Someone somewhere, and I apologise to the individual for my terrible memory, said “speak the truth and the rest will come,” and despite there being several layers of meaning inside some lines, however transparent or deliberately hidden, each layer is true for me, and the little philosopher was right. In the search to express a feeling about something or someone, it’s obvious when the proverbial nail has been hit because you feel


it,


whatever “it” is, one line at a time. This too has been a process. Not the application of lyrical structure, or rhythm, or melody, or even the desire to express it in the first place, but the process of


learning not to doubt


that feeling, to trust myself. It’s easy to settle for a line which might vaguely hint at the point, and ten songs a week could be written full of lines like that, but they’d be half-hearted clichéd pop tunes with no substance. Every word is important and nowadays when a line arrives, and the feeling comes with it (or not) I trust it, and as a result it


hardly matters


who thinks what, who likes it, who hates it, who even understands it. It matters not, because it is the truth. Eight years,


several houses,


tons of venues, some mad crazy festivals, two cats and a young ‘un later, I made friends with the stage. Now it’s a well established part of my identity and I “wouldn’t have


it any other way.” I


expect I’ ll always have a song to write and a stage to sing it on. I hope so. Currently I’ve got a musical thing going on with the undisputed and hugely experienced musical man that


is my friend, Mick


Wright. Interestingly enough, Mick’s played with bands for years and is a talented songwriter in his own right. My favourite thing about him though is that he gets it, he knows, and his suggestions and contributions have been invaluable. We’re having a good time. There’s an awful lot of fun to be had when the fear disappears, and, fresh from a round of nostalgia pie, I think I shall pour myself a large glass of red wine and silently toast to life, love, laughter and a universe with music in it.


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