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Let's Get this Show on the Road!!! Author & Musician Terry Edwards gives it a go for Madness Central It's impossible to have partaken of popular music over the last three decades without running into Terry Edwards. Having worked with the likes of Tom Waits, Robyn Hitchcock, and Nick Cave, not to mention our lads in Madness, be it Bedders in BUtterfield 8, the Wonderful sessions, and all manners of Terry Edwards All-Stars line ups, if you've missed out on Terry Edwards you must have been living in a deep cave on one of the most frigidly desolate moons of Jupiter with your thumbs tightly in your ears and your eyes glued permanently shut. Collaboration isn't the end game for Terry, though. He's got his own record label (Sartorial), he's more than adept as a pianist, guitarist, trumpeter and saxophonist, he's proven his chops as a songwriter, and just this month he's added published author to his resume. Some might suspect Terry is the most diversely interesting person we've talked with here at Madness Central. We were lucky to hit Terry up at this juncture, to get his angle on being such an omni-gifted musician/songwriter as well as getting his take on the more timely subject of his "Madness' One Step Beyond (33 1/3)" paperback (polite plug: In Stores Now!). Is Terry Edwards an interesting bloke? If you didn't think so before, see if you disagree by the end of this interview. Interview by Jonathan Young and Steve Bringe |
 Author & Musician Terry Edwards Photo by John Lee Bird Click image for 'One Step Beyond 33 1/3' book details |
Madness Central: You are one of the few popular artists of the 1980's who actually graduated with a music degree, from the University of East Anglia. Does this classical training come in handy with your multitude of projects?
Terrry Edwards: Being able to read & write music comes in handy - especially when you don't work with someone for a few months & you have some parts already written out so you don't have to relearn everything from scratch. It was a good course at UEA, too. I got to hear some great modern music & even met John Cage (possibly the most important composer of the 20th century. Barson aside...)
MC: You started out on piano and trumpet and later picked up a guitar, but how did you end up with your signature instrument, the saxophone?
TE: I really loved sax players Earl Bostic & Davey Payne (from The Blockheads) and asked for a sax for my 18th birthday. I got one - you have to be careful what you wish for!
MC: Both you and Mark Bedford came to BUtterfield 8 fresh out of your first and only bands. How was that experience? Were you anxious or nervous starting anew?
TE: I was anxious about asking an excellent bass-player from a famous band to play some of my tunes for a weekly wage of absolutely nothing, but I think it was obvious from the start that we were like-minded.
MC: With BUtterfield 8, you re-released the album with additional rare tracks. A few more made it onto your compilation albums of rarities. Are there any other unreleased tracks that didn't make it from this band?
TE: There's a version of "I'm Putting All My Eggs In One Basket" which has a vocal (gasp!) - but I'm not sure it's good enough to release.
MC: What track or tracks do you think epitomise BUtterfield 8?
TE: 'The Talented Mr Ripley' (swaggering) and 'It Was Nothing' (educated noodling!).
MC: You have performed with members of Madness in a myriad of capacities, BUtterfield 8, Terry Edwards All-Stars, Woody guesting with the Scapegoats and EP's featuring band members in the line up. Are there any highlights from these performances that stand out for you to this day?
TE: It's a pleasure playing with all these chaps at any time, but a particularly poignant gig was a Scapegoats one which Woody played with us in Whitechapel the day after the hideous tube bombings on July 7th. Despite it being difficult to get anywhere by public transport - for obvious reasons - there was a great turnout, we played (with all the Dunkirk spirit we could muster) in the London Hospital Tavern, right next door to where the survivors of the Aldgate bomb were being treated. Staggeringly under-rehearsed, Woody played his socks off & refused even petrol money for the show. He's a diamond.
MC: You have played unaccredited on tons of releases, such as the Bangles and Nice Cave & the Bad Seeds. Does the money spend as well, even without the acknowledgement?
TE: Well, it would have been nice to have got my name on the b-side of the Nick Cave/Kylie single as it was such a big hit! I seem to be able to fritter my meagre wages away quite adequately...
MC: Gallon Drunk was the opening band at the original Madstock; what are your memories of opening that day to a Madness crowd?
TE: I went to both days, but only played on the second where the anti-Morrissey/Gallon Drunk faction was, thankfully, an even smaller minority than the day before. It was the first time I'd played live with GD and it was fantastic. James Johnston was/is a star, turning it on in broad daylight in front of a festival crowd that wanted to hear Baggy Trousers 15 times. I wore quite baggy trousers, actually. In fact the same pair as I wore for the 1st BUtterfield 8 gig at Ronnie Scott's. How's that for continuity?
MC: How does that compare to playing live with Madness on sax in the brass section in 2003?
TE: Nothing prepared me for standing on stage in Dublin (first show of the tour) seeing 8,000 Madness fans clapping above their heads like the Radio Ga-Ga video. I'll never forget it.
MC: So you've interviewed all of Madness and written the One Step Beyond Story. Give us all a teaser of why we need to read this definitive book on the album.
TE: Well - it's the definitive book on the album, that's why! You'll discover some interesting influences (Steely Dan!); stories behind who had a hand in writing the songs (jury's out on Bed & Breakfast Man according to Chris); why Madness isn't credited on the sleeve (only Clive Langer knew the story) - but everyone's keeping schtum about who the naked lady is on the inner sleeve (although one or two reckoned they knew who knew...)
MC: Not everyone knows what the 33 1/3rd series of books is about. Can you us tell what the idea is behind this book series and the approach you have taken bringing Madness into this line of music books?
TE: The series started with the publishers headhunting musicians/writers/artists to write short books about albums which they could approach in any way they wished - consequently a couple of books in the series are completely fictional or 'inspired by the music' rather than a history of the recording process. Once the first few had been published there was an 'open house' policy for anyone to apply to write on any album (provided the album hadn't been covered, or the same artist commissioned). I got wind of this & suggested One Step Beyond, and got through to the shortlist before being one of 21 out of 450 applicants to get a contract.
I thought it'd be good to tell the story of the tracks and write a 'social history' at the same time. Being in the unique position of growing up with the album from day one, being signed to Two Tone a couple of years later, then working with the band I felt I could write the story of Madness's first album with a lot of depth and clarity. So that's what I've done!
As the publishing company, Continuum, is American based there are a few sentences here and there which the British readers may find a little unnecessary - I have to explain that 'currant bun' is rhyming slang for The Sun, then explain that it's a tabloid newspaper - but if you can get through those bits and pieces I think it all hangs together without being patronising.
MC: As an iconic album in the history of popular music, what do you feel are the main strengths of One Step Beyond?
TE: I think it speaks for itself that, 30 years later and with a further 7 or 8 albums under their belt, the Madness set still includes at least six of the fifteen tracks of their debut album - about 25% of the live set. The songs are so bloody good.
MC: Are there any artistic similarities between being a musician and being an author?
TE: Hard to tell. I'll let you know after my twelfth book...
MC: Your band mate Charlie Higson went on to be an author by writing James Bond Jr. books, you've now become an author. Charlie also had success as a character comedian... have you ever thought about going into comedy yourself? Tell us a joke.
TE: So you've not seen me dressed as Toulouse Lautrec on the Parkinson show with Madness?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BSJaiihWEs
Brett Lee being left out of the Australian team for the last match in the Ashes series - joke's on them (ha!).
MC: Sartorial Records is your labour of love for all your music collaborations and more. What's in the pipeline for future releases?
TE: There's a very limited reissue on coloured vinyl-style CD of the Scapegoats recordings on Wiiija - "I didn't get where I am today" (complete)
Big Sexy Noise - 12 track CD of the Lydia Lunch/Gallon Drunk collaboration
Wax & Wayne - the remix album by Micko Westmoreland
There are a couple of Robyn Hitchcock things due in the new year, plus a Swordfish retrospective (with Tommy Barlow, second saxman in BUtterfield 8)
MC: You played sax on six tracks on the Madness album "Wonderful". Did you play on any tracks in that era that didn't make the final record? And have you done any studio work with Madness since?
TE: All the stuff I was on got released. I did a couple of Dangermen rehearsals before I got whisked off to work on Tom Waits' "Black Rider" stage show, so didn't play on that album - though mine is one of the mashed up voices on the first track, 'live and intensified'!
MC: On "The Communicator" and "The Wizard" you did the brass arrangements. What is the process of composing a proper arrangement?
TE: Sometimes you get a melody to work with & write the harmonies and rhythmic differences, sometimes you get a complete blank sheet of paper to do what you want (which is never really the case as the band kind of knows what they want but can't describe it), or you get someone singing the parts they have 'in their head'... Beware of the folks with voices in their head.
MC: How was returning to the Madness live line up this year, and how hard is it to resist Steve Turner's Choreography teachings?
TE: It was great to stand in for the right honourable Joe Auckland on trumpet a few times in the summer - and to play in the encores at Madstock after the Jerry Dammers set (which was also a hoot).
It's easy to resist the Rent-A-Blues-Brothers school of choreography - it's better to stand stock still and be thought a fool than to start twitching your toes and remove all doubt...
MC: Your session work reads like a who's who of popular music over the last three decades. Is there anyone you still would want to work with at this point?
TE: If Iggy Pop rings up, all bets are off & I'm on a plane to go & play with him.
MC: You were friends with the late great John Peel. Any choice memories you can share from these heady days?
TE: About 20 years ago I had very little work, hadn't been touring, so hadn't sent John any postcards - as I always did whenever I was away - and he rang me up, completely out of the blue. "I haven't heard from you for a while. I was just calling to see if you were all right," he said. For such a busy man - who had far closer pals than me - to take time out of his day to see how I was is still very moving. But I am a sentimental old rocker, deep down.
MC: Finally, are The Biscuitmen ever reforming for more music or snacks?
TE: Tea & biscuits are always on the menu. Bedders has been slaving away in the shed at the bottom of his garden, when not committing the entirety of Norton Folgate to memory, and once the KEEP OUT sign has been taken off the door I hope to cajole him into releasing the fruits of his labours on Sartorial. It won't be called The Biscuitmen, but I'm sure it'll be dandy. Breath-holding not recommended.
You can find Terry Edwards at:
Sartorial Records eBay Shop
Terry Edwards on MySpace
27 August 2009
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