|
|
BP. It's been several years since you last released an album. Why did you decide to leave it so long ? EM. It was not something that I consciously decided. It sort of evolved. Several months after my last album was released, I was invited by a long standing friend Dan Ar Braz to join a band that he was putting together in Brittany called Heritage Des Celtes. The idea was to perform a one off gig in Quimper in July 1993. Seven years on and 5 Albums later, the gig ended. At the same time, I was doing my own usual run of gigs, interspersed with some radio, T.V. and session work. I also wrote and recorded songs constantly, a lot of which ended up in the recycle bin, as they do. Out of this though, emerged a nucleus. Some of them are included on the new CD together with more recent ones. I feel its a good mixture of material from the past few years. BP. So did you have to move to Brittany to work and record with Heritage Des Celts ? EM. No. I was able to stay at home in sunny Cardiff and commute. I have a husband and two dogs so the situation suited me fine. As it happened we recorded the first and third Heritage albums in Windmill Studios - Dublin, the second, fourth and fifth were recorded live in Rennes, Le Zenith - Paris and Bercy Stadium - Paris respectively. All the gigs and tours were in Brittany and France. The only U.K. gig we ever did was in the Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow at the Celtic Connections Festival. BP. Were the albums released by yourselves or by a record company ? EM. They were all released by Sony Columbia Records in France. BP. How did you come to perform in the Eurovision Song Contest in Oslo in 1996 ? E.M. I wondered when that would come up. Dan had written a song 20 years earlier, I think for a school project, called "Diwanit Bugale". He decided to record this song on the third Heritage album, so we duly made our way to Dublin and while we were recording, there was a call from Paris, inviting us to represent France in the Eurovision Song Contest. Apparently the panel of judges who were responsible for choosing the French entry had heard Dan's song from an earlier demo and decided it was what they were looking for. Much to our surprise, two months later we were in Oslo. BP. What was it like performing live in the Eurovision Song Contest knowing it was being broadcast to millions across Europe ? EM. That was the last thing on my mind (good title for a song). There were too many other things to think about. It was all over before it started (another good title for a song), plus the fact that the whole show had run for two dress rehearsals in front of an audience of 16,000. Anyway, as soon as the song began I forgot about the broadcast figures and concentrated on the audience. BP. It certainly must have raised the profile of the band ? EM. It must have. The tours became longer...... ! BP. Do you enjoy touring ? EM. It can be lonely at times. The actual gigs themselves are great. The rest of it you put up with because you have to. There's no place like home and of course I miss Derek, Lucy and Dolly, but when there's an audience in front of you there's no better place than on stage. BP. Are you touring again this year ? EM. No. Dan and Sony Columbia Records decided to take a break. We've had several years of great touring and in the last two years we've sold out concerts in venues holding 10,000 plus. It was the right time to stop. Whether or not there will be another album and future tours is up to the powers that be. I've heard that there may be one or two gigs in the near future but we'll just have to wait and see. I hope so because it was a great band to work with. BP. Do you have any highlights in your career so far ? EM. Strangely enough, it's nothing to do with music, although it happened as a result of a gig in Lorient. I was invited to a meal in Cardiff by George Abbey - Director of NASA Johnson Space Centre and Astronaut Dafydd Rhys Williams - Mission Specialist. Dafydd had just returned in the Space Shuttle Columbia, as the first Welsh/Canadian astronaut to enter space. He had taken Welsh artifacts into space and was returning them to their respective owners i.e. a welsh flag, famous rugby shirt, items from the National Museum of Wales and the Dylan Thomas Museum. At the end of the evening I was presented with a framed photograph of the actual launch of the shuttle, together with a certificate signed by George and Dafydd, attached to which were a Welsh/Canadian pin and a Texas pin that were flown aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia, April 17 - May 3, 1998. It's my most treasured possession. BP. Do you have any moments that you wish never happened ? EM. Apart from family tragedies, yes. Spending three weeks in a caravan with six male musicians (who all loved Guinness) in the middle of nowhere in Southern Ireland. NEVER AGAIN !! BP. Do you have any funny moments that you remember? EM. Many, but two spring to mind. We put on smoke machines in The Carnegie Hall in Wolverhampton. Someone left the stage door open, causing a through draft and all the smoke blew straight off the stage and into the audience. We lost sight of the audience completely - but we could hear them all coughing and spluttering, whilst the people in the balcony erupted in hysterics. Ever so slightly embarrassing !!! When I was on tour with Ralph McTell, the tour manager went on stage to introduce me. However, the sound engineer had forgotten to turn the microphone on. In frustration the tour manager threw the microphone off stage. Whilst it was in mid air, the sound guy turned the microphone on and by the time it landed on the wooden floor boards the mic was at full volume. On impact it sounded like a sonic boom. Half the audience were treated for shock and the other half for perforated eardrums. BP. What influences your writing ? EM. My imagination is the only thing that influences my writing. It has no boundaries or restrictions. BP. Do you find it easy to write a song ? EM. Derek and myself work together as a team and we try to create an idea that eventually turns into a song. There are times when the ideas just don't work and the song ends up in the bin. Overall, I'd say it's not that easy, but it's all worth while when it all gels together and you have the finished product. BP. Where did you record your new CD "A Breath of Fresh Air" ? EM. In my own studio this time. I have a Roland VS 1680 expanded hard disc recorder and monitor through a pair of Bi-Amped Roland DS-90A Digital speakers. There's also a small rack with several bits of outboard gear and several AKG mics. It's all you need and it certainly gets the job done. BP. You obviously know about the technical side of things then ? EM. I know a little. Having spent the first five years of my career as a commercial producer and session singer, I got to know the basics. But I'm certainly no technical wizard..... I leave that up to Derek. BP. What's planned for the immediate future ? EM. There will be plenty to do promoting the Album. That should keep me out of mischief for a while. BP. Finally, what are those Gold Discs on the wall? EM. They're both for Heritage album sales, the first studio album 94 and the live album in Rennes 95. I believe there's another one on it's way for the live album in Bercy 99. The band also won two awards in 97 and 98 for best album of the year. BP. Well thank you for talking to me. Perhaps we can do this again soon ? EM. I'd love to. Thanks for listening.
|
|
enter home biog interview new-cd gallery news gigs lyrics email links |
