What’s the Idea” compilation. How did you end up working with Idea Records?
I got a call from my manager Greg and he said they were putting something together with local artists but we had to move quick as there was a deadline. I went in the studio, recorded the song on my own and then produced Jennifer Fever. The tapes went out and we did some gigs. That was it. My manager handled the business side and we liaised with Dave Wycherley, who was Halton Council’s Arts liaison at the time. I’d later heard that they wanted “the two best artists in Widnes” and they picked me and Jennifer Fever. I remember that this pissed off some people.
++ Idea Records, from what I understand, was put together by the St. Helens Community Arts Team. Who were they? What else did they do for the arts in the area? Were you part of it?
I’m sorry to say I didn’t know much about it, but it was a great idea and hats off to them for making it happen. I wasn’t interesting in those kind of details at the time. I was just a kid intent on writing and performing. Business never interested me.
++ So it was a tight scene and you even collaborated with other bands, like producing Jennifer Fever. Was there a lot of collaboration between all of you? What other bands were in town that didn’t appear in the compilation that you were friends with?
At that time, I don’t recall other bands apart from Jennifer Fever and The Snakeskins, who I’d previously been with. The main scene I was involved in socially was around 1987-89, when I was with The Snakeskins. There wasn’t that much collaboration but I’ve always been interested in helping out other artists and still do.
++ Back to “Touch”. When and where was it recorded? Were other songs recorded in this session?
It was recorded in Pentagon Studios Widnes around late Spring or Early summer 1990. The band wasn’t ready and the song was under a deadline so I recorded the song by myself and played everything on it in one afternoon. Adrian Sleigh engineered it and I produced.
++ Were there demo tapes by Christopher?
We made two tapes of three songs each. The first was early in ’91 and the second was made later in ’91 after I sold some recording equipment to fund it, which in hindsight was a mistake. We recorded both demos at Bus Stop Studios in Leigh where in fact I met my then-girlfriend, who was a trainee sound engineer. The studio was run by a guy called Herman, who was kind of famous for having thrown up over Queen’s hairdresser backstage at some event.
++ And are there more unreleased songs by the band?
Not the band as such, but there are demos that I’d recorded myself which were intended for the band. I still have boxes full of demo tapes.
++ I think my favourite song, the only one I’ve heard so far!, is “Touch”, wondering if you could tell me what inspired this song? What’s the story behind it?
I was twenty-three years old and my first long-term relationship had ended. I’d started dating another girl but I felt numb. I put what I was feeling into words and I discovered that songwriting could be cathartic and after that I began to start expressing myself with my music more intimately, emotionally. I think it was the first honest song that I wrote.
++ If you were to choose your favorite Christopher song, which one would that be and why?
It has to be Touch. It was very much part of my life at that time and summed up how I was feeling. Writing introspectively like that kind of makes me feel exposed but I like honesty in music.
++ What about gigs? Did you play many?
As Christopher, probably around eight. Pre-Christopher, hundreds.
++ And what were the best gigs you remember? Any anecdotes you can share?
The second gig we ever played, Christmas or new year 1990-91 at Storeys in Widnes was one of the best gigs I’ve ever done. Jane Weaver was there, John Snaykee (of Manbreak and ex-Snakeskins) and Chris Leckie from Adlib Audio was doing the sound. Chris is one of the best live engineers in the world today and he tours with A-List bands. They all loved it. Everything came together just right and it was wonderful gig for everyone.
Anecdotes? Well we played a gig at St. Katherine’s Teacher Training College in Liverpool and it was full of girls in the audience. One of them took off a stocking and threw it onto the stage while we were playing and after the gig there was a serious discussion trying to figure out who it was intended for. It was all scientific stuff – her throwing direction, the intended trajectory, aerodynamics, etc.
++ And were there any bad ones?
We played in St Helens at a pub known for hosting hard rock bands. It looked like it was full of Hell’s Angels and we were an indie band. The atmosphere was menacing and after the gig a barman told us that was a great response because usually the audience threw things at the band.
Another gig was so poorly publicised that only five people turned up. No one knew the gig was on and those that came to see us were only there because they were friends of the band. We just cracked on and did the set.
++ When and why did Christopher stop making music? Were you involved in any other bands afterwards?
It was around summer 1991. I left the band because I’d lost my best friend, a lot of time, money and I’d had enough. The other guys carried on for a month or two and then split up.
I rejoined The Snakeskins for a while. I formed a band called Fiasco
with Dave Pichilingi and played a John Peel session with them. I
rejoined the Snakeskins again, then they split and me and Andy from the
band formed Muddyhead with ex-Fishmonkeyman bassist Terry Lloyd. We were
managed by China Crisis’ Eddie Lundon. I was in The Coal Porters (The
Long Ryders’ Sid Griffin’s band) very briefly, around two weeks I guess.
In the early 2000s I briefly formed a band called Penny Blue, then in
2006 I got an offer from Tommy Marolda to record in Las Vegas and
interest from The Killers management, but due to family commitments and
my health at the time I couldn’t do it.
Since then I’ve been working on various projects, producing music for computer games and writing orchestral pieces for documentaries and The History Channel. When Glenn Tilbrook played in my home town we met before the gig and he asked me if I wanted to perform one of my new songs onstage. I was nervous as hell but I did it and it gave me the confidence to play live again. I’d been having problems with agoraphobia and leaving the house and it was a big help in getting me interested in playing live music again.
2017, Glenn Tilbrook gig, The Studio Widnes. Photo: Warren Millar
After that I formed The Coralaines and recorded a Rock and Roll album because it was something I always wanted to do. I used all the right period equipment and production methods to get an authentic sound and it was great fun. We played a few great gigs thanks to Mike Badger (from the La’s). We performed at the Jacaranda club’s anniversary which was a big deal as it was one of The Beatles’ first venues. Travelling and rehearsing was really tough for me and it took about two years to play two gigs but it was worth it. The band split at the end of last year so I started working on new songs for myself. I’ve done some remote guitar sessions over lockdown and I’m currently working on my solo music. I have lots of plans.
Ian Finney, 2020
++ What about the rest of the band, had they been in other bands afterwards?
Wayne and Andy went separate ways and did their own thing, I think it was mainly cover bands. Jon was writing his own music and Martin moved to the states.
++ Has there been any reunion gigs?
No, I never really considered it. I’d never say never though, to any of my previous bands.
++ Did you get much attention from the radio?
We got interviewed on a BBC Radio show called Hit The North which was hosted by Mark Radcliffe who is a BBC DJ legend. He loved ‘Touch’ and said with the right backing it could be a hit. Coming from him, it was a great compliment.
++ What about TV? Made any promo videos?
Not with Christopher. I made one with The Tempest and I’m making new ones for my upcoming music. Film-making is a growing interest for me.
++ What about the press? Did they give you any attention?
Yes, the local press was great but we never got any national coverage.
++ What about from fanzines?
We weren’t approached, though there were a few around at that time. I honestly think we weren’t around long enough to make an impression.
++ Looking back in retrospective, what would you say was the biggest highlight for the band?
Being on the IDEA album and definitely the second gig at Storeys at Christmas 1990-91.
++ Aside from music, what other hobbies do you have?
Strictly-speaking music isn’t a hobby for me as I work in it professionally, but I do love composing orchestral pieces. I taught myself orchestration about twenty years ago and it’s the purest form of musical expression I know. Apart from music, I have plenty of interests and hobbies. Art, particularly impressionism, art deco and art nouveau. I trained in Art before I was expelled and I’ve always been fascinated by it. I was a huge Salvador Dali fan when I was a kid and tried to paint like him. Alphonse Mucha and Edward Hopper are other favourites. I love film, all film, classic fantasy and horror, certainly the classic Hollywood movies and all French cinema. I adore nature and animals. I like photography and gaming, especially RPGs -both computer games and pen paper and dice RPGs – and I’ve been a comic book geek since I was a kid. I love the work of Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko and Alex Ross. Alan Moore is phenomenal. Kurt Busiek’s Astro City is a recent discovery and I think it knocks the ball out of the park. I’m not a TV person, but I’m nuts about classic 60’s and 70’s TV like The Avengers, Batman, Doctor Who and all of Gerry Anderson’s work. I’m also heavily into French 1960’s pop music. It combines two of my favourite things, 60’s music and France. I tend to slowly discover music that I’ve found on my own. It’s great when that happens. There’s a universe of music out there that I’ve never heard and I think that’s amazing.
I also get lost in the internet and often wander down rabbit-holes of weirdness that sometimes yields good things. I find the internet inspirational, crazy, terrible and fascinating. I’m also fascinated with Paris at the end of the nineteenth century during the Belle Epoch and 1950s America.
I have tons of interests and I never get bored. The only problem is time. There’s never enough of it.
++ Never been to the Halton or the St. Helens area. So I will ask for some recommendations. If I was to visit your city what shouldn’t I miss? What are your favourite sights? And any particular food or drinks that you think one shouldn’t miss?
Generally Halton is a quiet place and it’s not a tourist haven. There are old places around Halton like Norton Priory, and Farnworth Church which was built before 1066 and we have an historically great tradition of Rugby.
I spent my younger years in Crow Wood Park and Sunny Bank, The Bongs (an area of open hilly land nearby) and later Pex Hill. As a kid or teen I’d ramble around with friends, walking or running everywhere. I still love walking in Victoria park. It’s an old Victorian park and it can be a magical place. It also has a great ice cream shop.
I haven’t been into town for food in ages, but Marie Barrows Fish & Chip Shop is legendary. Donatello’s in nearby Warrington makes the best pizzas I’ve ever had in my life and Eureka, the Greek restaurant just out of town is amazing.
++ Anything else you’d like to add?
I played guitar on some remote sessions during lockdown recently for an old friend and Joe Walsh from the Eagles said he loved my guitar style. That was such an amazing thing to hear. You can’t buy compliments like that.
The Tempest
Ian Finney, Steve Dolder, Stuart Dunning, Lyn Smith, Mike Sheerin
Thanks again so much to Ian Finney for the interview! I interviewed Ian about his band Christopher as I had written about them on the blog as one of those obscure band’s I wanted to know more. I couldn’t let pass the opportunity to ask him about The Tempest, the much more known band he was in, and whose singles I really enjoy! The band released 4 singles and their album still remains unreleased to this day. A classic band of the 80s for me and very happy to learn more about them!
++ Hi again Ian! Thanks so much for being up for another interview! Are you still in touch with the rest of The Tempest members?
Hiya Roque. I’m in touch with most of the band. I lost contact with Mike but I’m on social media with Steve, Stuart and Lyn. I’ve worked with Steve since the band split and we’re in regular contact.
++ Last time we talked about Christopher so what would
you say were similarities and differences between Christopher and The
Tempest, if any?
The Tempest was a completely different setup to Christopher. The band was Mike’s show entirely. We all had a lot of space to add our own original parts and arrangements but the songs were Mike’s and it was mainly his gig.
Christopher and The Tempest were both guitar-based bands with similar influences. My guitar playing had evolved a lot since The Tempest and I was trying new things. I was a side man in The Tempest, a lead guitarist. I did have some creative control over what I did and there was some input from me on other things while the album was being recorded, but not as a songwriter. Christopher was my band and I was basically in Mike’s position. It was a mirror image of The Tempest.
++ How did The Tempest start as a band? How was the recruiting process?
Mike had a band called Going Gah Gah with Lyn, another guy on guitar (Pete, I think), Stuart on bass, Lyn on backing vocals and Mark Olly on drums. Mike and Lyn were from Liverpool and Mark and Stuart were Warrington-based. The band had a residency in Warrington at Abbey Green studios and demoed the songs there. Pete left the band and they were looking for another guitarist. I’d heard about the audition from the manager at Dawson’s Music in Widnes and phoned the studio and then successfully auditioned for the band.
++ You were telling me you were underage when you were in it, what about the other band members? Were you all so young?
Yes. I was seventeen, Stuart eighteen, Mike was twenty-one and Lyn was ‘ancient’ at twenty four.
++ Had the other band members been in other bands before The Tempest?
I’m not entirely sure. Stuart was a studio player and Mark Olly had been in other bands, but I’m not clear on the details with the other guys.
++ Was The Tempest also based in Halton? Or where did you usually get together? Where were the other band members from?
The band was based in Warrington but were a Liverpool band. We used to meet at Abbey Green studios or directly at rehearsals in Liverpool or London. When we were recording we were all based in hotels or guest houses in Stockport and London.
++ Were there any lineup changes?
It was like Spinal Tap. We were always changing drummers. Mark, Mick, Jon, Steve.
Mark Olly left the band just before we signed. Mick Burland was auditioned and he played on three studio tracks then Jon Sumpton was with us for a while and finally Steve Dolder (ex-Prefab Sprout) joined. It’s worth mentioning since we are from the same home town, that Damian ‘Diz’ McMullen nearly auditioned for the band but Jon came into the audition and blew Mike away with a ten-minute Jazz solo, who hired him on the spot.
++ How was the creative process for The Tempest? Where did you usually practice?
Mike was the songwriter and we either learned his songs from the demos or during rehearsals. To my knowledge nothing new was written during the time the band was signed. We practised in Warrington at first and after signing we rehearsed in Liverpool then later in London at The Clink, Nomis studios and also Lipstick Studios.
++ What’s the story behind the band’s name?
We changed the name from Going Gah Gah to The Tempest after signing and I think the record company asked us to do that. Mike thought of the name.
++ And who would you say were influences in the sound of the band?
Mike was certainly influenced by The Beatles and his passion for the band got me into them too. I was a jangle-pop guitarist back then and I was into The Byrds.
++ How did you get the attention of Magnet Records? Did their people come to gigs? Did you send demo tapes?
The groundwork for all this was done before I joined so I can’t tell you any more but demos were sent out and there was a wooing period with EMI, Stiff Records and Magnet. I was very fortunate to be in a position where I joined a band just as they were about to sign a recording contract. It wasn’t an easy ride and I certainly earned my place there.
++ And were there other labels interested in releasing your music?
Stiff Records, EMI and Magnet were interested. Magnet promised Mike more creative control so he chose them, but later we found this wasn’t true. I think if we’d signed with Stiff or EMI the outcome of everything would have been very different.
++ Your first release was the “Always the Same” 7″, right? Was wondering if this was the first time, because of your age, going to a proper recording studio? And if so, how was that experience working with Glenn Tilbrook?
We spent time with Gus Dudgeon in CBS Studios recording a version of Bluebelle before we met Glenn, so that was my first time in a recording studio and I loved it. There was a feeling of deja vu and I was completely at ease with recording.
When I was sixteen I saw a poster of Duran Duran standing in a recording studio with a stand full of guitars behind them. Something struck me about it. “This is what I want to do” I thought, and I was absolutely certain I wanted to be a recording artist. Not to be famous, but to be a professional recording guitarist. I practised so hard. This is what got me expelled from college – I was playing music all the time. I would pretend to be recording live takes in front of a tape machine. When I actually got into a studio and started recording, the engineer Pete Hammond said he couldn’t believe I’d not done it before because I was very precise with playing my riffs and licks and deadened the strings in all the right places during parts of the songs.
Glenn asked me to come up with a solo for ‘Always The Same’ on the spot and I mentioned that I’d been jamming a new phrase at home but it was partly chords. They asked me to play it and I recorded two takes then Glenn asked me to add a few bits on and it was done.
We met Glenn on October 31st 1984 at a rehearsal room near the river. We ran through ‘Always The Same’, ‘Bluebelle’, ‘Tonight’ and ‘The Tempest’. It was a bit surreal to meet him because I’d bought every single Squeeze had released up to that point while I was at school just two or three years earlier. I loved collecting those and they were nearly all released on coloured vinyl.
Working in the studio with Glenn was disciplined and methodical but laid-back. I really enjoyed it. We socialised as well and spent time in the pub and at his place. He remains a friend and we meet occasionally when he’s in the area. He’s always been very complimentary about my playing and my work. I think he is one of the most original British songwriters ever. Squeeze are utterly unique. Pete Hammond and Femi Jiya engineered on the album. Pete is a mixing legend. He engineered nearly everything you heard on UK radio in the 80’s and he’s behind nearly all of PWL’s output. If you’ve been Rick-Rolled, Pete is the guy responsible for that. Femi went on to work with Prince at Paisley Park.
Ian Finney, Mike Sheerin, Glenn Tilbrook. Workhouse Studios, 1985
++ Many of your releases were to appear in different formats. Not just 7″s but also 10″s and 12″s for them. What was your favourite format for your music and why?
10”s were interesting because we could get three or four songs on them.
++ Who usually take care of the art for your records? And who appears on the cover of the “Bluebelle” single? And was this the photoshoot that Jill Bryson from Strawberry Switchblade helped with?
Mike thought of the concepts and professional artists developed them. I still have Mike’s original concept sketch for our first single’s cover (Always The Same).
That’s Mike on the cover of Bluebelle. That photoshoot was with Peter Arthur who was the partner of Jill Bryson from Strawberry Switchblade at the time and Jill was at the session. I loved Strawberry Switchblade. I chatted with Jill throughout the day and she learned that I was single and hinted that Rose from the band was looking for a boyfriend. I never chased it up. I can’t remember why. It’s one of those inexplicable mysteries. I think Strawberry Switchblade are remarkable for the cultural influence that they had on Japan that exists to this day. If you look at what they wore back then, you’ll see it. They aren’t copying a certain Japanese Manga style, they invented that look. The band were huge in Japan and that image obviously had a huge influence. I mentioned this to Jill fairly recently and she was very modest about it.
Ian Finney, 1986
++ But I think I read that there actually “Bluebelle” was to be the first single that it was recorded in 1984 with Gus Dudgeon. What had happened?
The official line at the time was that Magnet Records thought Gus “wasn’t the right guy for our sound”. The truth is much different. One of the other band members had been talking about John Lennon and Gus had been a friend of John. Some things were said and I saw that Gus wasn’t impressed. Then towards the end of the week someone played a joke on Gus in the studio that he didn’t find amusing. I heard him as he turned to his engineer and said “I can’t work with this”. I’m taking a reasonable guess that he quit after that. It’s a very great shame he did because I really liked Gus and admired him for what he’d done for music. He produced Space Oddity by David Bowie, The Zombies ‘She’s Not There’, Elton John’s entire classic 70’s catalogue of songs and John Lennon, who he told me he was ‘”in awe” of. ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart’ was one of Gus’ songs and it’s a lifelong favourite of mine. He was a legend. I got him to autograph a copy of Elkie Brooks ‘Pearls’ that he’d produced. He was genuinely touched and flattered that I’d asked him to sign it. It was the only autograph I asked for during that time. He passed away with his wife in 2002 after a motorway accident. I still feel terrible when I think of it.
A month after the session with Gus ended we got a message that we were rehearsing in London near the river for pre-production sessions with Glenn Tilbrook. It was around the time he was going through his split period with Chris Difford and was interested in producing us. We spent a few days jamming the songs and were rehearsing next to The Cure, who we heard through the wall in the next room. We started rehearsing Bluebelle and they stopped their song and suddenly began playing ‘Boy’s Don’t Cry’ maybe because they were the same chords and they thought we were ripping them off.
++ These first two singles were released in 1985, and the next two would appear in 1986. You know there was the “C86” tape that year, and I wonder if you felt akin to what would later be the C86 scene? I can see your sound and style part of it myself, but what do you think?!
Interesting observation. We might have been part of that scene. Magnet and other things messed up a lot of things. Records were not in stores. Singles were getting saturated airplay on major national radio and people were walking into shops to buy our records and they weren’t on sale. Who knows what would have happened if people had done their jobs.
++ Then came the “Didn’t We Have a Nice Time?” single. I have to ask, where was that photo from the front cover taken?
That’s West Wycombe Forest.
++ On this single we see that Bobby Valentino played violin! How was working with him?
I think I briefly saw him. I didn’t really talk that much to anyone back then. I still don’t (laughs). He also played violin on The Bluebell’s Young At Heart. Did you know he’s the brother of Anne Dudley (Art of Noise)?
++ You made a promo video for “Didn’t We Have a Nice Time?” which is really fun! It was filmed at Wimbledon Chase Middle School! I wonder how easy it was to work with children, and was the teacher actually the class teacher? I am sure many of the kids must remember that day!
That school was also featured in the film P’tang, Yang, Kipperbang (classic British movie). It was a two-day shoot with interiors in the school on day one and exteriors on day two in a muddy field. I got food poisoning overnight and they had to hire a portable loo for me for the outdoor filming. Thankfully I didn’t need to use it but it was a tough day. One of the film crew was a bit older than me and she was giving me flirty looks but I felt like death. The kids were all surprisingly well-behaved. Thirty years later one of them got in touch with me through my blog. He was the kid scratching his head in the video. The kids loved it and lined up for autographs after the filming. A kid asked me to sign his plectrum. I was only five years older than them and had left school less than two years earlier. It felt very, very surreal. The Teacher was an actress. I think one of the band had a crush on her.
++ Then you released a cover of the Small Faces’ “Lazy Sunday” on 7″ and 12″. There is even a “Crazy Version” of this song on the 12″. Was this song part of your live repertoire? Or how come you choose to release this cover version? Were there other covers that you usually use to play?
We never played it live when I was in the band and I don’t think they did after I left either. We’d released three original songs and it was entirely our A&R man’s plan (James Todd) to release a cover version. I hated the idea. Absolutely hated it. For me it was the last straw in a long line of disagreements over artistic differences and my role within the band. I told Mike I was leaving after our studio session with Steve Levine. He tried to persuade me to stay but was quite understanding about my decision.
++ And lastly the album. What happened? Why was it never released?
The band were dropped a few months after I left and Magnet Records shelved it.
++ But as you say there are copies out. How many copies do you estimate are or were in circulation?
Who knows. A couple. A few. Maybe more. They obviously manufactured some and I’ve seen at least two copies out there for sale, both at ridiculous prices. The last one I saw online was on sale for over a thousand euros. Maybe these were test pressings – or maybe not – maybe Magnet pressed a run and have them in storage and some got nicked (stolen) or leaked. Either way, a few got out there.
++ Do you think there will ever be a chance for it to be properly released someday? Have there been any attempts to do so?
Not that I know of. Maybe some fans could contact Warners Music and get them to release it digitally. It would be nice.
++ The photography in the album looks like from the same photo session as “Didn’t We Have a Nice Time?”. Am I right? Or not?
Yes. Same photo session and sadly I’m responsible for that look. There was a meeting about what image we should have next and I said it might be interesting to try something a bit Victorian, like ‘Doctor Who’. So that’s my fault entirely. It could have been something very 80’s instead but I persuaded Mike to go with the historical look. In hindsight maybe it wasn’t so bad after all. You’ve seen what some bands look like in the 80’s. I think I was the only artist at showbiz parties with a Beatles haircut and sideburns.
++ And how different was to record an album compared to the singles?
It was the same, it just takes longer. There’s a lot of discipline involved in professional recording sessions. You need to be focused and ready to give your best performance. No messing about. You can also get asked to come up with new ideas on the spot. I love that environment. When I’m required to be musically creative I feel alive.
++ Aside from the releases you appeared on a few compilations. One that surprised me is on a Spanish LP compilation called “Ráyate”. This one has “Didn’t We Have. Nice Time”, twice, on the A and B sides. It looks like they had been DJ mixed, but I can’t say as I haven’t heard them, but have you? Do you know how did you ended up in this 1987 comp?
I’ve heard that Spanish fans love the band but this is new to me. I’ll have to check it out.
++ There are two other Spanish compilation featuring this same song. Do you know if this song was a big hit all over Spain? Or perhaps in some select cities like Valencia, where I happen to hear some UK jangle pop songs became DJ mixed and became big dancefloor hits at the discos?
I know we are popular in Spain, but not details. Again, I’ll have to check this out.
++ Then you are in a South African compilation called “Now That’s What I Call Summer” with “Lazy Sunday”. That’s quite cool. I guess that’s as international you can get and appearing next to ABBA, The Beach Boys, that must have been quite something?
It is and I’ve only just discovered this. It’s an odd release because that was from 1986 when the band was still signed and no one knew about this. It doesn’t surprise me though, that’s what record companies are like.
++ And are there more unreleased songs by the band? Aside from the album of course?
There are lots of demos that were made at Abbey Green and I also made a few demos with Mike after I left, as a favour for him. There is the unfinished Gus Dudgeon version of Bluebelle, which I own the only copy of and several other tracks which didn’t make the album. I think they are ‘The Tempest’, ‘I Cannot Be Sure’ and a few others. I have copies of all of these.
++ I think my favourite song, the only one I’ve heard so far!, is “Bluebelle”, wondering if you could tell me what inspired this song? What’s the story behind it?
To be honest with you, I have no idea – it’s Mike’s song.
++ If you were to choose your favorite The Tempest song, which one would that be and why?
Always The Same, the first single. It was my first solo on vinyl and I think it is the best song The Tempest made. My mum would turn the radio up full when it came on and run to the bottom of the stairs and shout “Ian, your song’s on the radio!”. My parents were so proud of me. My dad couldn’t believe I’d got signed. He made me a wood pedal board for my guitar effects pedals and I still have it. I’ve used it for over 30 years. My parents are no longer here with us and every time I hear the song I think of their excitement and how fresh and exciting it all was for everyone in my life and in the band.
I remember coming back from London after weeks of recording. I was exhausted and homesick. It was 3am and my parents were asleep in bed. My mum knew I was returning home that night and had left a covered plate of sandwiches on the kitchen table for me with a note on it which said “eat if hungry”. I made a cup of cocoa and sat drinking it in the semi-darkness and had a startling moment of clarity. I know it sounds soft but I remember feeling profound love for my parents and gratefulness for everything they had done for me. I thought that I’d remember that moment all my life and I did. Every time I hear the song it reminds me of that moment.
++ What about gigs? Did you play many?
We played dozens of gigs as support: The Bluebells, 10,000 Maniacs, The Cardiacs, The Climax Blues band and The Higsons are a few that come to mind. The Higsons (Charlie Higson’s band from The Fast Show) had such a huge rider (free food, drinks etc. that a band asks for at the venue) that I thought we’d walked into an off-licence (liquor store). We played at all the major venues in the UK. The gigs at the original Marquee are ones that come to mind. We did two full British tours. The first supporting The Untouchables, a U.S. Band that had a chart hit at the time. I think that was three weeks of touring and we supported Squeeze on their Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti En Routti tour which was the 6th to the 15th of October 1985. We finished the tour with two sold-out nights at Hammersmith Odeon and then had a great end-of-tour party with Squeeze at some swanky private club in London. It was filled with artists, actors and BBC Radio 1 DJs. The ‘Comic Strip Presents’ actors were there. I got snapped by Paparazzi in a shot with Glenn and Rik Mayall while I was stood at the bar with Robbie Coltrane. Sarah Greene and Mike Smith were grinning at me – I was dressed like I’d stepped through a 1960’s time warp.
++ And what were the best gigs you remember? Any anecdotes you can share?
So many great gigs. I’m proud of playing at the long-gone Marquee Club on Wardour Street. Who played there is a list of rock history: The Rolling Stones, Bowie, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, Jimi Hendrix…the list goes on and on. Standing on the same stage, using the same dressing room. You could feel the vibe.
At King Tuts in Glasgow I walked into a room and there was a Roman Soldier in full authentic armour with two female Roman ‘Nymphs’ dressed in togas. I apologised and left the room. I have no idea what was going on.
++ And were there any bad ones?
Everyone’s strings went out of tune at one gig and it was hideous. It was insisted that we change strings each day on tour – even bass strings. There had to be one venue where the humidity and temperature caused absolute mayhem with the metal strings. We got in tune again but it caused frayed tempers onstage.
++ When and why did The Tempest stop making music? Were you involved in any other bands afterwards?
The Steve Levine session was the last one we all did together. I sneezed all the way through as I had terrible hay-fever.
I left the band at the end of summer 1986 and they carried on for a few months but got dropped. There were plans to record with William Orbit but it never happened. I’d had offers to remain in London and Indians in Moscow’s manager made me an offer to manage me but I turned them all down. I was secretly suffering from undiagnosed agoraphobia and I just wanted to get back home.
As you know from my previous interview with you, I formed The Snakeskins. It was a break from the discipline and stress of being in a professional band. I felt like I’d missed the middle of the 1980’s, even though I was right at the heart of everything that was happening at the time. As soon as I left I started regaining my lost teen years. I’d been in the band from when I was 17 to 19. I’d been single for three years and on a professional leash. I got a girlfriend, started writing songs and began to enjoy life. It was great. The pressure I had been under in The Tempest was huge.
++ What about the rest of the band, had they been in other bands afterwards?
I don’t think Mike did anything and he put music behind him, as far as I know. Stuart formed his own music company and wrote music for TV. Lyn formed her own band, Carbon 13, and is now solo, Steve joined The Coal Porters and is now one of the highest-paid live drummers in the UK. He also formed a music company with Martin McAloon, Prefab Sprout’s bassist (Steve is a former member of Prefab Sprout).
++ Has there been any reunion gigs?
Noooo.
++ Did you get much attention from the radio?
Tons. We had saturated airplay on BBC Radio One and played Radio One sessions for Andy Peebles, Richard Skinner (I think) and a few other BBC DJ’s who I can’t remember – I was very nonchalant about what we were doing and didn’t take much notice. We certainly weren’t strangers to BBC Maida Vale Studios.
++ What about TV? Made any promo videos?
There was a video for ‘Didn’t We Have A Nice Time and we got airplay on BBC TV on kid’s TV, The Money Programme and Wogan. Possibly others, I didn’t really pay attention to what was going on at the time.
++ What about the press? Did they give you any attention?
Every major music publication got us on board. The NME, Melody Maker, Smash Hits, No 1 Magazine, even the girl’s mag Jackie did a feature on us as well as a bunch of other UK magazines. There were so many.
++ What about from fanzines?
Not that I know of.
++ Looking back in retrospective, what would you say was the biggest highlight for the band?
That’s a tough question. There are so many high points that it’s hard to pick just one. For me, personally, the best thing was getting to work with so many great people.
++ Thanks again Ian! This made my day! Anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you Roque, it’s been a pleasure.
I’m looking forward to releasing my first solo music, so please keep an eye out for that on social media.
Follow Me on Twitter and Facebook
Comments
Post a Comment