Posted Tuesday 29th July 2008

Matt the Runner - Hillcrest 08

JC and Me.

Rochester Solo

Back in April I decided it was about time I started running again as a means to maintaining a level of fitness. There has been an article in the press recently that suggests that drummers are fitter than premiership footballers so I wouldn't want to let the side down. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7517867.stm

I entered an 8K race in Surrey for the middle of May to give myself a goal to work towards. I knew the course from four years ago - mainly off road and rather hilly. My training consisted of just a two mile circuit every other day for about five weeks. I only increased the distance to four miles the week before the race.

On race day I lined up alongside a hundred or so competitors, all looking the epitome of health and fitness...and youth! I found out later that there were actually sixty or so in my category of "veteran" (that's the over forties) so I was pretty confident I wouldn't be last. The tension rose as "Chariots of Fire" blared out of the PA system but quickly dissipated as the starter gun failed and somebody had to shout "GO".

Two laps of the field had to be completed before we were sent out to "Riddles Down" for the real work to begin. It was a glorious day and the views quite stunning. For me it was really all about the time and not getting injured. After all, it was the day before we started rehearsals! I was delighted to get round in 37' 23" - about a minute faster than I did four years ago. The bonus was I came 10th in the vets category and 17th overall. Well chuffed! What next? The London Marathon? Ah, but that's 21 miles and 385 yards further. Hmmn...

At the gig in Westonbirt I got the chance to meet John Coghlan... and what a thoroughly nice chap! Good to talk drums with the original Quo drummer. He was certainly an influence on me during my teenage years and I do incorporate a lot of his drumming into what I play with Quo today. Knowing JC was in the audience and that the gig was being recorded for a live CD made for an exciting show. No pressure - NOT!

During the Eastern European tour Francis he asked me if I'd ever hit myself in the eye with a drumstick. "Only once", I said, "during a sound check with A-ha, in Rio twenty years ago." Sure enough, two days later in Bratislava I whacked myself in the eye with a drumstick, right at the end of my solo. Ouch! The black eye lasted the rest of the week!

Playing at Rochester Castle is a real buzz. I grew up in the Medway Towns and went to school in Rochester, so it's like a local gig for me. During the show it was quite a unique moment to see a giant silhouette of myself covering one side of the castle - apparently a fluke of the lighting. It's a great view from the stage and the audience is always fantastic. It was good to see my mum in the front row, rockin' to her favourite number - 'Down Down'!

The night before Rochester, Val and I went to see Leonard Cohen at the O2 Arena - what a fantastic night! Not the sort of show I would normally think of going to see but I'm so glad I did. A good friend of mine, Rafael Gayol, was in the drum chair. He was the percussionist I played with during A-ha's 1988-89 World tour. It was an immaculately presented show - Leonard certainly knows how to create an intimate atmosphere, even with 18,000 people.

The musicians and singers were faultless. They rehearsed for three months learning virtually every song from Leonard's back catalogue, so that he could vary the set every night. Now there's an idea...

Pictures:
Hillcrest 8K finish by Grace Letley
JC & me by Dave Salt
Rochester solo #1 by PaddyPics
Rochester solo #2 and #3 by Cyndy Gleisner

Posted Tuesday 13th May 2008

Matt in Portugal - the one sunny day!

Sunset on the beach

Y Lliwedd from the summit of Snowdon

Yr Aran from the south ridge of Snowdon

It feels such a long time since the last Quo gig but that's probably because it is! With rehearsals imminent for the next installment of life on the road, the luxury of this extended break will soon be a dim and distant memory. Can't wait to get back out there though.

January is a time of recovery from the UK tour and a chance to catch up on all those domestic chores that I no longer have an excuse to put off!

In early February Val and I managed to get away for a week in Portugal. We stayed at a fantastic villa, which was just as well as the weather wasn't all that clever.

I played a gig in a tiny pub in Maidstone a couple of months ago with a good friend of mine, Richard Manktelow, who is an amazing guitarist and singer. I've known him since I was 12 years old. Also in the line up was Jack Long, a keyboard player I used to do sessions with in a studio in Rochester over 25 years ago, and bass player John Porter. It was more a jam session and social reunion than a gig - a little rough around the edges at times but great fun.

I used a small kit on this gig which got me thinking about a change of set up for this year. Fellow drummer, Geoff Dunn, recommended Gary Noonan, a custom drum maker, who I'd heard of but never met. As it happens, when I called him, he swiftly told me that we had met before at a gig in Gravesend, way back in 1976! Don't you hate those people who remember everything? I was playing in a prog rock band, called Sindelfingen, with the above mentioned Richard and Gary was in a band called Paddington. He reminded me that I had refused to lend him my hi-hat cymbals for the gig. Oops! In fairness, I'd only just acquired a pair of Paiste 602 13" hi-hat cymbals and they were, at the time, my pride and joy. I think he's forgiven me!

I went along to see the drums Gary makes and couldn't help but be impressed by the quality and attention to detail he puts into producing them. I placed an order and within a few weeks it was ready. For me, one big advantage of a custom kit is having exactly the sizes I want i.e. specific depths. I've gone for a slightly smaller set up but bigger sizes all round and I have to say I'm very much looking forward to taking it out on the road with Quo.

Then there was the gig with the Woodedz:
John drafted me in after Max found himself snowed under with work for his degree. This was a severe test of my memory (it's six or so years since I last did Rhino's Revenge) but after a couple of hurriedly arranged rehearsals it all came flooding back. It was a good laugh going to the gig in Paris in the modern day equivalent of an old Transit van - pretty luxurious compared to how it used to be back in the old days! It was great to have Mike Paxman with us to oversee the whole thing. He did his utmost to try and keep the vehicle tidy but his efforts with a dustpan and brush were completely in vain. The gig went well and it was nice to see so many familiar faces in Paris. I must say John's singing was better than ever and as for Freddie, he's simply awesome! If he keeps on improving at the same rate, who knows where he'll end up - the sky's the limit!

As well as recording my own stuff at home I've also done a few sessions for other people - all via the internet. Ove Wulff, who did a cover of 'Drifting Away' last year which I played on, recently asked me to play on one of his own compositions called 'This Moment'. He's got a great voice and plays wicked guitar. I love the solo he plays on this latest track which you can listen to on Ove's Myspace.

Finally, I'm sure you're all dying to know if I've been up Snowdon this year. Ah, but of course; and in early April it certainly lived up to its name! See you out there soon...

Posted Sunday 2nd December 2007

The Snowdon Horseshoe

Fuel Stop!

After the good but rather gruelling tours of France and Germany, for me, there is no better way to refresh and prepare for a UK tour than with a bit of mountain therapy. So on 5th November I slung my boots and rucksack in the back of the car I took off up the M40 heading towards one of my favourite parts of the world, Snowdonia.

I reached the car park at Llyn Ogwen around 2.30pm and soon made keen progress up the track towards the 'Devil's Kitchen' and ultimately the summit of Y Garn. Fortunately, and somewhat unusually, it wasn't raining but it was rather windy at the top. Views from this 3107 foot peak are second to none and with the light starting to fade, it was both dramatic and slightly intimidating. Had to leg it down the NE ridge (the quickest option) and just made it down before dark...phew!

The following day I just had to do what is widely regarded as one of the finest ridge walks in the country, the Snowdon Horseshoe. This involves some airy and quite exhilarating scrambling. It really clears the head when the only thing have to think about is not falling off! It also has the benefit of optimising fitness for that other extreme sport in my life, "Quo drumming"! A five to six hour walk with stunning views and near complete silence in all directions... magic.

At the summit: Rachel, Andy, Rhino (just!)

On my third and final day I nipped up Snowdon from Llanberis - the route of the annual Snowdon Race. The weather wasn't too kind so no records broken; or bones fortunately. Down by lunchtime for the long drive home and back to reality. In fact, just enough time to hang the climbing gear up to dry, iron a shirt for our appearance on 'This Morning" and get my brain into gear for the opening show of the UK tour in Southend. Before I knew it, the house lights had gone down and we were into "Caroline"...here we go again! Three weeks or so later my outdoor pursuits seemed a dim and distant memory. However, we did happen to have day off in Llandudno. "Hmmn...what shall I do?", I thought. I know, hire a car and head back to Snowdon; obviously!

This time I was accompianied by John (going for his 4th ascent) and two Snowdon rookies: FOH sound engineer, Andy, and one of our splendid young caterers, Rachel. The weather was typically Welsh, i.e. zero visibility before I'd finished parking the car at Pen-y-Pass! The rain made an appearance shortly after we got under way but no-one seemed to mind. Spirits were lifted somewhat when a break in the mist yielded a glimpse of the huge lake in the valley below. Copious amounts of cake, bananas and jelly babies provided the necessary fuel to battle the elements and ever steepening gradient and with a certain amount of grit and determination, the summit was finally achieved in a respectable two and a half hours. We were soon joined by seagulls well practiced in the art of swallowing entire sandwiches in one almighty gulp - awesome! Everyone agreed it was a most enjoyable day and I was extremely pleased that we all made it down without incident.

The next day I just had to go back and do it again! (Who ever said all drummers are mad?). Rather than tire me out it seemed to fire me up for a fantastic gig in Llandudno that night. A superb audience and for me personally, one of the best solos I've played.

Aha, I've just noticed there's a day off before Manchester. I wonder if...?

Posted Monday 17th September 2007

It's a long way to Norway - particularly by bus! Yes lots of travelling was the order of the day for many of July's 31 with some of the longest trips I've ever done. I'm not complaining, in fact, it's a great way of seeing parts of the planet you'd never normally see; albeit from a bus or boat window.

One of the other great perks of touring is that we get to see and meet other musicians. A highlight of the Swedish tour for me was watching Chuck Berry from side of stage. He was certainly on form that opening night in Jarvso; and what an inspiration to be out there rockin' at age 82!

Matt with his preferred mode of transport... the Apollo10 Command Module

We drove to Worcester via Finland and Holland (like you do) and played the final gig of July in the beautiful setting of Scone Castle, Scotland.

I've been involved in quite a few pop videos over the years and those with Quo have all been great fun to make. There was the Ark Royal and then wing-walking - fantastic experiences, I admit, but the downside is that they take a long time to shoot and inevitably there's a lot of hanging around.

We cracked it with our latest video though by choosing a location that we were only permitted to be in for an hour and a half - the London Eye for three revolutions! A glorious day meant the views from the top of the wheel were stunning. Not that there was any time for sight seeing as it was pretty much full on filming from start to finish (I'll resist saying from beginning to end...but then again...!).

There was no silencer pad for the snare drum so to avoid deafening everyone I had to imitate playing by hitting the rim of the drum which makes a quieter click sound. This is a pretty alien way of playing and there was tho odd occasion when I made full contact with rim and drum (i.e. rimshot) which in such a confined space sounded like a gunshot and made everyone jump! Apologies to band and crew...I didn't mean to!

August saw us playing at the Bulldog Bash. Not a regular Quo gig and we felt we would have to work extra hard to win the crowd's approval. Fortunately they were up for a good time and we were rewarded with a fantastic reaction. Supporting us that night were the Sensational Alex Harvey Band (without the late Alex Harvey of course) and I managed to meet up with an old friend of mine, guitarist Zal Cleminson. He and I toured with Elkie Brookes back in 1984. It's interesting bumping into someone in such completely different circumstances to those in which we first met.

Staggered off the bus mid-morning in Skanderborg to watch a symphony orchestra play the theme from Star Wars - a cosmic and fine start to the day. Next up was the amazing Walter Trout and his band. Got talking to Joey, the excellent drummer, and it turns out he's a bit of a Quo fan! Nice to see him standing at side of stage when we were playing our set.

The UK shows at the end of August brought the "Just Doin It" tour to a close which means it's time to search for that fourth chord. "Can I phone a friend?" someone asked. Actually, that's another story...

Posted Tuesday 10th July 2007

The 'Quo Touring Machine' started up quite gently this year with a couple of one off shows. The first for OK magazine at the refurbished Billingsgate Market and the second, a festival type affair in Hannover. Kim Wilde was also on the bill (I played drums for her over twenty years ago) and it was nice to get the chance to chat to her just before we went on. I think she remembered who I was!

I spent a couple of days in the studio overdubbing some percussion for the new album which essentially involved banging a tambourine until my arm was about to fall off. One or two other things got shaken (not stirred) and there was even a coming together of coconut shells - no, I'm not joking!

Matt and Steve Lukather

Wembley Stadium from the stage

It was then back to Germany for a few dates. I was particularly looking forward to the show in Leer because Toto were playing with us. We did a show with them last year in Graz but a bad storm cut short our set and the upshot was I missed their show. This time the venue was indoors and so I stayed behind with the crew after we played our set. At long last I got to meet one of my favourite drummers, Simon Phillips. What a nice guy too! I watched the whole gig from stage left and as well as chatting to Simon before and after their show he even came over for a chat during a break in their set... right after an absolutely mind-boggling solo! So cool!

A couple of days later we played at the "Concert for Diana". This was my first gig at Wembley Stadium and it was very exciting looking at the stage in the morning and seeing the fantastic view I would have later in the day.

It was also rather a special day for me personally because it was my 30th anniversary of being in this crazy business. If someone had told me that exactly thirty years after leaving Rochester Math School I would be playing drums with Status Quo at Wembley Stadium I don't think I would have believed them...funny old world!

Our part in this huge show came and went in a flash which made it difficult to try and take in 'the moment' but it felt good. Sadly, there was no time to see the rest of the show as we had to travel to Cork for a gig the following night.

The weather was kind to us for the gig at Petworth House and also at a big festival the following night in Bobital, France. Not the best of conditions backstage but the crowd were just amazing! It was arranged beforehand that I wouldn't play a drum solo but halfway through 'Gerdundula' Francis turned to me and said, "Go for it". I don't think I've ever been in charge of getting 40,000 people clapping before but they were mad for it and within four beats were with me all the way - what a fantastic sight! Hopefully this bodes well for the French gigs we'll play later in the year.

Posted Saturday 2nd June 2007

It's been a while since I've updated my website and so I thought I'd give you an insight into what I've been up to these past few months.

Matty goes to Hollywood

Towards the end of last year I was invited to the 50th Anniversary Party of 'Remo'. This was to be held in LA the day before the NAMM trade show opened in mid-January.

My wife, Valerie, and I decided to combine this with a holiday and were soon on our way. At the party I met up with an old percussionist friend of mine, Raf Gayol (we did the A-ha tour together back in 1988/89).

We spent the next day trawling around the vast NAMM trade show checking out lots of new gear and catching the odd masterclass by the likes of Omar Hakim.

It was also a big thrill for me when I met the old master himself, Louis Bellson, having studied his playing a lot as a youngster.

Val and I drove to Las Vegas, back to Hollywood and then up to San Francisco. A fantastic trip and a great start to the new year.

Home again and it was time to get back to some writing. Two days before I was due to see Francis with the four songs I had now completed, I woke up with a guitar riff in my head. For the rest of the day I constructed a song around this riff in my tiny studio; recording the guitars, bass and finally the drums. The following day I put down the vocal (I'm no singer and it took me ages) and managed to mix it all by midnight. I had never written anything so quickly and was in two minds as to whether or not to play it to him. But then I thought, "Well I've done it now, so why not?" You can guess which one he liked! Will it make it onto the new album? Mmmm...we'll see.

I use a Gretsch kit, which I've had since I was fourteen, in my home studio. It was sounding so good on my demos I thought I'd try out Gretsch on the new album, which we began recording in April. The guys loved the sound too and I've now decided to use a Gretsch kit on tour this year. This wasn't an easy decision as I've been a Remo drums endorsee for a long time. They're great drums but I feel it's time for a change and I would like to take this opportunity to thank Gary Mann at Remo Europe for all his support over the past twenty years.

Things are gearing up for the busy schedule ahead so hope to see you on tour very soon...

Matt