Originally a Yorkshireman – born and partially ill-bred in Halifax - but now a Londoner, I was supposed to be an historian like my father, E.P. Thompson. At least, that’s what I studied in Oxford back in the days of flares, prog rock and visions of a better world. Maybe I would have been had I spent less time touring with bands and more time submerged in my studies. But music won and the 1970’s were spent as a session musician and running an international tour production company. Fate intervened once more in 1980 and a period spent managing Roy Harper and launching his record label (funded by Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Dave Gilmour and Robert Plant) were follow...
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Originally a Yorkshireman – born and partially ill-bred in Halifax - but now a Londoner, I was supposed to be an historian like my father, E.P. Thompson. At least, that’s what I studied in Oxford back in the days of flares, prog rock and visions of a better world. Maybe I would have been had I spent less time touring with bands and more time submerged in my studies. But music won and the 1970’s were spent as a session musician and running an international tour production company. Fate intervened once more in 1980 and a period spent managing Roy Harper and launching his record label (funded by Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Dave Gilmour and Robert Plant) were followed by a decade at the sharp end of what was then a record industry, managing successful bands and record producers and doing A+R consultancy for the likes of A+M, CBS, MCA, JVC Victor (Japan), JIVE and others.
Like many music professionals, part of my accreditation was a classic industry rip-off, leading to a nasty legal quagmire feathering the nests of slick lawyers and an accompanying disillusionment with the record industry, but not with music. Refocused if not yet entirely re-energised, I returned to recording my own music in the early 1990’s, and as so often in my past, an accidental adjunct to the main event turned into the main event itself.
A musical Gorgon with five heads, my studio supply and consultancy company, Funky Junk Limited, operated from London, Paris, Milan, Rome and Vigo, Spain, meaning (if nothing else) that I enjoyed the occasional good meal and frequent good company. One thing is for sure, though . . . a life of accidental twists and turns holds other unexpected adventures in store. At least, I sincerely hope so.
Having recently sold Funky, I now spend my time writing Eccentric fiction - my passion for the past two decades.
VARIOUS ALBUM CREDITS INCLUDE…Kate Bush (Aerial, The Director’s Cut, 50 Words for Snow) Roy Harper(Work Of Heart, Born In Captivity), Icehouse (Measure For Measure, Man of Colours, Big Wheel), Nerina Pallot, (The Graduate), Yasuaki Shimizu (Aduna and Dementos) and many more.
Instruments played professionally; Guitars, sax and flute. Some keyboards.
Tour Production; The Beat, Winston Rodney (Burning Spear), Gregory Isaacs, The Selecter, Haircut 100, Hugh Masekela, UB40, Europeans, Bad Manners and countless others.
Studio construction; designed and supervised the construction of the award winning SNAP! Studios in London. Have acted as consultant for scores of studio projects in the UK, South Africa, the US, most of Europe including Russia and Scandinavia.
Shortlisted for the prestigious Music Producer’s Guild ‘Unsung Hero of the Year’ award.
Patron of Finding Rhythms charity
Education; M.A. in History. (Balliol College Oxford)
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