After a welcome break of three months I’m gradually drifting back into work. Writing the occasional song and checking out what Mads and Jon are vibing on at the Swamp.

One recent visitor has been unsigned artist James Bay. A Singer-Songwriter with an impressive soulful voice and some decent guitar chops too. Jon and I have written one song with him called “Beating Up A Broken Heart” and James and I are cooking up another one, an energetic shuffle with a title TBA.

I’ve also written a cracking tune on my lonesome called “Cheating” with elements of Billy Joel and Frankie Valli mixed with CeeLo Green. Yes, it is that good.

At a lunch with a fellow SOD he advised me that his co-writer used to take it very easy. “Don’t sweat it,” he’d tell his more anxious partner. And the hits just kept on coming. I’m trying a leaf out of that book this year after 20 years of driving myself crazy.

I’m taking some time out from the studio after a busy year in 2011.

Meanwhile Pixie Lott is back in the UK charts with our song “Kiss The Stars” with lots of help from Capital FM.

Matt Cardle’s album selling well despite mine and Jon Green’s song “Stars & Lovers” : )

Clinging to the hope that “Stars & Lovers” will be Matt’s next single.

Pixie’s “Kiss The Stars” http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kiss-The-Stars/dp/B0061TP0K4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330274059&sr=8-1

Matt    “Stars & Lovers” http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-music&field-keywords=Matt+cardle+stars+and+lovers&x=0&y=0

Liam and Various Cruelties’ album come out at the end of April.

Two albums in the UK Top 20. And Dionne Bromfield’s “Ouch That Hurt” still being played despite low sales.

Matt Cardle is at #2 with ‘Stars And Lovers’ written by Jon Green, Matt and moi. Could it be the third single? Matt also recorded a song that Mads Hauge and I wrote with Ant West called ‘Closer’ but it was declined. Although I think anyone hearing it would say “That’s a hit record”. Fantastic : ) http://www.mattcardlemusic.com/gb/

However I did enjoy this colourful review…

The Observer rated it 3 out of 5, calling the album ‘widescreen guitar pop based around overwrought choruses that demand gurning as they’re belted

The gorgeous Darren Hayes new album is at #11 and includes a song we wrote together called “Nearly Love”. I saw Darren Hayes perform brilliantly at Shepherd’s Bush Empire to announce his new album release. http://www.darrenhayes.com/

Some more positive news….Liam’s band, Various Cruelties, are appearing on ‘Jools Holland’s Later’ to be broadcast on BBC2  (November 8th and 10th.) At the moment they are planning to perform two songs written by Liam, Jon Green and me. “Chemicals’ and “The Great Unknown”.

Lastly, and most enjoyably, I assisted on a Johnny Hates Jazz session at the studio. My good friend Mike Nocito producing and David Munday playing guitar with Clark taking the seat of power. Some good laughs and two strong new songs. http://www.clarkdatchler.com/

Rock on pop pickers….

saw my inspiration todd rundgren performing  at camden’s jazz cafe. effortlessly brilliant with soulful singing and great humour…. and speaking of the great man his sidekick kasim ‘bat out of hell’ sulton dropped in to the studio to write and sing a couple of new slick tunes. one of those voices that when it’s double-tracked rings like a brass bell – john lennon style. dong! excellent!

other stuff -

jon green and i have an anthemic song called ‘stars & lovers’ on matt cardle’s album. ( the x-factor 2010 winner ).

mads and i have been writing with mercury records’ artist seye adelekan again. multi-instrumentalist, multi- talented and multi-hatted with the sartorial elegance of a sartorially elegant gentleman.

the delicious miss pixie lott has been back at the studio. mads and i have three songs written with pix on the forthcoming album.

‘kiss the stars’ ( soon to be a massive smash!) , ‘perfect’ & ‘black as rain’.

today i saw a personal trainer, a physiotherapist, a waxer, a massesue and a psycho-analyst. after all that therapy i need therapy baby!

did i mention that the terrific singer-songwriter jon green has signed with bill stonebridge and me at dalmatian music?

jon has a load of songs on the new various cruelties album including the current single ‘chemicals’ released on hideout records. http://variouscruelties.com/

( liam and the band will be appearing on the BBC2 music show jools holland’s ‘later’ on november 6th 2011.)

jon has also written some excellent songs with anne previn (“Getaway Car”) and mike busby plus a bunch on the lovely lucie silvas’ new album and a couple on new mercury records act ‘futures’. http://wearefutures.co.uk/

“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”
Worth remembering as you consider whether to write a Middle 8 while you already have different musical sections for verse, b-verse and chorus….and tag…

“Art is never finished, only abandoned”

Should the bass be louder? Answer. Always! Otherwise as long as you can hear the singer, the beat and have a vague sense of what the chords/harmony might be – then it’s done! Move on!

composing, playing, singing….and rewriting classic song lyrics in the style of XXX porn films….it’s david munday via texas and snobstead.

long time collaborator of mine since natalie imbruglia’s album in 1998. he played the legendary slide guitar part on ‘torn’ and wrote ‘intuition’ and ‘one more addiction’ for the record. dave and i have also had our songs covered by bryan adams, mel c and pixie lott. he’s also written songs for tina turner, stevie nicks and belinda carlisle.

(and he’s a polyglot you know.)

polyglot |?päli?glät|
adjective
knowing or using several languages : a polyglot career woman.
• (of a book) having the text translated into several languages : polyglot and bilingual technical dictionaries.
noun
a person who knows and is able to use several languages.

Having worked with Andrew Gold I wanted to pass on a personal memory or two following his passing on Friday  June 3 at the age of just 59.

I was lucky enough to have worked with Andrew. I produced an album for him and my good friend Graham Gouldman in the group ‘Wax’ in 1984.

He was a super-talented player, singer and arranger and slightly (but beautifully) bonkers too. He was one of those rare people who are like a musical tap (fawcett) . You turn it and pure melodic joy comes out.

I wonder if Brian Wilson ever heard ‘Never Let Her Slip Away’ and wondered if he’d written it?

He had a almost childish naivety in exploring the mystery and beauty of music. In the course of making the album we had a couple of ‘run-ins’ along the way but that’s necessary in the producer / artist synergy.

If a Beach Boys style background vocal arrangement was needed he could do it on the spot. Take after take of cascading harmony with barely a moment’s thought before rolling the tape again and another part was weaved in. He sang in the echoing stairwell at RAK studios. He had The Beach Boy, The Beatles and anything musical  in his DNA.  He knew every part of any Beatles song. And I mean every part. The guitars, the harmonies, the bass and so on.He was talented and touched with genius.

In 1988 Graham and Andrew wrote a song called “You Found Out” for “Johnny Hates Jazz” – We were struggling to come up with a single but we passed on the song. I can still hear that hook in my head. Doh!

Every time I think of Andrew I think of Graham who will miss him so badly.

I see GG regularly but the last time I saw Andrew , four years ago at Alexander’s Bar Mitzvah, he seemed the happiest I had known him to be. So I will remember him with his beaming smile.

Mads and I pictured above with Singer/ Songwriter Ant West from the Mercury band ‘Futures’. We wrote a cracking tune called “Closer” and another anthemic Festival classic with Jon Green called “Karma Satellite”.

Also visiting was Island artist Georgia Mason who shared her sweet tones with Dalmatian Music writer David Munday and myself.

We’ve also enjoyed the company of another Mercury signing Singer/Songwriter Seye. Great singer. Great player. Great vibes.

Seye seen (below) playing my classic 1976 Fender ImPrecision.

an animated time at the swamp.

rehearsing and performing a thrilling one hour set with bryan adams at a private party joined by mads on guitar, jamie morrison on drums, me on bass and bryan’s regular piano player , a very safe pair of hands, gary breit.

and welcome mirabella bunny!

i also co-produced a new adams/vallance song for an upcoming hollywood movie. jamie played drums, mads and jon green and i all played guitar and sang bg vocals.

other stuff.

at the swamp we had a recording session with matt cardle singing a song that mads and i wrote with ant west of ‘futures’. good fun. relaxed. hopefully we’ll do more.

also mad and  i are finishing off 10 new songs we’ve written with la pixie. well mads is finishing them off whilst i cheer him on from the sidelines and offer the occasional glockenspiel part. think we’ve written at least one single.

also some productive writing sessions with the beautiful kimberley walsh and also mad’s friend marion (ex M2M).

late news.

liam o’donnell, who was a favourite at the swamp last year, has secured a deal with mercury records  in the UK. his band are called ‘various cruelties’. he’s got a great individual voice both literally and artistically.

here’s a self inflicted ankle injury i picked up in the first five minutes of a recent ‘paddington wrecks’ six-a-side. OUCH!!