“Music fans see me as the guy who played with Eric Clapton, and the guy who played with Roger Walters, but don’t buy my own records,” Fairweather Low says.
“Yet, I can play lots of different styles, whether it’s blues, gospel, skiffle, rock, surf — you name it.
“The great thing is that with my own band, The Low Riders, I play whatever I want to play.
“The songs on this album were amassed over time, when we’ve been in the studio or from a live gig, and we’ve put them together on the album.
“Some of the songs like Life is Good and Lightnin’s Boogie go back as far as the 1990s. In fact, Lightnin’s Boogie, which was done with famed English producer and engineer Glyn Johns at his house, was actually recorded for a film soundtrack, One of the Hollywood Ten (2000), that starred Jeff Goldblum.
“While others like My Baby Left Me and Rollin’ & Tumblin’ were recorded live in 2008.”
Having begun his career in the 1960s as lead singer with pop group Amen Corner, Fairweather Low has experienced some of the most memorable moments of music history. One that stands out for him is the time he was in the studio with guitar legend Jimi Hendrix.
“In 1969, I was in New York, and I got a phone call from Jimi who was in the studio,” he says.
“Jimi was re-cutting Stone Free, and wanted to know if I’d go down and do some backing vocals on the song.
“So, I went down and Roger Chapman from the group Family was there too, and we both did some backing vocals on a new version of the song, which didn’t come out until years later.”
Having witnessed many of the now legendary guitarists in their early days, are there any current guitarists that Fairweather Low feels will become the six-string heroes of the next generation?
“There’s not much out there that touches me,” he says.
“Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of good stuff out there, no doubt about it.
“But every now and again, I will hear something and go, ‘That’s fine. And that’s cool’, but it’s not aimed at me.”
For more info on Andy and his new album, go to: andyfairweatherlow.com
Music news
In a recent Q & A with fans, Paul McCartney revealed that his new year’s resolution was to, “…finish an album! I’ve been working on a lot of songs, and have had to put it to the side because of the tour. So, I’m hoping to get back into that and finish up a lot of these songs.”
Pete Doherty, vocalist and rhythm guitarist with English indie-rockers Babyshambles, has revealed that a “2025 tour is on the cards”.
Country music is where the money is according to former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson. In a recent interview he stated he would have made a lot more money if he played country music instead of heavy metal.
Paramore lead singer Hayley Williams has hinted she may finally embark on a solo tour in 2025.
From the diaries… Sum 41
With Canadian pop-punk group Sum 41 having recently announced that they would be retiring after an almost 30-year career, and were set to play their last live show in late January, it brought back memories for me of the time when I met the band for an interview in 2007.
At the time, the band were in Melbourne as part of a tour in support of their newly released fourth studio album, Underclass Hero. Both the band and crew had only arrived in Melbourne the day prior to my interview and later that same evening had performed a special show at The Peninsula Lounge in Mornington. After the show, with the adrenaline rush of their performance still persisting, they needed to unwind, so they walked the city streets to find a bar, only to find that many were closed.
On the day of the interview, I headed to the 29th floor of the Grand Hyatt Hotel where the group were staying and where my interview was taking place. As I walked into their room, Sum 41 singer/guitarist Deryck Whibley and bassist Cone (whose real name is Jason McCaslin), along with the band’s tour manager, were all sipping cups of tea! With a tight press schedule, and things already running late, Deryck and Cone quickly took their place on the couch next to me for the interview. The guys both discussed the new album, their impressions of Australia and the touring life, and after 15 minutes the interview needed to be wrapped up as the group had to make their way to soundcheck for their show later that evening. And then on to the next city for the next round of interviews and performances. Oh, the rock and roll life…
Fun fact
Did you know Paul McCartney almost ended up appearing on Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon album? At the time, both McCartney and Pink Floyd were recording their respective albums at Abbey Road Studios. McCartney was asked by the Floyd to record some speaking parts for their album but the band later decided to cut McCartney’s contribution because they believed it wasn’t done quite in the spirit of what they were after.
