Mark: Sounds good, I can’t wait for that one!! If you could have composed with anyone, living or dead, who would it be?
Biff: I don’t know, let’s see. I’d like to do some composing with a lot of people, really, different people, I’d like to work with Slash, he’s got a good ear for a great riff, and it would be good to have a session with Jimi Hendrix that would be cool!
Mark: Do you think music has the power to change the world in 2014?
Biff: I don’t think our genre of music has. I think when musicians get together, like in Live Aid, I think that can change people’s lives; I don’t think it will change anything politically. A lot of great people have tried to change things through music and generally, it doesn’t really work. I think sometimes when you get 90,000 people in a field, some politicians think they can manipulate that, you can’t! Let’s have a good time and listen to the music, they are not there to be preached to! It’s very difficult to change things with music, folk music in the early days used to be the vehicle for that, and I suppose punk was antiestablishment, but I don’t think it really changed much. It changed with the record companies, but not with governments.
Mark: I think people think of things like Woodstock and Live Aid, and see some sort of movement there, that came together for a reason.
Biff: They made a lot of money for a lot of people who needed it.
Mark: Thinking back to your earliest memories of music, what was it that made you want to be in a band?
Biff: When I first heard an electric guitar, my friend bought one, and he played it in to an old tape recorder and I was hooked from that second! An amplified guitar fascinated me as a 12/13 year old, and it’s stuck with me ever since.
Mark: From what you’ve learned so far, what’s the most valuable piece of advice anyone’s ever given you?
Biff: I think really, it’s to stay true, don’t bullshit people. Stay true to what you believe in, we’ve made some mistakes over the years, Saxon, in some ways with our music especially in the late eighties, but we looked at that and thought fair enough, it’s a fair cop! So, I think you have to be honest with yourself and your fans, and generally keep focussed on what you’re doing really.
Mark: If you could have been a fly on the wall for the making of any great album, at any point in time, what would it be for you and why?
Biff: We would have all liked to have been there for the Zeppelin albums, wouldn’t we? And we would have all liked another Abba album that would have been cool!! So, that covers the whole spectrum of music, doesn’t it?!!
Mark: Yeah, A-Z, that’ll do! Finally, what is the meaning of life?
Biff: I’ve just said that one really!! The meaning of life is to have a quality of life, and to be satisfied, as much as you can be.
Mark: I think you’re right. Now, would you mind clearing up an urban myth for me?? When I was a very young boy, I used to live in Boston (UK), and I know that you used to live there. One of my mates used to work on a market stall at Boston markets, and when you were out doing your shopping, he’d ring us up, and we’d all bike in to town to see if we could see you! He told me once, and I have no idea if this is true, but you once bought some potatoes from him, and you told him ‘Maris Piper’ (a variety of potato fruit and veg fact fanciers) were the best chipping potatoes!! Is that true?
Biff: No, I can’t remember that!!
Mark: Damn!!
Biff: What year would this be?
Mark: Definitely early eighties,maybe '84? You used to live by the river.
Biff: Yeah, it was 84/85, I had a big house, was nice actually! I may well have said something to him, but I can’t remember! I can’t even remember buying potatoes; I’m not a big potato man!
Mark: I’m sorry about that last question; it’s been one I’ve been dying to ask for years… Well thank you for taking the time to speak to us, it’s been a pleasure.
Biff: Yeah, no problem, I just hope we can get over there.
Mark: That would be wonderful, good luck with the album and the tour. Thank you so much for your time.
Biff: See you later.
Biff spoke to Mark Diggins June 2014 |