Graham McGregor-Smith Talks Debut Album, Hometown And More

 Singer-songwriter Graham McGregor-Smith will release his debut album ‘Road To Anywhere’, on 12th March 2024. He sat down to tell us all about his new record:

You have announced that you will be releasing your debut album ‘Road To Anywhere’ on 12th March 2024 on East On 36 Records. How did you want to approach the making of the album?

I very much wanted the album to be recorded as close to live as possible, with a fully acoustic sound palette. Quite a few of the songs on the album pay tribute to the verse and refrain form, which goes way back to the start of the 20th Century, so it was very important for me to capture a vintage vibe. That feeling also lends itself to the subject matter of the songs, which is drawn from a lifetime of experience.

I had a clear idea of how I wanted each song to sound, mocked up the demos myself to illustrate, and we went with those arrangements. The tracking sessions were all about four musicians in a live room, playing through the song a number of times, until they were absolutely locked in the groove. Everything the musicians played was recorded. So, the bedrock of each song on the album is one take, with that take being the best of however many we ran through for each individual song.

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

Ascot: comfortable, low-key, leafy bubble

(I grew up in semi-rural Worcestershire, on the edge of a village on the edge of a town on the edge of a city and confess that I couldn’t wait to escape. Never expected to find myself here though)

Who produced the album and where was it recorded?

The endlessly capable and creative Julian Hinton, who has worked with Trevor Horn, Seal, Rod Stewart and Stormzy amongst many others. We tracked the core band at Crescent Records Studio in Swindon; then recorded vocals at Julian’s studio in Reading; with backing vocals recorded at my home studio. Brass overdubs were recorded remotely at Horn House, Ealing, then we sent the raw tracks off to be mixed and mastered in Leytonstone & Hastings respectively

Who played on the album with you?

The levels of talent on this album are sky-high. It’s been an absolute privilege to see and hear the musicians at work. The main players at the tracking are all session musicians local to me: Julian Hinton from Reading on keys; Simon Price from Reading on drums; and Raph Mizraki from Banbury on bass. Jezz Cook from Oxford and Denny Ilett from Henley split the guitar duties between them. For the brass overdubs I travelled to Horn House, Ealing, where Nichol Thomson on trombone; Tom Walsh on trumpet and flugelhorn; and Paul Booth on saxophone and clarinet laid down their parts in just a couple of hours. Separately, Andy Evans from East Grinstead provided a guitar overdub for one of the parts on Flyover State of Mind; and then the demo guitar on Flyover, by Gareth Mills from Egham, made it onto the album. Gareth’s wife Bridin contributed backing vocals, also on Flyover.

How do you look after your voice?

Lazily! So, to keep me honest, I work with a community of singers, Beyond Vocals, led by the amazing jazz-singer, Emilia Martensson who is based in Berlin. She and they make the process of practice so much easier, with lessons, regular meet-ups, workshops and accountability buddies. Ultimately, I sing and whistle every day because that’s what I’ve always done – it lifts my spirits and keeps me sane.

You released your first single ‘I Could’ve Cried Over You’. What was the story/inspiration behind this song?

I wrote this song with Bryan Matthews, a hugely talented singer and guitarist from Leeds. The song was inspired by a sad tale I told Bryan, to highlight the fragility of male relationships – how so much of what men feel is unspoken, how we’re really bad at communicating with each other in any way that isn’t superficial.

Two old school friends of mine reconnected on social media having lost touch for a couple of decades. The three of us had a great night out in central London, vowed to meet up regularly and swore undying love for each other.

It was clear that one of us was very enthusiastic about being back in touch, probably too enthusiastic, and a couple of months later, invited us all up to his place for a dinner one Saturday evening . The friend with whom we had reconnected was a no-show and subsequently ghosted the host. I put myself in the host’s shoes and the lyrics just flooded out.

 Do you have any plans to tour in the UK/Europe to support the release?

I’m putting together a series of dates in the UK for 2024 and 2025 and expect that my first steps into Europe won’t come until 2026. Ultimately I want to be touring regularly in the US, Europe and the UK though that will take time.

Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, microphones etc?

After two years of waiting, I have just managed to get my hands on a Rhodes Mk8 electric piano and it is absolutely glorious. It is so beautiful to play, I sit at it and don’t get up for hours! And the soulful vibe just transports me to another time and place… usually where I’m channelling my inner Bill Withers… I typically write either with a piano or Rhodes sound so can’t wait to get stuck in to some songwriting on this absolute beauty.

For stage work, I love my Neumann KMS105 microphone. Emilia turned me on to it. On stage, beautiful singing is what I’m aiming for and it just makes me sound so sweet.

What is your earliest musical memory?

My truthfully earliest musical memory is probably my mother singing Max Bygraves songs around the house… soooo let’s not dwell on that particular, exquisite torture!

The big early moment in my musical education was hearing Paul McCartney & Wings’ Band on the Run album blaring out of a classroom window at the annual school fête. I was 12, and had to save up for weeks to buy it, my first album. So when, nearly 50 years later, Paul McCartney sang three of those songs in his Glastonbury set, I fell to pieces. Three times. But oh my, was that falling apart so rapturous!

 Was this a difficult album to write?

Yes and no! Yes, in that I first wanted to write songs as a teenager, tried, failed and stopped: I lacked the confidence and didn’t realise that the roadblocks we have to overcome in writing a song are normal and all part of the craft. I thought that songs were supposed to emerge fully formed, already perfect, and there were no resources available at the time that I was aware of to disabuse me. So it was only five years ago that one of my friends, Gareth, took me through how the process worked, and that got me started.

Then no, it has not been difficult, in that once Gareth showed me the way, I started writing and never stopped.

I’d say that this album has served as my songwriting apprenticeship, so overall it has been a great experience, and even the knock backs have been really useful in helping me to understand how this crazy art of songwriting works.

I’ve not been afraid of getting as much help as possible, either from my amazing co-writers, or from some very talented and lovely mentors. Of course, even in the depths of the pandemic, there was always zoom, and what a revelation that turned out to be. Such a useful tool to connect with writers in New York, California, France, Germany, anywhere in the world really.

 What music/artists do you enjoy listening to? Do you have any recommendations?

My musical landscape is broad, from the 18th century to today and all points in between, with particular emphasis on the last one hundred years or so.

My most intense consumption phase was in the late 70s and early 80s, and one of the key rabbit holes I disappeared down was the London funk & cool jazz scene, with bands like Beggar & Co., Animal Nightlife and Blue Rondo à la Turk, so along with Everything But The Girl and Weekend, they’ve had quite an influence on the sound of the album.

I identify very much with the ethos of punk, so have a keen nose, possibly over keen, for musical self-indulgence and try to avoid it as much as possible.

Il Maestro, Ennio Morricone is a huge influence on me, spawning a lifelong love of the Almeria Desert, Monument Valley and the Manhattan Bridge.

Recently, I’ve been enjoying albums by Jo Harrop, Emma Smith, Sarah Brown, The Anchoress, oh and Jessie Buckley’s album with Bernard Butler is a classic. However, my favourite band in recent years has been Little Dragon. I absolutely love them and their sound.

What makes Graham McGregor-Smith happy and what makes you unhappy?

Fundamental to the human condition is experiencing emotion. Without emotion, we’re merely existing, not actually living. So whether it’s crying at a cheesy movie (the Don’t You Forget About Me ending to Pitch Perfect 1); jumping for joy right at the front of an AC/DC mosh pit (Wembley 2015) or at a low-key System Of A Down gig (2004); riding my bicycle down from Rannoch Moor at 40+mph, on the perfect S-bend under blue skies in bright sunlight, while the skirl of bagpipes from the tourist-friendly piper in the panoramic-view car park wafts over you and you think you can see all the way to Oban (2010); or racked with grief at a friend or parent’s funeral, it is when we experience emotion, and the more deeply we experience it the better, that we are truly alive, and that makes me happy.

So, what makes me the happiest is when I can successfully communicate the emotion I’m feeling to an audience. That is the essence of my job as an artist. When the audience feels it too, it’s mic drop time.

Disingenuous politicians and disrespect are two things which make me unhappy, neither of which deserve to be dwelt upon, so let’s leave them there.

Feature Image Photo Credit: Supplied By PR

Graham McGregor-Smith’s debut album Road To Anywhere’ is released on Tuesday 12th March 2024 on East On 36 Records.

Bandcamp: https://mcgregor-smith.bandcamp.com/album/road-to-anywhere

For more information visit his official website here: https://mcgregor-smith.com/