Simon Aldred (Cherry Ghost), NIAMOS. 4th March 2020

I’ve found myself at a music convention this evening. I really have no place here in all honesty, it’s full of what might be deemed ‘industry types’ but I think I spot a few interlopers like myself, who’ve come here for one reason, Simon Aldred aka Cherry Ghost. Tonight he’s talking about his music and creativity in general at the gorgeous NIAMOS, hidden away in Hulme. This unassuming building from the outside, masks a beautiful old theatre inside. I’ve been here once before and learned that the Beatles played here, that would’ve been pretty special, but so is Aldred, a criminally underrated singer, songwriter, composer. The three Cherry Ghost albums are things of pure joy and in between Simon’s captivating chat we get treated to a handful of songs played acoustically. They sound resplendent in this space, Simon’s voice soaring to the high ceilings, it’s spine tingling. It’s also bloody freezing, which adds to the tingling and ensures that my big coat stays on. For a little over an hour he talks about learning to play, struggling with the attention being in the limelight, songwriting being kept simple and the importance of creating a feeling through music, the formula to writing and that search for the spark of magic. Unsurprisingly he highlights the importance of lyrics driving the process, but it’s lovely to hear how accidental he makes it all sound. It’s experimentation, waiting for things to stick. When he plays, I’m reminded just how much I’ve missed these songs since he stopped playing and recording as Cherry Ghost. Now he writes for others, Sam Fender, Liam Gallagher, quite an endless list, but the process seems similar, although sometimes with more of a formula so as to not appear to be “blagging it”. He’s very down to earth and humble, “I write it down, look at it, think ‘there’s something in that’ and then call it a song”. Apparently Mr Gallagher is quite down to earth too, belying his rockstar veneer. Describing the co-writing process, Liam is a dream to work with as he knows his mind, “I like that. Fuck that bit off. Is that a saxophone? Yeah none of that”. Aldred is a bit damning of how hard the industry is now, the incessant commercialism and feeding the machine. Artists spit out, not allowed to make mistakes, nurture and grow. As he plays us out with 4am though, the room is lifted and drifts like the animated clouds that have played on the backdrop all evening. Pure magic.

Set -

Mathematics

My God Betrays

Dead Man’s Suit

People Help The People

Thirst for Romance

4am