23 f 12 shots from the fRoots Rocket Launcher a dozen leading questions to fire at Andy Cutting
If you were given the funds to organise a concert bill, who would the artists be?
This may be a long concert and some- what tricky given our own mortality, but here goes: Pete Morton, Fernhill, Zephyrus, Ian Carr & John McCusker, Roger Wilson, Spiro, Billy Bragg (for Vic), Michael Marra, Eel Grinders, Shooby Taylor, Huw Warren, The Band, Berrogüetto, June Tabor & Mar- tin Simpson, Coope Boyes & Simpson and finally XTC.
Which totally obscure record do you most treasure and would like more people to know about?
Roger Wilson Stark Naked, Zephyrus Halfe Hannikin, Riccardo Tesi / Patrick Vail- lant Veranda, Christian Vesvre et Serge Desaunay Matins Gris.
What was the best live gig you ever saw? Pete Morton / Roger Wilson at Tow-
ersey Village Festival. They weren’t playing together. Pete played a late night acoustic concert in the children’s tent and Roger played the same spot the following year. They were both amazing. The other con- cert of note was Valentin Clastrier, Carlo Rizzo & Michael Riessler playing in a church hall in Hastings. I thought I’d hate it but they walked on, started to play, stopped and then thanked the audience for a lovely evening. It was an hour and a half later!
And what was the worst?
I’ve seen too many people get up at clubs and say “I’m going to sing a song I’ve just learnt. I can’t remember the tune and I’ll probably forget the words, so here goes….”
What was your own best ever gig?
Sidmouth 2010 (Andy Cutting and friends), what a privilege to be asked to run a night at a festival that I’ve been going to since I was five years old and then to play with your heroes all night. The memory of playing at Womad Reading with Ancient Beatbox in 1989/90 still gives me a buzz too.
And what was your worst? Hotel Perla, Nova Gorica, Slovinja.
Chris Wood and I played a concert in the disco of a casino attached to a knocking shop posing as a hotel. It wasn’t super.
What’s the professional achievement you’re most proud of?
I’m proud that I’m still able to play music for my living and continue to meet and get to work with some most extraordi- narily wonderful musicians. Quite chuffed that I finally got my record out as well.
What’s the most embarrassing thing you ever did in public?
Playing with John McCusker and Kate
Rusby on Prairie Home Companion in New York Town Hall, something got stuck under a button on my box. I sounded like a slightly asthmatic donkey. When it was over, I asked one of the crew how many people usually listened to the show. She replied “about 15 million”. Oops.
Which song or piece of music would you most like to have written yourself?
Any music composed by Jon Swayne or Dear God by Andy Partridge.
Who was the first musician or singer you were inspired to emulate?
When I was nine or ten I started hav- ing drum lessons. I had studied the piano (I was hopeless) but it wasn’t for me. The drums seemed to make more sense, so I did all sorts of gigs (local amateur dramat- ics, pantomimes, ceilidhs and school orchestra and jazz band) for a while. To me, Steve Gadd was the person I wished to emulate. I failed. However when I started
playing the box, John Kirkpatrick was my total inspiration.
Who was the last-but-one musician or singer you lusted after?
Leonard Podolak. He is a wonderful Canadian from Winnipeg, Manitoba. I met him on the Cecil Sharp Project in March this year. He is best described by Colin Irwin in the Guardian as, “… a loud and relentless force of nature” Hear hear!
If you had a rocket launcher, who or what would be the target, and why?
Whoever decided it was fine to credit
the composer, orchestra, soloist and con- ductor of classical music selections on Desert Island Discs but deemed it unneces- sary to credit the writers or performers in any other musical genre apart from the name of the band.
Andy Cutting’s one and only solo album is on Lane Records. He’s touring.
www.andy-cutting.co.uk F
root salad
Photo: Ian Anderson
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