Sunday 22 January 2012

Steve Gibbons talks and plays on Radio to Go

A conversation with live music from Steve Gibbons and John Caswell
I aim to tell stories about musicians from my city on this blog. In this post, however, Steve Gibbons is telling the stories... and how. This is one of a series of programmes I recorded with local musicians last year, working with Brian Travers of UB40 on his Music Up project. 

It’s a simple notion: we get together in a studio, we talk, and the musicians play, live. It’s a conversation with music, and, of course, the programme is only as good as the music and the conversation. Steve has great music and brilliant stories, so this one’s a winner.

I now have the privilege of giving the show a first outing on Radio To Go. But if you’re working on a station that would like to air it, that’s fine too; just read on. I’ve broken it down into roughly two equal parts: part one is right here; part two, now with a Flipcam clip of part of the session, follows on.



Steve Gibbons is one of the most loved musicians in Birmingham. He’s been his highly individual, poetic and articulate self, for nigh on fifty years. If you don’t know Steve, you should. Here’s the Wikipedia page, and here's a fan site.



This show was originally meant for a first broadcast airing on Birmingham Internet station Rhubarb Radio, but since that station fell over late last year, I’d rather not let it gather dust. So, accidentally, but not unpleasantly, this was an exclusive on this blog. However, we agreed at the start of working this series that shows would be free for rebroadcast on any station that would like to have the programme. So, if you’re such a station, email me through this blog (link below) and I’ll get a copy to you.  WCRfm, a community station in Wolverhampton, was the first station to take delivery of this programme for rebroadcast. It aired in February. 

My thanks for to Steve and John, Brian and the team at Music Up in Coventry. And the photo right here? Thank you, Steve Ajao.

There may be more to come in this series. Feedback is very welcome in the meantime. And I am open to suggestions...


Finally, here's a FlipCam shot of part of the session, shot by Brian Travers.



Also in the In The Studio series
360 at Elephant House
Steve Ajao

2 comments:

Paul Murphy said...

He was raised in the suburbs
got his education on the street
transistor radio upon his shoulder
he was smitten by the beat
like Jacob on the ladder
where the angels come and go
in those vivid conversations
that's where he learned to flow
He's Mr Rock'n'Roll

A great session with Steve Gibbons, Robin. A real legend!

Radio To Go said...

Thank you, Paul. Praise from one of Birmingham's finest wordsmiths is praise indeed!