Singer-songwriter Clive Gregson first came to prominence with Any Trouble before embarking on a solo career and forming a partnership with Christine Collister. His songs have been sung by artists including Nanci Griffith, Kim Carnes, Fairport Convention and Norma Waterson. Jason Barnard speaks to Clive, a man of many talents.
Can you tell me about your musical roots – has being from Manchester influenced you as a songwriter?
My initial musical education came from my brother… he’s seven years older than me and he started bringing home pop 45s in around 1963. I was 8, he was 15. We’d listen to The Beatles, The Stones, The Kinks, The Who, Motown, Stax… luckily for me he had very good taste! By the time I was 12 or 12, I was desperate to play the guitar and talked my parents into getting me one for Christmas. It was the usual cheap steel strung acoustic, not very durable and hard to play. I struggled with it for a while, got nowhere and threw it in a corner. A few months later, something made me go back to it and this time it stuck. I learned a few Beatles songs, joined a band at school and by the time I was 16, I was playing at youth clubs, school dances etc. Around the same time, I started hanging around the many and varied folk clubs in the Manchester area. It was a pretty broad church back then… as long as you were playing an acoustic guitar, they’d put up with Beatles songs and rock and roll! But I was also picking up on Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Tom Paxton etc. and starting to hear traditional folk songs. I think this explains why I’ve always bounced backwards and forwards between electric pop and acoustic folkie stuff. My earliest attempts at writing songs were from this period but none of them survived, really. I started to take songwriting much more seriously around 1977 when Any Trouble was occupying most of my time… and we were based in Crewe then, where I was at college. So… I’m not sure that being from Manchester really influenced me that much as a writer… perhaps not as much as getting away from Manchester for a few years!
How did Any Trouble form?
We formed around 1974 while I was at college in Crewe. Initially we were a three piece acoustic band… playing mostly covers with an emphasis on vocal harmony heavy. As time went on, we expanded by adding bass and drums. There was another local band that had emerged around the same time, formed around a singer-songwriter from Sandbach. Over a period of about six months, I lured away the lead guitarist, bass player and drummer… and by 1977 we’d settled into the line up that signed to Stiff and turned professional in March of 1980: me on guitar and lead vocals, Chris Parks on lead guitar and backing vocals, Phil Barnes on bass and backing vocals and Mel Harley on drums. In the immediate aftermath of new wave’s arrival in 1976, we started to play with a faster and tougher style and I began to write songs specifically for the band’s repertoire.
Any Trouble are sometimes associated with the new wave scene of the late 70s – is that something your recognise and were influenced by?
Absolutely… new wave had a marked impact on us. Not so much the hardcore punk thrash merchants… but the more song oriented acts became our templates…. Elvis Costello, Graham Parker, The Jam… We embraced the energy, the style and the largely home made nature of new wave… we certainly weren’t “punks” but we did play The Factory a couple of times!
What are your memories of being signed to Stiff Records – did you feel a kinship with the label and its acts?
I have nothing but good memories about Stiff Records… I’ve often thought that being signed to Stiff in those days was rather like being in a Merseybeat band in the early ’60s. Just as cool as it could be. The folks who worked for Stiff were our kind of people and we were already ardent fans of many of their acts before we signed to the label. Sad to say, our time at Stiff was not at all successful in commercial terms: largely because we weren’t really a typical Stiff band! We had no visual image at all! If you think of the classic Stiff acts…. Ian Dury, Madness, Lene Lovich, Wreckless Eric, The Damned etc… they all had a strong visual impact allied to great music. Any Trouble just had our music… we were completely faceless otherwise. I think that Dave Robinson (Stiff boss) always felt that our strongest market would be North America…. but Stiff had no real distribution or infrastructure there by the time our first album came out in 1980. Consequently, we had a big radio record that was virtually impossible to buy! Very frustrating… and despite Stiff’s best efforts to make Any Trouble a household name, three albums down the line, we were looking for a new label…
What are your favourite Any Trouble singles in that period?
Um… I like “Yesterday’s Love” (first release) for it’s energy and enthusiasm… “Girls Are Always Right”… probably our best moment sonically… “Touch & Go” from the first EMI album… somewhat soggy version of one of my best songs, I felt… and “Open Fire”, last EMI single… where we finally did that particular song justice, I think…
When did you first start playing with Richard Thompson and which records over the years have you both worked on together?
I met Richard and Linda for the first time at John Wood’s wedding in late 1980. We got along, stayed in touch… When they were recording “Shoot Out The Lights” (1982), they invited me to sing backing vocals on the album. That seemed to go well… then Richard & Linda broke up! Richard then called me up to sing on “Hand Of Kindness” (1983). For “Across A Crowded Room” (1985), I suggested we add Christine Collister to the vocal line-up… that went really well and Richard asked us both to join his touring band. So… we started touring with Richard in the spring of 1985 and that pretty much continued until I moved to the States in late 1992. We also sang on “Daring Adventures” (1986), “Amnesia” (1988), “Rumor & Sigh” (1991) and various compilations and live releases from that period. Happy days! Richard also sang and played on the two Any Trouble EMI-America releases…(1983 & 1984) and we all worked together on quite a few projects… I recall “Hard Cash” (1990), John Kirkpatrick’s “Blue Balloon” (1987) and a couple of tracks for the Imaginary Records tribute album to The Byrds. I’m sure I’ve missed loads of stuff…
How did you first meet Christine Collister and was it obvious that her voice would be a perfect fit for your songs?
I met Chris sometime in 1984. She was one of the resident singers at Poynton Folk Centre and I just happened to be there one evening when she was playing. It was instantly obvious that she was a world class singer… but the material she was doing was pretty much all very well worn covers. Any Trouble was winding down by this point… and I thought it might be interesting to see if I could provide something of a back room role for Chris… providing material, producing etc. I introduced myself and we followed this original plan for a while… but when we both became members of the Richard Thompson Band, it quickly became obvious that we had a special chemistry when performing together. In particular, the vocal blend was totally natural and worked from the get go… At the end of the first RTB tour, Richard suggested that we try playing some acoustic venues as a duo… which we found very enjoyable. Within a year, the duo was a full on act… and although we still played with Richard and took part in many other side projects, for the next 6 or 7 years, Gregson & Collister became our main focus. Initially, we grabbed material from wherever we could just to get a live set together… a few new Gregsongs, some old Any Trouble songs, lots of covers etc. Our first album together reflected that approach… but by the time we started looking at our second album, I was writing songs specifically for the duo. Something of a new challenge for me… writing for a voive other than my own. Also… trying to write things that worked when sung by a female. Fascinating period… and it’s a testament to Christine’s ability as a singer that she absolutely made so many of those songs completely her own.
What are your fondest moments from working with Christine?
It’s hard to pick out highlights, really. It was a pretty intense seven years in many ways and most of it was pretty amazing. The last album and tour were not particularly easy… we already knew the end was nigh. But that album (“The Last Word”) is my favourite G & C record and the live recordings from the final tour that were released with the deluxe version of “Home & away” are incredible… whatever else was going on, the music was always 110%. That’s the thing I remembver most fondly, I guess…
Your songs have been recorded by many different artists – which versions are you most proud of and why?
I’m always very flattered when anybody likes one of my songs enough to record it themselves… the ultimate accolade. There’s some great versions out there… Norma Waterson’s “Fred Astaire”, the Nanci Griffith/Jimmy Buffet duet on “I Love This Town”, Nina Gerber’s take on “It’s All Just Talk”, Marti Jones recording of “Second Choice”… I heard a lovely cover of “When My Ship Comes In” by Red Herring, a Dutch bluegrass outfit the other day… it’s always fascinating to hear how people find their own place in the songs….
You played with Nanci Griffith for over a decade, did you learn anything as a songwriter from playing with her?
It sounds a bit strange, but not much really… Nanci had become a bit sporadic as a writer by the time I worked with her. A bit like Rod Stewart, I guess… she’d written a great deal in her early career and then settled into being much more of a song interpreter as time went on. Occasional gems emerged… but in my time with Nanci, I tended to look upon her as a performer rather than a writer. I was pretty fully formed as a writer by then anyway… and was not that interested in the Nashville “three chords and the truth” approach… when I wrote “I Love This Town”, I was pretty obsessed with classic Motown… key changes, more adventurous chord progressions, pop arrangements…
What other artists have you collaborated with over the years?
I used to write and perform pretty extensively with Boo Hewerdine… what a talent! Fine bloke, too That led to sporadic recording and touring dates with Eddi Reader… a world class singer and always great fun to be around. Richard Thompson and Nanci Griffith we’ve already covered. I was musical director for Dennis Locorriere for a while… former frontman for Dr Hook. Another world class singer and a true force of nature… I depped for a year in Plainsong, renewing a frienship with Iain Matthews who I’d met towards the end of the initial Any Trouble incarnation… yet another world class singer and a Man Utd fan to boot! Through Plainsong I got to know Andy Roberts and Mark Griffiths and we hived off into the 3 Boxes, our acoustic guitar trio. I think I’ve learned more about the guitar from them than I could ever have imagined… I love them both as players and people. None finer.
I’ve played on loads of sessions, produced loads of artists and met a ton of super talented people down the road. A particular highlight was getting to play with Randy Newman on a live radio broadcast in West Virginia…. I’m sure he won’t remember me but man,I remember that. Special mention for John Wood…. legendary producer/engineer, who I’ve worked with on many projects. My studio mentor! I’m sure I’ve forgotten many… for which a million apologies. I’m getting old…
Do you think your songwriting has evolved since you first started out?
I certainly hope so! My earliest songs were bloody awful… mind you, some people probably think my recent songs are also bloody awful.
How does playing live compare to recording – is one preferable to another?
I like both… and although in some ways they are quite different processes, I generally try to make records that closely reflect the live experience… all the musicians on the studio floor at the same time, performing as a unit. That’s how musical magic happens… Still, I always think of playing live as the real thing… particularly in smaller venues, where the use of lighting, dancers, technology etc to create a “show” around less than stellar acts, can’t really happen. I think playing solo is the biggest challenge: and the most rewarding if and when you get it right. But… there’s also nothing quite like getting the Telecaster on and wailing with a great band. It’s all good…making music in any context is infinitely preferable to being a civil servant… which is what I used to be!
What albums and tracks would you pick out from your solo career for those new to your music?
I always think the “Best Of….” release (2009) is a pretty good place to start for newbies… it’s a good representation of all my solo stuff up to that point. It’s hard for me to pick any one of the stand alone albums over another… I’m fortunate that I only have to release albums that I actually like! If pushed… I’m rather partial to “Comfort & Joy” and “Bittersweet”… they still seem to hang together in a pleasing way.
What are your plans for 2020?
Well…. first off, I’m planning to retire from solo touring by the end of the year. I just turned 65 and have been a pro musician for 40 years… that feels like enough! I’ll continue to write, produce, play sessions and do whatever live projects take my interest. I’ve recently been working with the rhythm section from Oldham’s finest, Barclay James Harvest…. and that’s been great fun. We’re hoping to do a lot more of that… Kev, Jez and Craig are wonderful players and great chaps. I’ve written a whole bunch of new songs for this project, which rejoices under the name of Raggedy Ass. Watch out for a gig near you! I’m planning to release a new solo CD every month throughout 2020…. a big undertaking but it’s proving to be great fun. The first one came out in January… it’s called “One Year” and is a collection of songs about each month of the year.
Following months will see various themed records: a rockabilly album, a social comment album, an acoustic guitar instrumental album, an album of love songs, an album of songs about the north of England, a record featuring many of my guitar heroes…. something for everybody, hopefully! I’ll be touring solo in the spring and autumn, playing a few festivals across the summer and am working on four special shows in the Manchester area to end the year. Busy, busy!
For more information visit: clivegregson.com
Photos of Clive by Sara Porter.
