INTERVIEW: Laurence Jones, solo artist

25-year old British blues rock guitarist and singer-songwriter, Laurence Jones, will release his new studio album ‘The Truth’ on Friday 9^th March 2018. To dovetail the release of the album, Laurence will start his nationwide tour at London’s Borderline on Tuesday 23^rd January with more dates to follow in May.

Laurence is often labelled as “the future of the blues.” He’s won several major awards and accolades, and has sold over 50,000 albums across four albums. He’s supported the likes of Status Quo, Gary Clark Jr, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, James Bay, Van Morrison, Buddy Guy, Robert Cray, Joe Bonamassa Jools Holland, Eric Burdon, and many more. We caught up with him recently to discuss the new album and what the Blues means to him.

Mark: Hi Laurence its Mark from the Rockpit calling in, it’s great to get the chance to talk to you today, thank for making the time.

Laurence: No problem, I hope you’re well.

Mark: Very good thank you, hope you’re doing great. We’ve been listening to the album over the last few weeks ‘The Truth’ which is out on March 9^th our team love it, it’s a great album. Sonically it sounds like something just a bit different for you, maybe something you’ve been building up to over the last few releases? How do you view it as far as progression goes?

Laurence: Well I’m always progressing, I always try to progress I just never want to do a boring album or something that my fans have ever heard. Some of my heroes like Eric Clapton have always been doing that and changing direction, and the vision I had for this album was to create catchy, young, mainstream pop-rock songs with the underlying guitar music of Blues Rock.

Mark: It’s certainly very catch and very slick and you’ll be backing it up with a tour later in the year which is great news. Whet interested me about this album was that you put it together in a different way this time. Can you tell us how the process differed?

Laurence: Basically I wrote all of the songs – 25 for the album and I chose the best 20 and we went over to Miami where the label sent us to do pre-production on the album. So basically I came into a rehearsal room with the band, I brought the ideas to them for the first time and they put their ideas into it, which is great but was something new that I had to trust and was something I hadn’t got to do before. So we shaped the songs and they added parts, sections that they wrote, and so we did that for eight hours a day and then the producer came in and changed it all again (laughs)

Mark: (laughs)

Laurence: That made it better and so once we had that we headed to the studios and the real magic happened there.

Mark: And how much do the songs change over time? Are they still recognisable from the original demos?

Laurence: (laughing) some of them. Each song certainly has its own journey but it’s so hard to explain. Sometimes it just comes so naturally and others songs will change completely.

Mark: Do you feel a lot of pressure with industry-bestowed accolades like “The future of the Blues” and “The one to watch”?

Laurence: It’s not a pressure it’s more of an honour. It’s nice to be recognised for what I’ve done but more so when it comes from the fans. I wouldn’t be able to do this without them and I respect that, I talk to every fan when they come to the merchandise stand after the show.

Mark: Where did it all start for you? What are your earliest memories of music? Can you remember the first time you picked up a guitar?

Laurence: Well I was about seven years old and my Dad had a guitar and he used to play ‘House of the Rising Sun’ by The Animals and I wanted to be better than him so I finally learnt it and years later I was invited to play the Royal Albert Hall in London and support Van Morrison and Eric Burdon and I actually jammed that song onstage with Eric and my Dad was in the audience and when he came backstage I said to him “I’m better than you now aren’t I?” (laughs)

Mark: (laughs)

Laurence: And that was my only mission to be honest!

THE NEW STUDIO ALBUM ‘THE TRUTH’ RELEASED FRIDAY 9^th MARCH 2018

Mark: That’s a great story I love that one! How do you feel at a time like this when the album is just about to come out, is it a nervous time for you? Are you excited? What’s going through your heard?

Laurence: For me it’s really an exciting time we’ve heard the album change and grow so much throughout the process and now it’s like the baby’s being born. I’m ready for it to be born now, I’m ready to bring it and show it off to the public now.

Mark: You’ve already played the Borderline which I guess is the lead date for the tour that comes a little later. How was that?

Laurence: It was great, really busy, packed out. It’s always fun playing in London and we’d flown straight from Holland so we’d played two of our big territories and it was such a high one after the other. But London has always supported me and I’ve supported some big acts in London – people like Johnny Winter, Walter Trout, Van Morrison, Jools Holland, and it’s been great fun.

Mark: And then the main tour follows in May. Did you get a chance to road test any tracks from ‘The Truth’ live so far?

Laurence: Yeah we’ve tailored the set to that now, it’s mixed in with the old stuff but mainly the new stuff I think bar one tune. So if you come to the live show you’ll pretty much get the lot!

Mark: You’ve played with some great acts, Status Quo and a few others you’ve already mentioned, but also some of the newer breed like Gary Clarke Jr. I know it’s unfair to ask but who has been the most inspiring so far?

Laurence: Oh Buddy Guy, I don’t often get ‘star-struck’ but it was like playing with a guy who came with a legacy, he came with a history and he came with the Blues. He is the Blues – he’s one of the last remaining ones and that was the best for me, I grabbed that opportunity with two hands and it was such fun – when he was jamming at the end he really improvised then the band dropped out and I got to jam ‘Miss You’ by the Rolling Stones and I saw him smiling and he went to start to sing it, and that was something I just couldn’t imagine would ever happen and I was just lost there in the moment.

Mark: Is there anything you don; like about playing live or is to get out there and play just the greatest feeling in the world that you can take all that comes with it?

Laurence: It’s the greatest feeling in the world. It’s what I miss most, even when things annoy you like you snap a string or the sound may not be quite right, or you got there late because you traveled all day because there’s been an accident on the motorway and you have to rush things – you forget all of that once you get on stage. It’s my dream, it’s what I live for.

Mark: The Blues scene seems to be particularly strong in the UK at the moment, not just home-grown artists but artists from Canada, South Africa and the US. Why do you think the form is back so strong at the moment? Why are young guys like you getting into it?

Laurence: I think The Blues, it’s never really gone away and these things always come back around. But Blues and definitely Rock is coming back now and there are a lot of young guitar players coming through that I’ve seen over the years and the more people that do that and the more they get their names out there they’re going to spread the word to the younger crowd and that’s what keeps it alive. It’s not about competition. At our shows in Holland and Europe there are a lot of young people in the crowds, it might be more experimental, more free but it’s all the Blues.

Mark: Whenever we interview a Blues guitarist I always get complaints that I never ask about the gear so Laurence what gear are you using at the moment?

Laurence: Well I do like to keep it quite simple so I’m using a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe Combo ‘cos I can use that anywhere in the world, Pedal-board-wise I’m endorsed by Mad Professor Pedals, a great company from Finland and Mojo handsets from America and I use a Royal Blue Overdrive which is my main sound along with the Mojo handsets Colossal Fuzz and a delay and an overdrive by Mad Professor. Sometimes simple can be better so I just mainly use those two pedals. As long as I’ve got a Fuzz sound a great Distortion and a good Delay I’m pretty much ready to roll.

Mark: If we had to put you on the spot and ask you to name the one song that exemplifies all that music means to you, one song that always stops you in your tracks and reminds you why you need to be a musician, what is that song? What sums it all up for you?

Laurence: Wow that’s an incredible question… For me songs come with a time in your life and they attach to that ad mean something because of that. For me it would probably be Jimi Hendrix Band of Gypsies – ‘Machine Gun’ – it taught me a lot about music and the war, it came at a time when it was so real and that’s why I always write my music about ‘now’ to capture that feeling. I like to write about things people can relate to when some might write about picking in the cotton fields and I don’t understand that, it’s the 21^st Century how can you relate to that? I like to think people can relate to my songs and my lyrics.

Mark: You’ve certainly got a way with words. Lyrically which of the new songs did you have most fun writing?

Laurence: Probably ‘What Would You Do’ the first track on the album because that’s all about looking inward, which I did a lot of on that album. I’d never done that before, asked myself what I’d do in certain situations, almost like “what would you do if you had a perfect life?” I thought that might make some cool lyrics and I enjoyed writing that I thought it came out really well.

Mark: We always end our interviews with one simple question traditionally, “what is the meaning of life?”

Laurence: The meaning of life to me is to be yourself and have no regret, but to interact with people in a respectful way. I think you have to find yourself, always try to be yourself and the most powerful things you can have when you take your last breath are love and memory anything else doesn’t really matter in my opinion.

Mark: The new album ‘The Truth’ is out on 9^th March and the Tour starts in Manchester on 3^rd May. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to us today. It’s a great album and it should go down a storm.

Laurence: Take care, cheers, bye.

Planet Rock presents

LAURENCE JONES
“THE TRUTH 2018 UK TOUR”
All Tickets: £15.00

Manchester, Band on the Wall
Thursday 3 May

24 HR Box Office: 0844 478 0898
Venue Tel: 0161 834 1786
Book Online: www.thegigcartel.com, www.ticketline.co.uk
Facebook / Twitter / Instagram
25 Swan St, The Northern Quarter, Manchester, M4 5JZ
https://bandonthewall.org

Leamington Spa, Zephyr Lounge
Friday 4 May

24 HR Box Office: 0844 478 0898
Venue Tel: 01926 311 311
Book Online: www.thegigcartel.com, www.eventbrite.co.uk
Facebook / Twitter
2A Spencer Street, Leamington Spa, CV31 3NF
www.leamingtonassembly.com

Southampton Talking Heads
Saturday 5 May
Tickets: www.thegigcartel.com,
www.thetalkingheads.co.uk/events/laurence_jones/

24 HR Box Office: 0844 478 0898
Venue Tel: 02380 361 970
Facebook / Twitter
16-22 The Polygon, Southampton, SO15 2BN
www.thetalkingheads.co.uk

Birmingham, Hare & Hounds
Thursday 10 May
Tickets: www.thegigcartel.com

24 HR Box Office: 0844 478 0898
Venue Tel: 0121 444 2081
Facebook / Twitter / Instagram
106 High St, Birmingham, B14 7JZ
http://hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

Nottingham, The Bodega
Friday 11 May
Tickets: www.thegigcartel.com
www.alttickets.com
24 HR Box Office: 0844 478 0898
Venue Box Office: 0115 896 4456
Facebook / Twitter
23 Pelham St, Nottingham, NG1 2ED
www.bodeganottingham.com