I'm now 40, and since I left school 23 years ago it's amazing catching up and finding out how much some people have accomplished with their lives. I'd say that I'm pretty much the same as I was - still living in the same house and not had a varied career.
The main changes in my life are I'm now married with a 3 (almost 4) year old son. I've written a couple of scripts but not managed to have them made into movies yet.
Greg Friel was the year above me at school and I came to know of him via music lessons. Like most teenage kids, I had delusions of becoming a pop star - my instrument of choice was the keyboard! I have to admit, that I wasn't any good at it! Despite my purchase of a Yamaha PSR-47 and taking private lessons about a year after leaving school, my keyboard skills are to say the least - rubbish.
Greg, on the other hand, was (and still is) a proper musician and I thought it would be great to interview him for my blog.
Platform Hub (PH) - By the time I became aware of you at school, we were already halfway through high school and you were an accomplished musician then - when did you get into music?
I started playing the keyboard (a tiny wee Casio) when I was 12, but started playing the piano properly when I was 14. I was always picking out pop songs by ear and annoying people at school to listen to me! I was also learning the trumpet - then the trombone - at high school. I really wanted to learn to play the saxophone but they didn't have one! I had my first attempts at songwriting at 12 as well, but nothing significant until I was about 14 or 15.
(PH) - How many musical instruments can you play and what is your preference?
(GF) My main instrument is piano, but I love to play guitar. I play a bit of bass guitar (I play bass in folk/rock band The Picts every now and then). I play a little drums, although I wouldn't really consider myself a drummer. I know how to put rhythms together. It's useful for arranging and producing. I can play a bit on mandolin and harmonica and if there's any piece of percussion sitting around the studio I'll shake it or hit it!
It really depends on what I'm working on. The real joy for me is being able to chop and change between different styles of music and instruments. What ever the mood, there's something that suits.
(PH) - As well as playing Music, you are also a Composer - which part do your prefer - creating or playing?
(GF) - Again, it depends on my mood. But, I think if I'm being really honest, the real thrill for me is songwriting or composing. I love the notion that you're creating something that didn't exist before. I don't have kids of my own, so I sometimes refer to my songs as my "babies". Not just because I'm nuts, but I really try to invest a lot of emotion into whatever I'm writing.
I figure that if I can make something that means something to me, then it might mean something to somebody else. I write songs for people to like them, not just for myself. The ultimate goal of the songwriter is to write music that is universal, to in some way tap into something that says something about the human condition. But, if I can make people get up and dance, laugh or cry then I've succeeded.
(PH) - When we were at school, Atari brought out their ST range of computers with built-in Midi - did you ever have one and do you think this helped with your Composing?
(GF) - I never had one. I was always saving money to pay for studio time in those days. I did have a couple of drum machines which really helped me develop song structures and learn more about arranging.
(PH) - As technology moves on, have you found it easier to Compose or are you "old-school" and sit at a piano with sheet music and a pencil?
(GF) - It wasn't until 1998 that I had my own home studio and was able to put down all my ideas "on tape". I was using Cakewalk Pro Audio in the studio that I recorded in before then and have kept using the latest versions of that software since then. I guess you tend to gravitate to what you know. But, computers, in general, massively helped and continue to help how I write.
I work in a variety of different genres of music but largely pop/rock. If I'm writing something for myself then I'll sit at the piano or pick up an acoustic guitar, it tends to feel more personal then. Although, I do use my i-Pad for putting down a few ideas if I'm not near an instrument.
Technology can be really helpful and useful for getting things started, but unless you know how songs work from the ground up, you can get bogged down in technology. For me, write a great song first then worry about recording it. Although sometimes I have to record as I'm writing due to time constraints,so that keeps me on my toes!
(PH) - What influences your songwriting?
(GF) - I have a varied and interesting life! I meet loads of creative, fascinating people who are a constant source of inspiration. As I said before, I'm trying to find something universal,so irrespective of what the "brief" might be for what I'm supposed to be writing, I'm always trying to take something real from my life and experience that I can get into the song. That way, it hopefully becomes three dimensional. Songwriting can be therapy. I always feel better when I get it down on paper.
If I know I'm going to be doing a co-writing session with a dance artist or an R'n'B artist, then I tend to listen to a few of those kinds of records to make sure I'm on the right page.
(PH) - When writing - do the lyrics and music come at the same time or do you find that your write one and then work on the other?
(GF) - I almost never write lyrics on their own. It tends to be that the melody dictates what the words should be. I don't give a damn how great your lyrics are, if the melody isn't there - the song stinks. Melody is everything.
I recently wrote and recorded a new song called "The Invisible Man". I had the title and the idea for a few months just kicking around in the back of my head. This was something that totally came together in the studio. I put together a very simple backing track and whilst I was doing that the melody came to me. I kept mumbling nonsense until the nonsense became words that made sense with the original intent of the song. So really they kind of happened at the same time.
(PH) - I believe you are Currently Remixing your back catalogue of songs - can you tell us more?
(GF) - I'm putting out 4 compilation albums under the title "Fifty Shades Of Greg". Fifty tracks that span the years 1994-2013. Over the years I have written thousands and recorded hundreds of songs in a wide variety of styles. I just love to try writing different styles.
I'm first and foremost a Singer/Songwriter. This is my way of just putting all the main songs from my back catalogue out there. If anybody is curious about who I am and what I do then this is a good place to start. I've written and produced all the songs. I've played most of the parts myself with a few guest appearances from my talented friends. So if you hate it, it's really all my fault!
(PH) - Where can we listen/buy your music?
(GF) - You can listen to some of the tracks from "Fifty Shades" on www.gregfriel.com. My Christmas single from last year "Great Expectations" is available on i-Tunes now and all of "Fifty Shades" will be available on i-Tunes over the next year. I'm also working on an album of new material called "Twelve Tall Tales" which I hope to get out early in the new year. That'll be on i-Tunes as well.
I regularly update my tumblr blog with the latest tracks as I'm completing them. frielancemusic.tumblr.com
(PH) - Have you found the advent of iTunes and Youtube advantageous in your career?
(GF) - It's a strange one. There's positives and negatives. It's great that you can put out your own records and people can buy them if they want. It's more likely that they'll listen to them on Youtube though. But, the downside is that basically most people stream music now and don't buy and there is, quite simply, hardly any money in streaming if you're an artist or a songwriter.
Spotify pays massive sums of money to record companies, but the amount of money songwriters make through that route is neglible. It just seems like an updated version of the early days of the recording industry where the artist suffers. The main issue is that the future for professional songwriters is bleak. Streams of income are constantly at threat from the likes of Google and changes to copyright law. Why do people think that music should be free? Musicians need to be paid for their work.
Unless you're selling Katy Perry numbers and touring the world reaping those associated benefits then how are you making a living from music? There's other avenues to make money from licencing eg. having your songs used on T.V. or Films. But, a lot of these routes are under threat as well. These are broader issues though. I prefer to think positively and think that I get to put my music out there so that people can hear it if they want to. It'll find some kind of audience and that's what's important.
(PH) - What other projects do you have in the works?
I've just started working with Britain's Got Talent semi-finalist Edward Reid. We're writing some songs and I'm producing. We met at a gig recently and I loved his voice and the way he connected with the audience. We've done two songs so far. He's talented, funny and also incredibly kind. A rare combination.
I also have a number of acts in "Artist Development". I'm writing and producing with these acts and also directing promo videos and helping them with social media. Hayley J, Amanda Williams, GeO and Maria D.
I'm producing a new solo album for Douglas McQueen Hunter (Lead singer of The Picts). It's kind of Americana music. Dougie has written all the songs and I'm producing. We became good friends doing The Picts' albums so it's always a good laugh. It also helps that Dougie is a really talented singer-songwriter as well!
I do songwriting workshops at Performing Arts schools and for small groups of aspiring writers.
I work closely with Chris Judge's new gospel choir "Soul Nation". I recently shot a music video for their version of "Angels" and also sang with them at Murrayfield Stadium in front of 70,000 Scotland fans!
I'm always looking for new artists to work with and new challenges though.
(PH) - You seem to do a lot of collaborative work, who have you worked with recently and now?
(GF) - I co-wrote and produced the multi-award-winning "Hope In Troubled Times" album with Country duo Raintown.
I worked with The Picts on two albums of the music of Robert Burns (that was about 4 months work and a real departure for me) and currently with their lead singer Dougie on a solo album.
I've been doing a lot of work with Hayley J, a young singer/songwriter from Falkirk. We're doing pure pop.
I also just shot a promo video for GeO for his song "Everytime It Rains". We wrote the track and I produced it as well.
I also have several songwriter friends that I collaborate with online as well. That's a different way to work,but it's fun.
(PH) - As you know, I'm interested in creating movies. Have you ever considered writing a movie score and how would this process differ from normal songwriting?
(GF) - Yeah, I would love to do that. I tend to think a lot of my stuff is quite "cinematic" anyway. I've done a few short films, jingles and production music.
The process is different in that it's how the music relates to the picture and all about creating an appropriate mood and emotion within a very specific timeframe. It's quite a discipline. I'd love to do more of that kind of thing.
I currently do what I call "Event Music" where I do bespoke music for events. For the past three years I've composed original music for the Kirkintilloch Canal Festival Fireworks Display. That's always good to do. It's seven and a half minutes of original music synced to fireworks. Effectively a "Live Soundtrack".
I 'd also love to write, direct, score and star in a movie! I'm not ambitious!
(PH) - When you're not in the studio and you're driving back home of an evening - who do you listen to?
(GF) - I love Thirty Seconds To Mars. Their past two albums are great. I also like The Script, Train, Daft Punk, love Bruce Springsteen and my all-time favourite Prince. There's not much I don't listen to though.
(PH) - What are your thoughts on the likes of The X-Factor and Britain's Got Talent - have you ever thought of entering?
(GF) - I think programs like The X Factor and Got Talent have their place. It's a good way to shine a light on a new pop act or an unknown singer that needs a bit of promo. It's never been something that's interested me. I've always just done my own thing. The joy for me is writing and producing my own music. I know a lot of people who want to be famous and the music is secondary. For me, the music comes first. I have absolutely no interest in performing other people's songs.
I do think that it creates all sorts of expectations about the industry as well. Too many kids aren't prepared to put in the work to make it. It's hard graft, dedication and luck. There are no shortcuts and it is a really really tough business. I've been a judge in a few talent competitions and seen kids breakdown whenever they don't get through to the next round. If you're crying, you are not tough enough to handle this. Go and do something else because this business will destroy you if you let it. I hate all the sob stories on these shows. But that's it in a nutshell -i t's a show. It has very little to do with music alone. It's entertainment. Sometimes, it's the story that makes it.
(PH) - Can you point us in the direction of your websites?
(GF) - Yeah sure.
www.gregfriel.com
www.frielancemusic.co.uk
frielancemusic.tumblr.com
(PH) - Well thank you for taking the time to chat with me Greg and we look forward to catching up with you another time.
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