How’s life?
Life is good. It’s always interesting.
Let’s talk about your new album. Where did the title Flying Fish come from?
The title Flying Fish came from a song that I recorded for an album called King For A Day. It never made it to the album, I hoped it would this time, but again no luck. Maybe next time. But I liked the name and kept it.
Where and with whom did you record this album?
I recorded the album at OneMusic Studio. The engineer was Colin Wynn assisted by Allison Manefield.
So, it’s a “solo” album. Did you do the lot yourself?
I did the lot myself. It is quite spare. It’s just vocal guitar and harmonica.
Does the album have a particular theme? What’s this album about?
There is no overall theme. They are just songs that I wrote or songs that I wanted to sing.
It’s a DIY independent release. Does this give you greater creative control and freedom or just make it costly and painful?
It wasn’t costly due mainly to the format of the album. I hadn’t done any recording of my own for ten years so it was exciting to do. My brother-in-law did the cover art. My wife gave me good advice so it was fun. I have as much control as I like.
In the new song My World Goes On Without You you sing about seeing Lightning Hopkins in Houston. Is that actually a true story? And how important are the old Blues Greats to Chris Wilson on this album and today?
I saw Lightnin Hopkins play at the Juneteenth Blues Festival in Houston Texas around 1978. He was on a bill with John Lee Hooker, Big Momma Thornton, and Clifton Chenier. It’s something I’ll never forget. I don’t always write in a blues style but the blues greats always influence whatever I do. Their lyrical brilliance and desire to say what they say simply, but powerfully is always at the back of my mind.
What if I said that Flying Fish sounds more like a storyteller’s album than a blues record?
I’d be inclined to agree with you
You recently sold out the Caravan Music Club, 350 tickets at $25 a pop. Chris Wilson has still got it baby! And yet you are choosing to launch your long-awaited new solo album at Cherry Bar for free at 6pm on a Friday. Quite a surprise. Why this path Chris?
To launch it at the Cherry Bar seemed right. It has an intimacy that suits playing solo. I think it’s a very atmospheric place with a real sense of Australian rock history about it. I like the idea of people coming to a gig after work. They can be with friends and celebrate the start of the weekend. There are a lot of albums launched in Melbourne every week. I wanted people to have a choice about coming to this launch and then kicking on or going home. I find the sound at the Cherry Bar to be fantastic too. Max Crawdaddy’s DJing is always a plus.
What can people look forward to from you at your launch?
They’ll get a good overview of the album. They’ll get me warts and all. I hope they like it.
CHRIS WILSON launches his new solo LP Flying Fish at Cherry Bar this Friday October 19 between 5.30pm and 7.30pm. Free entry.
