There was this boy, with wings of wax and feathers, who flew too close to the sun…but you know that one: that was the fall of Icarus…

…The Rise of Icarus is a song about what happened next. Did Icarus fall into the sea, into the corals, and then some geological ages of shifting rocks cast him up on that sunny hill? Or did he just crash down a long way from home, in a chalk vale, in the southern hills of Albion? Well here he is anyway, picking himself up – with his guitar – wondering what the hell happened…

The Rise of Icarus is my second acoustic album. I recorded it with some great musicians and friends, who I have been gigging with recently. The bulk of it was recorded live – on one hot day in July 2014 – with Stu Young (percussion) and Paul Hancock (whistles & aeolian pipes). Over a couple more sessions, Damon Sawyer (recording engineer) and I recorded Phil Berry (double bass), Serine Tucci (backing vocals) and George Heslop (accordion)…and I added a couple of solo songs to finish the job.

The album was all recorded, mixed and mastered at Platform Studios (near Reading). I wanted a good sound, and thanks to Damon and the musicians, it sounds fantastic! It also looks amazing thanks to my sister, who designed the brilliant cover art!