SEEMS LIKE YESTERDAY

IT'S OUR TIME

DEAR OLD ENGLAND

YOU'VE GOT TO START LOOKING FOR LOVE

WHEN A TEARDROP FALLS

THE NON COMPLIANCE DANCE

SET ME FREE

MESSAGE OF LOVE

IT'S ONLY A SONG

MY FRIEND

An interview with a freelance music journalist Abe Shettle August 2012.

When did you first realise that playing music interested you?

    Probably around the age of 7, I saw groups in the local working men’s clubs and got totally mesmerised by what they were doing, I think I was hooked from then.

At what age did you start playing music?

    My parents brought my first acoustic guitar at 8 years old, Christmas 1971. I couldn’t play it but I loved it, best Christmas I remember.

Have you played in many bands?

    Not many really, about 5 in total, like many other musicians, the struggle to make a living sometimes outweighed the desire to play music, so there were many breaks from playing during the years which frustrated the hell out of me.

Who was the last band you played with?

    That would be a Beatles tribute band called ‘The Moondog Beatles’, although I did work with a band in Newcastle for about a year after that called’ Beatlemania’, this was while I was at Wolverhampton University, they were stuck for a Lennon so I helped them out, good fun.

Do you still perform live?

    No, not any more, at the moment family commitments would make it difficult.

Do you miss performing live?

    Yes and no, I do miss it, but I don’t miss all the crap that goes alongside it, mainly the organisation involved if I have to do it.

Would you consider playing live in the future?

    I’d certainly consider it, but it would depend on many factors, mainly someone else does the background work.

What is your process for writing a song?

    That’s a tough question to answer. There basically isn’t one, it just happens. Sometimes the words come first sometimes the melody, I don’t try and analyse it because it’s beyond my comprehension.

When did you write your first song and what was it called?

    I had been messing around with writing for a few years. I think subconsciously I was going through a learning period. Only when I had the tools could I start to create. The first song  would be around 1987/88, I was 24/25 at the time when I wrote what you could say was a real song called ‘I don’t want to say goodbye’ but the lyrics weren’t finalised until 2007 when I discovered that my step-daughter had terminal cancer, and the lyrics are about losing her. Tragically she passed away in 2009.

What subject matter do you cover in your songs?

    Mainly, the human condition. Anti-War, peace, freedom, love, memories etc…  Like many other writers it’s what is running round my head at the time, although I can be prone to scribbling gibberish, like ‘It’s only a song’ just nonsense in the song, hence the title, it really doesn’t mean anything, just having fun with words.

If a famous recording artiste approached you to record one of your compositions, what would be your response?

    Firstly, I’d have to do a reality check to see if I was asleep, but it would be nice if something like that happened, I don’t think I’d refuse the request.

How do you think people will rate your songs?

    That’s sneaky to ask that Abe! Like most people, whenever an artiste/artist/author produces a work of art, acceptance of that work from the public/peers/friends and family is looked for, but I have got to the point in my life where I couldn’t care a damn anymore. The fear of rejection doesn’t bother me. I think what I’m saying is here’s some tunes I wrote love ‘em or hate ‘em, you decide. If you like them that’s nice to know, and equally if you hate them, that’s ok too, we can’t all like everything.

Do you still listen to music and if so what?

    I don’t go out of my way to listen to anything in particular, as there are some good songs out there, but I’m of the opinion that the standard of song writing as an art form is declining.

What is your favourite song of all time?

    Oh dear! How long have you got? There’s far too many to choose from, If I had to pick one that encapsulates why I love music then it would be ’The mighty quin’ by Manfred Mann, this was the first record my mum purchased for me when I was a little boy and I played it repeatedly ‘til the grooves wore out, drove my mum insane.

Are there more songs to come?

    Yes loads! I have a backlog of material to record, some going back over 20 years. I have them on old cassettes, demos of me and an acoustic guitar. I still write fresh ones as well when the inspiration arises.

What legacy would you like to leave to the world?

    As a man and human being, that I always tried to do what was right, not for me in the moment, just what was right. Musically speaking, I leave my songs and if the next generations hear them and take the words that are sung and learn from our errors, build a better world and stop the maniacs from screwing it up, where there is no war, poverty, disease, and suffering, that would make me happy.

What three songs would you have played at your funeral?

    What a morbid question to ask! I’m not going anywhere yet, I hope, I don’t think it really matters because when you’re dead I think you go deaf, so I won’t hear them anyway.

And what ambitions do you hold for the future?

    None, there is no future in reality only the here and now. Whatever happens will happen and it will all work out how it’s supposed to, you’ll see. Thanks for the chat Abe, it was a hoot.

End of interview

Postscript:

As I walk this path on my journey called life, experiencing this dimension of reality, I’ve realised that no matter what problems are put in your way, there is always a solution if we care to search for it.

Embrace and enjoy your experience and smile, make someone happy, help each other, care for each other and most of all love each other, because if we don’t the maniacs that think they control us have won. Spread peace and love wherever you are and whatever you are doing, say no to wars, protect the world’s children they are all our brothers and sisters, break out of the mind prison and set yourself free. Martin Luther King said “I have a dream”, and so do I.

 

Mark Smith


Mark Smith Songwriter

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