Michael Stover
interviews Jeff on the ORDINARY PEOPLE single and his plans
for the future. The article appeared in Apricot Magazine.
MS: Your career
in music spans decades, starting with the phenomenal success
of Yellow River. How has your
approach to songwriting evolved over the years?
Jeff: I think
in general I’m more relaxed nowadays than I was in
the early days when I was literally on fire. In those days
if I sat down to write I wouldn’t leave the room till
I finished the song. I was very prolific and very driven.
I also had the responsibility of being the only one in the
group either capable or sufficiently motivated to come up
with a song in order to get a record contract for my group
The Outer Limits, and in ’67 I was able to come up
with the goods. We got signed to Decca’s ‘progressive’
Deram label and were stable mates with Procol Harum, who
had just released A Whiter Shade Of
Pale.
My song Just
One More Chance was released and bubbled under the
top 50 in the UK and reached #1 in Berlin. This was a couple
of years before I wrote Yellow River
so you can see the trajectory. These days when I write,
I don’t force the issue and don’t worry if I don’t
finish something in one sitting, I come back at some point
with fresh ears and mind and complete the song.
My very first attempts at songwriting
were as you would expect quite amateurish, very moon and
June type of thing but like everything in life practice
makes perfect, that and listening and learning from the
greats allowed me to improve.
MS: Your latest
album, Here & Now, marks
a new chapter in your music. What inspired the themes and
direction of this project?
JC: "New
chapter" is apt as I feel in some ways that’s
correct. Apart from reworking a few older songs, the main
body of the album songs were much newer additions and in
many ways a departure from the working practice of the past
in the way I would develop the songs. Over the last decade
I worked mostly alone and would build up the tracks myself
only using one or two extra musicians to cover what I couldn’t
do myself. Then when I felt I had the basis of an album
and not long before the pandemic between 2019-2023, working
alone with engineers in one or two studious, I completed
the album. During the pandemic whenever I needed to bring
in any extra musicians it was done remotely using the internet.
MS: The single
Ordinary People has resonated
deeply with fans. Can you tell us the story behind the song
and what message you hope listeners take away from it?
JC: I started
by simply naming these ‘ordinary people’ e.g.
citizens of town and country, husbands and wives etc. In
just a few sentences I wanted simplistically to convey life’s
journey for the many people who don’t live exotic or
exciting lives and their struggles to get by in a tough
and often unforgiving world.
As the melodic notation and lyrical
journey meandered into more complex themes, I let my imagination
run to include positive scenic sequences to go with the
unpredictable turn of melody to symbolise the desire to
experience life-enhancing scenarios, like Rocky Mountain
vistas and blue horizons to counter the humdrum of everyday
life. There’s something dreamlike how the lyric interacts
with the melody at these points that I feel hopefully lifts
the listener up as it did me as the song developed. I think/hope
the song conveys hope albeit entwined with a dose of realism.
MS:
Reflecting on your journey, what do you consider the most
pivotal moment in your career, and how did it shape the
artist you are today?
JC: There’s
been a few pivotal points, but I think getting my first
recording contract with my self-penned record release in
’67 must top the list because in a way it said I’d
arrived. From that point on it fostered the belief and determination
to grow as an artist and songwriter.
Touring with Jimi Hendrix in ’67
was also pivotal and inspiring as I learned a lot more stagecraft
watching Jimi and also Keith Emerson of The Nice on the
same tour. It also gave me the confidence to play my own
songs to bigger audiences in theatres and City Halls all
over the UK. Up until then the gigs were mainly smaller
clubs and dance halls.
MS: Collaboration
has been a significant part of your career. Did you work
with any notable musicians or producers on Here
& Now? If so, what was that experience like?
JC: Well actually
it depends on what you mean by collaboration. I’ve
always written songs alone, words and music. Historically
I usually worked with the musicians in whatever band I had
plus the odd session musicians and producers, but for a
long time now I’ve worked alone mostly, apart from
using studio engineers to help finalise my recording arrangements.
In the last couple of years I’ve
collaborated with a talented young Italian artist called
Lorenzo Gabanizza, who originally asked me to guest on one
of his songs, which then led to a fruitful second tier of
output for us both on continued collaborations.
The recording process of Here
& Now was over the period 2019-2023 with me working
with a limited number of key musicians filling in the parts
that I couldn’t do. After demo’ing the songs I
would lay down acoustic guitars and sometimes lead guitar
work, keyboards and all vocals before adding extra texture
with other musicians like drums, bass, violin, sax and occasional
keyboardist and a different guitarist. A totally painstaking
but wonderful journey seeing these songs come to life. After
every take everything was scrutinised carefully to get it
all as sonically good as possible resulting in the feeling
that I delivered a worthy album of songs that I am really
proud of.
MS: You’ve
performed for audiences around the world. How do you feel
about the connection between your music and your fans, and
has that dynamic changed over time?
JC: I think
they’ve grown older like I have and hopefully whilst
enjoying my older songs are still able to enjoy what I’m
doing today. I have had some really good feedback on the
new album from some diehard fans so that’s encouraging,
although there are bound to be those from a certain demographic
who unfortunately will miss out as they will want to listen
through physical means only, not digital, which dominates
recorded output these days by most Indie artists. Touring
these days is a tough prospect due to many factors so my
newer music is only available to download or stream on digital
platforms.
MS: Looking
ahead, what’s next for you? Are there any upcoming
projects, tours, or collaborations that fans should keep
an eye out for?
JC: I am writing
all the time and plan to go into the studio in 2025 with
new songs and re-working some older ones, plus more collaborations
with Lorenzo, so there is plenty more music lining up to
keep me busy and out of trouble.
