rial: Across a Crowded Room, Daring Adventures--

Shoot Outthe Lights?

Yeah, Shoot Out the Lights. Amnesia. I love those albums.

You kinda already hit on this, but I noticed here in your bio that you shared a bill with Richard Thompson.

Yeah. What are some thoughts on him?

[laughing] I--I think Richard is pretty brilliant, y'know. | like his stuff a lot. I particularly liked to see him play his stuff solo; I think it makes him stretch outa little bit more, and also it’s not some- thing that you get to hear very

Sure.

Okay... Paul Simon.

Yeah. Paul Simon was an influence when | first started really picking up the guitarand learning. There’s a point where you try to pick upa whole repertoire of stuff to be playing at lounges and stuff, and I learned a lot of his songs. I was learning his _ picking style and chords--he’sa very complex guitar- ist, a real underrated guitarist. I picked up his way of finger picking and his use of voicings and stuff like that.

Bob Dylan.

Yeah, well actually, just before I phoned you up, I go

the Bootleg Series boxed set and I’ve been listening

to that. I think I’ve been influenced by him in several different ways. I mean there’s

often soit’sareal treat. Theshow [CE we did was at a very big theatre in London and I was very nervous,

so in terms of my own perform-

ance I didn’t feel real centred in

it, but when I finished I could sit

back and watch what Richard was doing. It was quite brilliant. I

have a lot of respect for him. I

"Paul Simon's a very complex guitarist, a real

—— the obvious: yousitdown, —

you listen toa Bob Dylan : record, and you go, ‘‘God, how does he write these songs?!”’. Some of themare so good, they’re just so good, I love the tune ‘‘It Takesa _ Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry.’ It’s just a

Horan sighisone che) underrated sido tie favourites, but it’s probably the ' ' " chunk of Bob Dylan material. one that will do the best for him guitarist. I think I could sing you

in along time.

Who are some vocalists you

probably three ofhis songs — and that’s it. But you can be influenced by Bob Dylan

admire?

[long pause] Oh, I just got an early, early Frank Sinatra album called Jn the Wee Small Hours of the Morning and 1 love it, I love the way he sings. Maybe more contemporary, I like the way Stevie Ray Vaughn sings a lot. Actually, I listened to a Colin James song on the radio the other day, and I was quite blown away by the way he sang it. Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James--I could go onand on.

I’ve been thinking about a few guys who are musi- cally related to you in some way or another, and I was just going to rhyme a few off and you can talk about them and say if they were an influence on you or whatever.

UPEI X-P RESS

March 12, 1992

directly or youcan be influ-

enced by all the other people who have been influenced by Bob Dylan. I’m sure ‘ John Martin was influenced by Bob Dylan. I’m sure — Richard Thompson was. And Paul Simon. If you’re & interested in songwriting, you just have to go to Bob- Dylan. He’s someone who amalgamated and created a lot of new things, there’s no doubt. .

This one’s pretty far out, but I was wondering if © there was any Van Morrison in there? :

Yeah, that’s a lesser one, but it’s certainly someone ; admire. | saw him in Dublin at Christmas while I was over in Ireland. I’ve learned some of his material, but it’s only been recently, like in the last year, that I started really going back and listening and appreciat :