Interview with DKJ
What made you start to work on a solo project?
After the release of the Moonshot album at the start of 2020, I wanted to record something different. I set about trawling through all my home demos of songs written over the last 30 years and compiled a list of about 20 that I might work on.
How did you get back to working with Brian and Peter?
I had just made a start when lockdown began and so I had to find on-line collaborators rather than musicians I could visit and work with. I had worked with Brian on the first Plenty album, “It Could Be Home” which was released in 2018, so we were in touch on a regular basis. Brian had just finished working on Tim’s album “Late Night Laments” and had some free time. He liked the idea of taking my song demos and completely re-arranging them, giving them a new life as it were. Meanwhile, one of the last live shows I had played with Mama (Genesis Tribute Band) was on the Wirral and Peter Goddard was in the audience. I asked him if he fancied helping me with the songs I was working on and he said yes. I decided that I was not going to sing on these new versions, they needed a new voice, someone who would interpret them in their own style. So for the first time since the early 1980s, Brian, Peter and myself started to work together again.
Explain how the process worked that led to these ten songs.
I would email Brian a demo and he would have a listen and then say yes or no. I probably sent him more than 20 songs before we got down to the final 12 we worked on. Brian would set about arranging the songs, Peter and I would chip in with suggestions and I would start work on the bass. Finally Peter would sing several takes and Brian would compile these tracks together to form the song. In the end we rejected one of the songs, that will be used on another project, and the 11th song is now a bonus track if you buy the album from Burning Shed.
There are five guest musicians on the album, who are they?
Tim Bowness sings on “World Keeps Turning”, I have known Tim since the 1980s and although the original Plenty split in 1990 we have kept in touch. We Tim, Brian and myself reformed Plenty in 2017 and when we met up for the first time in years it was just like we had not seen each other for a couple of months. Tim is a great singer and I love his work with no-man. Tim invited Mama to work on an album of his songs as his fictional band Moonshot. We recorded the songs as if they had been created at various times over the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, exactly the same as when we play songs by Genesis from those periods. The album “World’s of Yesterday” was well received and continues to get play on internet Prog stations worldwide.
Darren Dean plays guitar on “Spin”. Darren used to be the guitarist in Mama and was the guitarist on the Moonshot album. He is a fabulous player who is inspired by Mark Knopfler, Dave Gilmore and Buddy Guy.
Henry Rogers plays drums on “Don’t Go”. I have known Henry for sometime and for a brief period we were in a band together. Now Henry is an award winning drummer who has played on countless albums. He is the drummer with Mostly Autumn but also plays with Touchstone and Mark Kelly’s Marathon. His playing on “Don’t Go” is simply sublime.
Jenny Whittaker sings on three tracks, “Don’t Go”, “As Good As It Gets” and “Spin”. Jenny is a singer songwriter from Wales who has a super voice with a great range. She is a great collaborators who can listen to a song and then add harmonies that take it to another level.
John Wilkinson sings on “Last Cigarette”. John is the lead singer with Mama, Moonshot and The Swan Chorus. His work on the Moonshot album has brought him to the attention of the Prog fraternity and since the album release he has worked on a variety of projects including the new Samurai of Prog album. He has a fantastic voice and was perfect for “Last Cigarette” as that song is about Jeff Buckley.
How did you decide which bass to play?
The song itself tends to be the determining factor. For example the atmospheric “World Keeps Turning” just had to be bass pedals, whereas “Crazy Rain” sounded like a Jazz Club to me so I picked up the double bass. Henry’s drums on “Don’t Go” created a great groove which seemed to work best with the five string. I also used a Fender Jazz Fretless on several tracks.
Who worked on the album cover?
I admit I was struggling to find someone to help me with the cover when Chris Topham from Plane Groovy Records came to my rescue. Chris and I worked together on the Moonshot album, which was released on Plane Groovy, and he pointed me in the direction of Stefan Hepe. Stefan is the drummer with Gandalf’s Fist and is also responsible for their spectacular album covers. He has produced the album cover for me which includes some images created by photographer David Broome, who is also the Road Manager for Mama.
When does the album come out?
The aim is to release the album in early 2022. We will have three video releases to promote the album. During lockdown I started to work on videos for music. I created the videos for Brian’s solo album “Cotton Mills and Shoes” and for the new Plenty album, “Enough”. I am looking forward to coming up with new ideas for 3 tracks from the album.
How would you sum up this album?
Musically I would say the songs are prog-pop music. Lyrically these songs are about reflection, relationships and romance. I hope that any listeners will find something they can relate to and enjoy.