The spirit of Thin Lizzy is alive and well and being carried on by the members of Black Star Riders. Long time Thin Lizzy guitarist Scott Gorham and his band of top notch players have been carrying the tour of Thin Lizzy but doing so as their very own entity. Refusing to be written off as a mere extension or tribute band of Thin Lizzy, Black Star Riders put out one an absolutely stellar album of material that showcased their ability to write songs that are so good that they can stand tall and strong on their own in a setlist littered with some of the most iconic, classic rock n’ roll songs ever written.
Black Star Riders have been out on the road supporting their All Hell Breaks Loose album and this leg of their tour finally brought them to Atlanta. I had the honor to sit down backstage pre show with lead singer/guitarist Ricky Warwick and it was such a treat to just have a great conversation with him once again. We talked about why it was so important for Black Star Riders to put out solid material, his upcoming solo records, the upcoming change in the band’s lineup, and he even offered up some sound advice to all the writers out there. Enjoy interview number 2 with the great Ricky Warwick.
Ricky, welcome to Atlanta my friend.
Thanks so much, Don. It’s great to be here.
==================================================
When was the last time you were here?
Oh the last time I was here was about six or seven years ago when I opened up for Cheap Trick as a solo act. It was at a small theater.
==================================================
I know you do a lot of press so I have to ask you this. What is the one question you get asked so much that if you get asked it again you’ll scream?
[laughs] Um, I’m getting pretty sick of being asked about what happened with the whole Thin Lizzy/Black Star Riders name change. I mean, at this point it’s been a year and a half and if people haven’t done their homework I’m just like, “Really? Do you not go online and read stuff?” That starts to get a little bit laborious. I didn’t mind explaining it for like the first six months or a year but you know; you can explain something to death. If it’s a new country, that’s fair enough but everybody should know at this point. It’s very well documented.
==================================================
You really keep your cool when doing these interviews. How do you keep your composure in interviews that you feel aren’t really being done well?
Well, when people ask lazy questions I tend to give lazy answers. If someone’s going to ask me a stupid question or a question that’s just generic, I try and be polite because I want my band to be seen and heard but it makes it hard. I mean, I would never dream of going on stage and doing a half assed show. I think if someone’s going to interview me or anyone else in Black Star Riders they should be coming to do an interesting interview, be well read up on the people they’re going to be talking to, and be prepared. I mean, that’s the way I would do it if I was doing that and that’s how I go into it playing live.
==================================================
Last time we talked you mentioned how you’d love to see “Got to Give it Up” added to list. Did Scott Gorham hear your plea?
No and we still haven’t put it in. We’re going to back to Europe again and we’re going to have to change the setlist around again because we’ve already been there a couple of times. I’m going to throw that one into the mix again and see how far we get with it.
==================================================
Black Star Riders have been touring behind All Hell Breaks Loose. Last time we talked I asked you if there was a particular long you ever got tired of playing but this time I want to know, are there any songs that maybe you didn’t love so much in the beginning but find yourself loving even more now?
Yeah. I mean the Lizzy songs I’ll always love. I just said to Damon the other night that the one song I never get tired of playing is “Jailbreak.” I just love that song so much but as for the Black Star Riders stuff, seeing the song “Kingdom of the Lost” grow in two years from Damon and I sitting backstage in the middle of nowhere at some Swedish festival trying to piece it together to see how it’s evolved into a classic song that’s in our set. That is a love affair right there. You’ve just watched something that you’ve nurtured and see it blossom and grow. That’s really cool and that’s what I get a really big buzz out of.
Thank you so much, Don. I mean, they had to stand strong on their own. There’s no way we could’ve gone in and made a record that wasn’t going to compete with the greatness of Thin Lizzy. The songs had to be of a certain standard.
==================================================
So Marco Mendoza announced recently that he’s leaving Black Star Riders and that Robbie Crane will be replacing him. How are you feeling about this change and shift in the dynamics of the band?
It’s something we’ve all been through. We’ve all been in bands for ages. I’ve been playing with Marco now for over four years and he’s a phenomenal player and a great guy but he has other stuff that he wants to do and it’s really as simple as that. Before he announced it we could all sense that it was coming. He was off doing lots of other things and I thought, “Hang on, there’s going to a clash here at some point.” Personally, I felt that he was looking around for other stuff which is fine and I wish him all the best. We’re lucky that we filled the position very quickly.
==================================================
You guys chose to go with former Ratt bassist Robbie Crane right?
Yeah. Somebody suggested Robbie and he’s a great guy and a great player. It’s a different personality and Robbie will bring certain strengths to the band that we never had before. Sometimes change is a good thing and sometimes it’s a shot in the arm to have a bit of new blood. Only time will tell but I think we got a good replacement. We’ll be absolutely gutted to see Marco go but again, it wasn’t a surprise and it wasn’t out of the blue. It’s all been very amicable and he’ll always be part of the family.
==================================================
So has Black Star Riders taken on more of a life than you anticipated it doing?
Yeah, I suppose it has. I really didn’t know what to expect. I knew all the elements were there for a great band and I knew that we had written some fantastic songs and made a great record but that isn’t enough. It’s in the lap of the gods once you let that music go and put it out there. It just becomes part of the universe and all you can do is hope for the best. All we can do is make sure we’re great and kicking ass every night and that we continue to play well. That’s what we’ve done and now I see it starting to grown and I see people saying, “Hey, this more than just a continuation of Thin Lizzy.” That’s what we want people to see.
==================================================
I also love how Black Star Riders broke away from being pinned a “super group.” I mean, this is very much a band in its own right.
Absolutely. It’s very much a band. I mean, we all could be doing other stuff outside of this band but we’ve chosen to put this band first. That’s a conscious decision that we all made. That’s why this is a band and that’s why this works. If there’s a break for a week or a month or whatever I might do some solo shows or something but Black Star Riders is very much the focus.
==================================================
Speaking of solo stuff, you have two solo releases in the works, one electric and one acoustic. What can you tell me about them?
The acoustic album’s pretty much done. Just need to add a few embellishments on a couple of songs. I have guitar and bass one on two of the electric songs. I’m booked into the studio when we go on break so I can get as much of that recorded as I possibly can. I’m anticipating having both albums done soon because I need to concentrate on Black Star Riders.
==================================================
So where are these solo albums coming from? Where inside of Ricky Warwick are these albums coming from?
Well, what it’s a project with a buddy of mine named Sam Robinson. He and I have written the two albums together. 95% of the songs are about growing up in Northern Ireland so there’s a theme there. It’s very different from anything else I’m doing. Sam has probably written 60% of the lyrics across both albums so we’ve been working together on that. The songs are just stories about growing up in Northern Ireland, friends, family, the culture, and our experiences. It’s definitely got a focus to it.
==================================================
What compelled you to work with this theme of heritage? Was it a kind of coming of age in later life thing?
Yeah, you just go back and you find that there are so many great stories and Sam brought so many great stories to the table as well. We found that we had a lot of things in common. We both grew up in the same area and had a lot of the same experiences growing up as kids so it just felt right. It all started when we went to go to a football game one Saturday afternoon when I was back home. The game got called off due to snow so we went to the pub and just started talking about songs and doing an album and here we are five years later. The songs have been ready for quite a while but it was just about finding time to make it all happen.
==================================================
Are you planning on touring behind these albums at all?
It all depends on Black Star Riders to be honest. The way the calendar’s looking at this moment into next year. There’ll be a few shows but there’s no way I can go out and two months of touring for the solo records. There just isn’t enough time and at some point my wife’s going to turn around and say, “I’m going to leave you if you keep this up.” [laughs] At some point you have to maintain some kind of sanity. It’s all based on Black Star Riders and how busy we’re going to be.
==================================================
When you’re writing songs, do you say, “I’m going to write this for BSR” or “I’m going to write this for myself” or do you just write and figure out where it goes later?
Yeah, pretty much. I mean, you can separate things like that. There are certain ways that I would go about writing a Black Star Riders song as opposed to a solo song because basically they’re different styles. I set aside that time for the songs I want to work on. There’s no songs that I’ve written for my solo stuff that I think would be suitable for Black Star Riders and likewise.
You know what? I don’t know honestly. I don’t know what it is myself. I just know that it’s something. Some weeks I don’t feel like writing anything at all and some days I’ll write books of lyrics and notes. It just depends. It’s not just one particular thing that gets me going. A lot of it is reading and listening to a lot of music. That has a lot to do with it as well. Hearing something that is great and that inspires me.
==================================================
Do you believe that it’s best to not force a song out?
Absolutely. They say in Nashville that if you force a song out that you can hear the songwriting because it’s been forced and it’s too cliché. I’m a great believer in that. I believe that if you’re struggling after a while you just walk away for a while and come back to it. If you force it out it’ll never be the song that you hoped it to be.
===================================================
What advice do you have for any songwriters, or writers in general, that have hit that proverbial wall?
Get in a car and go drive around. Go on a road trip and clear your head. Think of what’s important to you in your life and what means the most to you. Reach into your soul and go back to your childhood right up to where you are now and try to remember stuff that had a profound effect on your life.
===================================================
I’m not going to lie; American rock audiences over the years have totally lost their oomph. Why do you think rock audiences of today just seem to be so held back and unexcited? I remember losing my shit at shows when I was a kid.
Well, you know, audiences are older as well. The demographic of fans coming to see bands like us play are mostly from their 30’s to even their 70’s. Those people aren’t going jump around [laughs]. When I go to a gig I don’t jump up and down. Well, sometimes I do so that’s a lie [laughs]. Sometimes people just want to watch and I think that’s ok. I think as the bands get older, your audience gets older with you. It’s great to see younger people there but you’re not going to have a mosh pit of 40 and 50 year olds like they did in their 20’s. What I do think is destroying it and what I hate are the people filming the shows with their phones.
===================================================
I fucking hate that. I mean, I hate standing behind people who have their phones out for the entire show filming it.
Yeah. I mean, if people want to take pictures that’s fine. If you want to film a bit that’s fine too but these people who watch the whole show through their phone. I just don’t get it. We’ve just reached that point where you can’t go look at something with your own eyes? You’ve got to look at it through a camera or your phone? Stop it. Put it down and try and enjoy the music and feel something and absorb it. I’m seeing it more and more and it’s really beginning to bug me.
===================================================
You guys are playing clubs on this US tour but overseas you’re playing large scale venues and festivals. Is it hard to go out there and give it your all to a room that’s not a packed room?
No, because you’ve got to get off on who you are, what you are, and what you’re doing. If you can’t than you shouldn’t be doing it. The music and the reason that you’re out there and the reason you’re doing your art should be what inspires you just as much as the audience. Don’t get me wrong, I’d much rather play a packed room than a room that’s ½ full absolutely. It’s a far better vibe when it’s packed but you can’t always get what you want. The idea and the reason we’re here is to educate people about Black Star Riders and if that means getting to them one at a time than that’s what we have to do. Let’s face it, the outlets are few and far between now that you can get your music out there and I think taking it back to basics, which is what we’re doing, is the only way to do it for a lot of bands like us. You should go on stage and be awesome every night. That’s part of your job. Your job is to be fucking awesome and if you can’t do that you’re in the wrong job.
===================================================
I love that because as a fan, I don’t really care how many people are there. I’m there and I deserve the best show you can give me.
Absolutely. You want the same show that the band played to maybe 2,000 people the night before and you should get it.
===================================================
What is a trend in music these days that you’d like to see go away?
Oh, that’s a really good question. I would love to see kids get back into the garage and learn to play and then get onto your iPad and record it. Don’t get your iPad out and try and think you can play right off the bat and record it and use all the tricks and gimmicks to cheat and put something together. I think that’s what is killing things. Kids just need to learn how to play. They need to be in a garage band and play 2 or 3 nights a week, have fun, drink beer, and get their vibe on. Listen to older music and things like that. I think if kids get back to that the future could look good. Kids are just trying to bypass that and they just want the glory.
===================================================
Do you think shows like American Idol and The Voice actually take out the hard work aspect of trying to “make it”?
It’s just instant stardom and that is gone fast as well. Half those people that are on those shows, after the show you never hear of them again. Trust me, glory through hard work is much more gratifying than instant glory. It just is. At least you know you’ve earned it and you’ve put in the hours and you haven’t taken the short cuts and you haven’t sold out.
===================================================
It’s not about being perfect or getting famous fast. It should be about being good at what you do.
Absolutely. Rock N’ Roll’s about freedom and doing what you want. Sometimes mistakes are the best things that can happen. If you want to see the same thing every night, then go and see those pop stars that are out there with their backup tapes. It’s choreographed to a degree where it’s practically a robot on stage.
===================================================
You are very much plugged into technology and social media. How important do you feel it is to create and maintain that kind of connection with the fans?
It’s change or die and get left behind. Whether you like it or not that’s the medium that everybody is using to spread the word. Any medium that you have to get your band or your music out there should be actively pursued. I don’t understand people condemning it. You have to keep up with it and make people aware of what you are and who you are.
===================================================
We didn’t have that kind of connection when we were kids with our favorite rock stars.
No we didn’t. We would’ve killed for it to be honest. You know, you hear people saying stuff like, “I had more fun when I was a kid playing outside with stick.” That’s bollocks. I didn’t. If someone had told me when I was a kid that I could play Fifa 2014 World Cup Football on a computer with the graphics that they have now I would’ve given my left nut to be fucking sitting there doing that [laughs]. I think it’s hypocritical and it’s the same thing for music. Yes, there was certain magic that we had taking a bus to the record stores and looking through those great albums and talking with friends. That was magical but that time is gone. You don’t need to get on the bus or go to a store to buy your music. Whether it’s sad or not it’s just the way it is. You just have to adapt and move forward with it.
===================================================
Do you feel like the social media aspect of connecting with fans has taken away the “rock star” mystique?
I think it has a little bit. It’s all about what these rockers are tweeting or putting on their Facebook. So many of them are like, “Here’s what I had for dinner”, “Here’s me sweeping the floor” or “Here’s my cat.” I mean, I don’t want to know that. I want to see a picture of your guitar, you live on stage, I want to hear you talk about the gig last night, about being in the studio. That’s the cool stuff for me. When a rock star that I really admire starts tweeting all that rubbish about what they had for breakfast that just ruins it. You can keep some mystique. We’re the generation that feels that way because we remember life before this but there’s a generation that never had what we had. They don’t know what it is to go into a record store or know that mystique. They’re not even going to realize what it was like.
===================================================
So I’m a big collector of guitar picks from my favorite bands (hint hint). Are you a collector of anything?
No, I’ve never been one for collecting stuff. I’m even bad about taking photographs. My wife is always saying, “Don’t you take photographs of anything?” [laughs] I’m just not into that. I mean, I have some nice guitars but I play them and that’s it. I’m all about my family and all about my music. I’m fulfilled and that’s enough for me.
===================================================
At what point are you too old to do this?
Um, I think it all depends on how you look after yourself and how you want to be perceived. There’s no doubt about it but people like Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney and even Keith Richards look after themselves and that’s why they’re still doing it. Jagger is in phenomenal shape and those guys are the ones that will keep doing it. Hell, Springsteen is fucking 64 years old and he plays three and half hours every night and waltzing through it. I see that and I say, “I want to be doing that when I’m 64 years old.” I also know that if I look after myself I play better, I sing better, and I put on a better show. Some people say, “Man, if I smoke and drink that makes me a cool rock star” that’s fine. If that makes you good and makes you put on a great show and you can keep doing that until you’re 65, which I highly doubt, then go ahead. I just know that if I’m in shape and I look after myself that I’ll put on a better show and I’ll enjoy it more as well. It may not work for everybody and some might read this and say, “Who does he think he is?” but that’s what works for me.
===================================================
If you could go back in time and give a young Ricky Warwick advice what would it be?
I would say to listen to your head as much as you follow your heart. I followed my heart totally and didn’t listen to my head enough. There were certain business decisions back in the day where I should’ve been more aware and more in control. I could’ve been and it was nobody’s fault but mine but I just let it go.
===================================================
What advice do you have for all the dreamers out there?
Keep dreaming, keep following it, and keep doing it. Never take no for an answer and never give up.
===================================================
So what’s in store for the rest of the year? Can you believe it’s half over already?
I know, it’s crazy. Well, we’ll finish this tour and then I’m going to try and finish these solo records. Then BSR will head to Europe from July 15 – August 9th. We’ll finish writing the Black Star Riders album and in September or October we’ll record that and then the album will come out in February. We also have dates already booked so 2015 is going to be a busy year which is great. It’s going to be killer.
===================================================
Ricky thanks so much for talking with me again. It was a pleasure as always.
Thank you, brother. I’m always happy to talk to you, Don.
About The Author
