I started out recording music in 2008. I released a bunch of songs on SoundCloud between 2010 and 2015. I have written hundreds of songs, over 20 years. Most of which have never seen the light of day. Many of which the lyrics are awful, or the production is terrible or the arrangement is too busy.. You get the idea.

I haven't released a great deal of music (officially). This is mainly because of my inability to achieve the results I want, to be truly happy with the song. I am letting go of perfectionism, as I now realise, it is unattainable. I just want to share my idea's with people who may appreciate them.

Last year I was mumbling over a chord progression (That's how it usually starts) that I recorded on my phone and forgot about. Maybe a few days, maybe a week later I took Dice (my dog) for a walk and was listening through my recordings. Needless to say, most of which was totally unusable.. but as I coasted from one recording to the next I found this melody which I had hummed in falsetto over an minor progression. That was the hook. There were no words, but when I got home I started writing the lyrics. I felt like the melody carried such weight that it had to be put to a good cause.

I loved NYE 2024!!

I don't usually care about the end of year celebrations. I feel no sentimental attachment to it, but this year was fun!

Last year I had played a fairly drawn out series of sets in a village pub. It was good. It went well considering I don't exactly play 'Party' music. Obviously, it pays pretty well (that's the motivation). I had learned Auld Lang Syne in preparation, so I was covered. I wasn't super excited about it though, and so for NYE 24 I decided not to play.

I was then contacted by a local band (The Stone Black Witches) who asked me to play a supporting slot for them in Retford. It was only an hour and early on so I decided to go for it. Little did I know how fun it would be.

I play mainly 'Background music' gigs, some of which you play at a low level and with no response from the people there. That's not a moan, I totally accept it as that's what you're booked for in those places. I have gotten used to this, to the point that when you get a big response after a song, it's quite overwhelming. I of course appreciate it, I'm just not used to it.

From the title, you are possibly expecting this to be a moan..?

But no, nothing negative here. In fact, quite the opposite. I have realised that I have so much time, but I don't always get much done in this time. Time management! Definitely has never been my strong suit.

I have recently been reading/listening to much content on getting motivated and staying focused. I have many projects (Big and small) that I would like to finish this year. Some of which I have wanted to complete (or start) for many years. This is bad.. I know. So I need to change. But what?

So I have a lot of time where I can't do certain things because I don't have the right environment or conditions for it to occur, for example; Recording (mainly vocals), Shooting live videos and writing songs. This is usually due to doing these activities at home and always having a full house. Lot's of noise and distractions. It's not a bad thing of course, it's nice and what we strive for. To have the ones we care about around us.

But.. there are many occasions when the house is free, I have the opportunity.. But it's almost as if it has jumped out of nowhere and its taken me by surprise. Caught me off guard. I feel completely unprepared and so I panic.. I start to try and pull a plan together of what I could do in that time. I start something, then I think of another.. then another.. and so.. I don't get anything done.

This is indecisiveness and not organising my time. I know I have plenty of opportunities, but I must think about the things I want to achieve before these opportunities come along. I must have clarity in what it is that is of the highest priority. I must be sure. I must decide.

As one of many new years resolutions, I have decided to start a blog. I want to capture things I experience and things I learn along my journey. Also it would be nice to reminisce on times that have passed.

I have now been playing as a semi-professional musician for around  7 years. It all happened unintentionally really. I just wanted to share my own music, so I decided to take to the streets and busk. Needless to say, I was pretty nervous, but somehow I persevered. It was shortly after I started that I was asked if I play weddings. I just paused and was like.. Yeah, sure. I realised in that moment that there was more to busking than its initial pay off. It was the start of my (paid) musical journey.

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Bookings quite quickly started to roll in after distributing many business cards. Some of my designs were a little strange as I had no idea what I was doing. As time passed I refined my style and figured things out. I pretty much started with 15 songs that I sort of knew how to play. As soon as the first few bookings came in I swiftly took to learning another 20 or so.

My original music took a back seat, though I always made sure I would include my own songs in my set. I feel like at some point I just stopped making time for writing and focused mostly on learning cover songs and building my repertoire, as that was paying.