Gary Hughes (TEN) – Interview

Gary Hughes (TEN) – Interview

14 Febbraio 2014 3 Commenti Alessandro Lifonti

Interview by Alessandro Lifonti

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2014 Couldn’t start any better: I’m about to interview one of my favorite singers… Gary Hughes!

MR.it: Gary, let’s talk about TEN: When and where did you meet Vinny Burns and the other guys of the band?
GH: Vinny was still a member of ‘Dare’ when we first met, while at the time I had my own band ‘Big Bad Wolf’. We both frequented to a long since closed rock club called ‘Jilly’s’ in Manchester, where anyone and everyone from the ‘rock scene’ would go for a night out. The first two TEN albums were originally going to be Gary Hughes solo records. Vinny was hired on a session basis but things worked really well and it soon became a band situation. Vinny brought in Greg Morgan (drums) and Martin Shelton (bass). I knew John Halliwell (guitar) from when his band supported my solo band and he in turn suggested Ged Rylands (keyboards). So that’s really how the original line-up of TEN was formed.

MR.it: There have been a few changes in the line-up along the years. Can you tell us what really happened?
GH: Yes you’re right, there have been many line-up changes over the years but such is the nature of bands, not to mention that unfortunately very few ever retain their original members. TEN still do retain 3 of what I would call original members from the classic ‘The Name of the Rose’ and ‘The Robe’ era. Apart from myself, John has been a member since the very first tour and Steve McKenna (bass) joined the ranks shortly after. Without getting into specific details some members felt the need to move on and do their own thing musically, while others stayed for the long haul and that’s just the way it is. The important thing is that the band continues and that’s what I’m really proud of: That this band is still a going force 18 years after its formation, long may it continue.

MR.it: What is the next step for TEN?
GH: Well, as we speak I’m just completing the material that will become the next TEN record. I’ve already sent out the ‘roughs’ to the guys in the band in order for them to familiarize themselves with the material, and once they’ve got their various parts and ideas worked out we’ll re-group and start the recording process. It’s going to be a busy year for us, that’s for sure, as we already have enough material for 2 albums. I’ve also written enough for an acoustic record, which is something I’ve wanted to do for many years, the idea being of doing an un-plugged show which would be recorded for a release at a later date. We’re also booking dates for a tour later this year, one of which will be our ‘Firefest’ appearance, which will be recorded for a DVD release.

MR.it: You released many solo albums, you worked and helped other artists ( Hugo, Bob Catley, Johnny Lima, Ayreon ) to write and record their own albums, beside TEN. Is it still that easy for you to write so many songs after all these years?
GH: The simple answer is yes, I’m always writing and not everything I come up with is suitable for TEN or even for a Gary Hughes record, so it’s good to have an outlet where I can write for other artists. It’s very different writing for other performers and it challenges me creatively. When I write for myself it’s very easy, as I know exactly how I’m going to sing a certain melody or a lyric, but writing for someone else it’s a very different approach. Firstly, I’ll listen to what they’ve done previously which will give me an indication of where their comfort zone is e.g. what keys they prefer to sing in and what style of music their voice suits.

MR.it: Do you have any musicians in mind who you would like to work with in the future?
GH: I’m always open to offers and suggestion to work with other artists. In fact, lately I’ve been writing and producing for a band called ‘Serpentine’ who toured with TEN back in 2012. Sure, there are many people that it would be interesting to work with but I much prefer doing the writing myself as I don’t really collaborate. When I write, I have a very good idea of where the song is going and what the lyrics should be about.

MR.it: These days some artists such as Eric Martin and Mike Tramp are touring only with their acoustic guitars. Would you like to do something like that?
GH: Do you mean just by myself and an acoustic guitar? If that’s the case then no, not really. I much prefer going out with other musicians. I have thought of doing some solo shows featuring material I’ve never played live in a more acoustic, intimate setting, but even then I’d be using a keyboard player, guitarist and a backing vocalist. As I stated previously, TEN are going to play an-unplugged set in the very near future which is something I’m much more interested in doing.

MR.it: If you had to share the stage for one night with another singer, who would you share it with and why?
GH: ‘Dita Von Teese’, but if she wasn’t available it would be ‘Eddie Van Halen’, because when Van Halen’s first album came out back in ’78 it raised the bar to a different level as far as guitar playing was concerned. It was a ‘game changer’ and that was all down to Eddie’s ground breaking style and technique.

MR.it: Which TEN songs do you prefer to play live?
GH: Now that’s an almost impossible question to answer because the band and myself have so many favorites… Seriously, what do you leave out? When we decide on a set-list we have to include all the classics that fans would expect to hear e.g. Name of the Rose, The Robe, Ten Fathoms Deep, After the Love Has Gone, Red etc. and then we also have to include songs from our latest release, but the problem is that the more albums we release the more songs we’d like to include. In fact, if we did them all we’d be on stage for literally hours. One song I always wanted to do and we’ve finally got around to adding to the set is ‘Valentine’ from Babylon.

MR.it: Are there any chances that Italian fans can see you performing in Italy in the near future?
GH: Yes there’s every possibility it could happen, we’d certainly love to play in Italy again. It’s been far too long since we last toured over there. In fact, if I remember rightly it was way back when Vinny was still in the band, must have been around 97-98? ‘Jason Thanos’ our tour manager, is looking into promoters from all over Europe for possible tour dates that could take place in 2014, including Italy, so if we can get the bookings we’ll be there.

Thank you very much Mr. Gary Hughes! Keep in touch! Rock on!

© 2014, Alessandro Lifonti. All rights reserved.