Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your latest album, and what themes or stories you aimed to convey through your music?

This is my first album and I am trying to convey real stories based on my experience, not as an entertainer or artist, but as someone who has had to work for a living – 30 years in social welfare gives you a broad spectrum canvas. I always try for an original feel with the music by throwing in a different chord here and there but I do hope that my lyrics are relatable to a variety of moods and not just happy happy stuff.

Music often has the power to transport people to different places and times. Can you describe a moment in your life when a particular song or album had a profound impact on you?

Growing up in the 70s there were so many inspirational songs that to pick one would be irresponsible. But one song ‘Without You’ by Harry Nilsonn managed to impress a young lady when I gave her the single, that she became my girlfriend – no we didn’t get married.

Many artists have rituals or routines they follow before performing or recording. Do you have any unique or quirky pre-show or pre-recording rituals that you find help you get in the zone?

I don’t perform on stage but do a lot of recording. When starting a new project I always get a nervous energy buzz that can sometime be a bit overwhelming, so I need to meditate a bit and remember who I am in the scheme of things.

Your lyrics often tell a story or convey a message. Can you share the story behind one of your songs and the inspiration that led to its creation?

Fallen Angel is a song from my album about a young lady’s journey from the pits of heroin addiction to the highs of successfully coping with life. Whilst it’s ostensibly about a young lady, many of the elements are true for all of us who have had to overcome demons in order to progress in life – it’s not always easy and often you can’t do it alone.

If you could curate a music festival with a lineup of your dream artists, who would be the headliners, and what would the theme of the festival be?
At a younger time of my life I would have hired John Lennon, and all the other greats from that time, but these days I prefer the comforts of home.

Music can be a powerful tool for advocacy and change. Are there any social or political causes that you’re passionate about, and how does your music play a role in promoting these issues?

I think these days you’ve got to be pretty careful with promoting causes – the world is changing rapidly and in many cases too rapidly for most of us. I don’t think artist should be overly political as you risk pissing off a large chunk of your potential support base.

The music industry has evolved significantly with technology. How do you see artificial intelligence and emerging technologies impacting the creation and distribution of music in the future?

The thought of AI music fills me with dread. Already so much of what we hear on the radio is just massaged pulp and very little new or exciting makes it through to the masses.

Many recording artists evolve over time. How do you see your musical journey changing and growing in the next decade?

I’m currently finalising my third album and haven’t noticed any change in my eclectic style with mainly guitar based songs being from the past, present and the future featuring on each album. Getting a different sound and not getting into a same same rut is a bit of challenge and I have found I am using more keyboards as I progress – and not being great at Keys makes this an interesting challenge. I have toyed with the idea of using other musicians but at this stage that is all a bit too hard. I will leave that until the time when the big studios want to start producing my albums – then they can make it as polished as they want – without stuffing up my songs (of course!)