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I never had much interest in the guitar
until I heard “Whole lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin. After listening to Jimmy
Page’s guitar solo, that was it. I had just left school and at a loose end, but
not anymore for the next five years I dedicated myself totally to playing. I played
with a few local bands in pubs and clubs in South London during the mid-eighties, but could never
link up with the right musicians. I decided to advertise for a drummer and bass
player which led me linking up with Jeff Braithwaite. |
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Having just discovered the likes of Joe
Satriani, Tony Macalpine and Steve Vai, Jeff and I just gelled perfectly and embarked on a
Satriani tribute band. We started playing pubs
and clubs in East London such as the Dean Swift and The Standard
etc. Whilst playing one Saturday night a certain Mr Peter Franklin got on stage with
us and covered Gary Moore’s Cold Hearted. One night I will never forget, I
remember saying to Jeff after the gig, “It would be great to be in a band with Peter
a great front man”. We carried on giging for over a year with
Jeff and his brother Mick who took on the role as front man but as what happens with many
bands we split up due to personal differences. After that I became disillusioned
with music and nearly gave up playing altogether.
A
year ago I linked up with Jeff again he told me that Pete had been in contact and was
thinking of doing a solo album and working with original Chariot bass player John Smith.
I was asked if I wanted to play some numbers with them. I went down the
studio for a jam, the playing was so good that Peter decided to make it a Chariot album, I
was offered the part of lead guitarist. It was too good to miss. |
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