Connor Selby Talks Touring, Solo Album And More

PUK blues singer-songwriter and guitarist Connor Selby has really been working hard on the live circuit touring with the likes of Beth Hart, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Robert Cray and many more. Back on the road as Joanne Shaw Taylor’s special guest, we sat down and had a detailed conversation: 

It seems that 2023 was  a very busy year for you. Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories/highlights from the year?

Yes, it was. I’m not sure anything particularly funny happened but I made a lot of great memories last year. Some of the highlights were opening up for some artists I really admire such as Beth Hart and Robert Cray. I think the feeling of awe I felt playing on some of those beautiful venues will be forever etched into my brain. I was lucky enough to meet both Beth and Robert and to talk to them a bit and they couldn’t be more contrasting personalities, but both were extremely supportive and kind to me.

 In February 2024 you will be touring as the special guest for Joanne Shaw Taylor on her UK Tour. How did that opportunity arise and how are you feeling about the dates?

Yes, that’s right. I’m extremely excited and really grateful that Joanne chose me to be her support act. I did some dates with her at the end of 2022 and I really enjoyed them. She was also really kind and supportive. Regarding how it came about – we both have the same booking agent and he pitched me to her and I suppose since she already knew me and had heard me from before that helped my chances along.

 One of the tracks on your album is ‘Hear My Prayer’. What is the story/inspiration behind that track?

‘Hear My Prayer’, like many of my songs is about unrequited love. It is one of my more personal songs, I suppose and was written with a particular person in mind. My approach to writing is often like that of a diary entry, in other words, I just write lyrics as a sort of catharsis and also as a way to put my feelings and desires out into the universe. Helplessness is also a theme in the song and many other of my songs. In this case it’s about that feeling of being helplessly in love knowing that there’s nothing you can do. I suppose the act of song writing gives me a sense of power and control over the situation, even though those feelings are often misguided.

 What kind of music/artists do you like listening to? Any recommendations?

Lots of jazz, really. I really love the old jazz standards and the sentimental quality the music has. It’s a big inspiration for me. Billie Holiday, early Nat King Cole, that sort of stuff. A couple of songs I’ve really been enjoying at the moment are “it only happens once” by the Nat King Cole trio and “I’ll never be free” by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Jordan. It really blows my mind how pure and perfect the vocals and playing are on these tracks and how much feeling is put into the singing. It’s really something that’s lost in today’s music, including mine.

 Do you have any further live plans for 2024 in addition to the Joanne Shaw Taylor tour?

Yes, I’ve already got a lot of stuff booked for this year. My main goal is to play as much as possible and also to play more in Europe. I sort of dipped my toe into that last year but I really want to make some progress with it this year.

 What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?

I guess my main goal is just to make my audience feel something. The kind of artists who I love are the sort of artists who inspire a great emotional response in me. I want to try and recreate that feeling that I feel when I listen to the music I love in others through my music. I also want the audience to buy into me as a person and my way of doing things. Lots of acts just want to put on a show and entertain people which is great and obviously works but that doesn’t interest me of much. Of course, I want people to enjoy it, but I want them to leave having felt like they’ve had some kind of emotional reaction.

Your latest self-titled album is out now. How did you want to approach the making of this album and how did you want to approach it?

For this record, I opted to use a band of session musicians, Stefan Redtenbacher’s Funkestra. I hadn’t really planned to do it this way but the opportunity to record with them presented itself to me and it seemed too good to turn down. The nature of recording with session musicians is that everything needs to be done as quickly and efficiently as possible so when it came to actually recording the song’s we ran through them maybe 2 or three times and then we recorded maybe 3 takes of each song give or take and that was that. I really enjoyed doing things this day as there simply wasn’t time to fuss and overthink things. Stefan has a really unique ability to get inside an artists head and understand the way they think and the way they want the music to sound and between the two of us we were able to get pretty much exactly the sound I wanted for every song, which I found really exciting and inspiring.

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?

My hometown is Billericay in Essex. I’m not sure how I would describe it. Where I grew up is quite rural with lots of fields and countryside, but I wouldn’t describe Billericay in general as being rural. It’s a commuter town and quite close to London so I suppose you get the best of both worlds in the sense that it’s close to the city and quite rural and tranquil. I’m quite fond of it for the most part.

Last year you were fortunate enough to open for Robert Cray. What was that experience like for you and were you able to talk to him at all?

It was an amazing experience and one I’ll cherish forever. Robert Cray is everything I aspire to be as an artist. No nonsense, just class playing and singing and beautifully crafted, soulful songs. I did get to talk to him. In fact, he went out of his way to talk to me and introduce himself which I was quite taken a-back by. He was very calm and softly spoken and just exuded, class and humility. Watching him play night after night was a real education and, needless to say, I learnt a lot.

Do you have any favoured stage guitars/pedals/effects?

Yes, at the moment I’ve been using my Les Paul, which is the guitar I’ve favoured for many years now and a Lazy J J20 amp which is sort of a fender tweed style amp, just improved upon in every conceivable way. I’ve always favoured Gibson guitars because to me they sound more like my voice, if that makes sense. They’re a bit darker and throatier than Fenders.  I’m not really a huge effects guy but I have an overdrive pedal that I use sparingly when I need that extra 10%. I also have a wah pedal that was built by a good friend of mine, Steve Monk from Venus Witch FX and he makes amazing replicas of old 60s VOX wahs – really vocal and dynamic. I’m not really a huge gear head to be perfectly honest. I like familiarity and this equipment does what I need it to do so for the time being I don’t see myself changing my rig.

Could you please tell me the story behind the song ‘I Shouldn’t Care’?

It was inspired by a friend who was going through some relationship troubles. I came up with the line “I shouldn’t care the way that I do” and wrote the song around that. I kept it vague though so it could be relatable to anyone who’s been in a similar position, which I think most people have at one time or enough. Lyrically, I’m inspired by songs from the 40s and 50s whether it be the old blues songs or Jazz standards. I think they have a very unique way of summing up big or broad emotional concepts in very succinct and simple language that any way can understand and relate to.

How do you look after your voice?

I try to do exercises before a gig but it’s not always feasible. Certainly, at some point in the day I try to warm up my voice a bit. My voice is naturally quite dull and dark sounding so I need to work at it a lot and get it to a place where it doesn’t sound too croaky and muffled. Singing is something I find quite difficult and it can be physically demanding to sing for multiple nights in a row when you don’t take care of yourself.

Could you please tell me about the track ‘Emily’ and is she a fictional or is it based on a real person? 

Emily isn’t really based on anything or anyone, as far as I’m aware. I didn’t write most of the lyrics, It was a co-write with Joe Anderton. It’s definitely not the kind of song I would normally write.

What makes Connor Selby happy and what makes you unhappy?

Ah good question. Things that make me happy… Ray Charles, music in general although not all music because some music I really can’t stand. Guitars, cats (cats are one of my favourite things in the world), old things, sleeping, hot drinks, people with emotional intelligence, Studio Ghibli films.

The list of things that make me unhappy could go on forever, so I’ll keep it as brief as possible. People who are inauthentic, Loud noises, small talk. People who don’t do the things they say they’re going to do.  Litter/Graffiti.

Feature Image Photo Credit: Rob Blackham/Blackham Images

Connor Selby’s latest self-titled album is out now on Provogue Records/Mascot Label Group.

In addition, Connor Selby has announced that he will be joining blues-rocker Joanne Shaw Taylor as special guest on her February 2024 tour running through Amsterdam, The Netherlands and the UK. He will join for the Paradiso, Amsterdam on 14th February and then they move onto the UK in Manchester on 17 February and will call through Glasgow, Leeds, Sunderland, London, Wolverhampton, Norwich, Bexhill, Bury St. Edmunds and it finishes in Southend on 29 February.

Tickets are available from Gigantic.com, Planetrocktickets.co.uk, and joanneshawtaylor.com.

For more information on Connor Selby visit his official website here: https://www.connorselby.com/