Liam is appearing on a bill with The Replicants and The Beatlez at a special charity music night, Wrinklystock, being put on by The Wrinkly Rockers Club in Dartford at the Mick Jagger Centre on 24th November 2012. If you can, get yourself a ticket, go along and see Liam and the other bands. Links at the end of this post.
Ahead of the night, we spoke with Liam.
Q. How would you sum up your music?
Liam. “Big Blues, Country, Southern Rock & Soul influence, basically all genres that amazed me growing up. Lots of guitar solos but not so many that it distracts from the songs, give it a listen and see what you think.”
Q. Who are your three favourite artists, both new and older?
Liam. “Older artists, I would go for Otis Redding, Cream and Dire Straits. New artists, I would say Brad Paisley, Vince Gill and Brent Mason. They’re not quite so new… but discovered fairly recently – all incredible guitarists! If I was allowed some extra choices I’d also add in Matchbox Twenty (for Rob Thomas’ voice) and the Tedeschi Trucks band. No one plays slide like Derek Trucks.”
Q. Why are you playing Wrinklystock?
Liam. “The Wrinklystock guys have always been very supportive of our music and we love playing charity gigs. This one is for a great cause – the Friends of Carlton Centre for adults with learning disabilities and Celebrations Theatrical Group for adults with learning disabilities. We’re looking forward to helping raise as much as possible. We’ll be donating half of our CD sale money on the night to the charity also.” (round of applause here from Blues Matters)
Q. What insights can you share into your next album?
Liam. “I’ll be digging a bit deeper and exploring new genres, I’m also a big Country fan and love the way bands such as the Allman Brothers integrated Blues and Country to create some astounding pieces of music.”
Q. What has been your best tour experience?
Liam. “Playing in the Netherlands was a big high for us this year, we set off from Dover at 4am and played a gig in Enschede the same evening in East Netherlands. It was a great weekend and we got to see the town of Giethoorn – the Venice of Holland – which is a place like no other.”
Q. Your favourite tour items?
Liam. “I wouldn’t exactly say ‘favourite’ but the GB car magnet is always a good necessity. I guess everyone is expecting me to mention alcohol, so I’ll go with a bottle of Jose Cuervo Tequila and some spare T-shirts for James as he loves forgetting them/throwing them away.”
Q. Why should a young person listen to the Blues?
Liam. “Unfortunately a lot of people don’t seem to think playing an instrument is ‘cool’ anymore and the art of actually playing your own live music has been shadowed for too long now. Let’s bring it back! Nothing compares to seeing an incredible band actually play their own instruments. In regards to the Blues, well there’s just so much to the genre, you’ll be constantly discovering new incredible artists… give it a try, you won’t regret it!”
Liam’s website: www.liamtarpeyband.com/
Wrinkly Rockers Club: www.wrinklyrockersclub.co.uk
