Vince Clarke
Articles about Vince Clarke:
The BBC again proves just how mighty mighty it is, putting together this hot and tasty documentary, Synth Britannia, about synth music in the UK, broadcasting starting October 16th.
It looks like must-see TV – if you’re in the UK. No word yet on when it will be available online or outside the UK. Read more…
Hal Leonard has published a new book, The Best of The ’80s, that compiles 80’s articles from Keyboard magazine.
Description:
The editors of Keyboard magazine have culled that era’s most insightful and landmark articles and combined them with a wealth of insight looking back now some 20 years later to paint a vivid and accurate picture of just how groundbreaking the keyboard’s role was in crafting the sound of an era. The book features 20 in-depth interviews with noted players and producers like Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Duran Duran’s Nick Rhodes, Depeche Mode’s Vince Clarke, Peter Gabriel, and The Human League, as well as such visionary pioneers as Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Frank Zappa.
Keyboard magazine editors Ernie Rideout, Stephen Fortner, and Michael Gallant uncover the true stories behind the gear, the production techniques, and the real stories of some of the 1980’s most definitive keyboard-driven recordings.
MSRP $19.95.
Vince Clark On Yaz Reunion
“When Alison first approached me, I was quite flabbergasted,” said Vince Clarke. “I’m pretty much married to Andy [in Erasure], and it’s like you and an old girlfriend going out on a date. But we met and we spoke, and it’s been 25 years between then and now. A lot has gone on — mostly children. We’re very different people, and we ended up kind of feeling anxious about the idea, but very excited.”
As Clarke tells it, their unforgettable sound was pretty much an accident.
“When Alison and myself were recording, we were both pretty naive about the whole process. The arrangements may have been unique, but it’s not so much that we planned to do that as that when you’re first in the studio, everything you do sounds great, because it’s all fresh to you.
“When I approached Alison, I already knew she could sing really well, and I think that my songwriting was probably getting a little more romantic as I was getting older. I wanted to work with someone who could express that feeling, but it never occurred to me that her singing was really soulful or ‘bluesy.’ She was just someone who could sing with emotion and bring out those emotions in the songs I was writing.”
“At the end of the day, you don’t listen to a record and go ‘that was great’ because of the sound; you would never remember the chorus when singing in the shower if it wasn’t for the song, and that’s my thing.” Read more…
There’s a nice Flickr set of Yaz, performing at the Paramount Theater.
Let me know if you caught the show.
