Clive John is better known as the front man of the Johnny Cash Roadshow but before he embarked on this worldwide endlessly touring production he was already a very successful singer/songwriter. Unfortunately the music business isn’t what one would view as a safe bet for a good career to start the rest of your life in but Clive couldn’t fight the passion in him and turned down going to university at the age of 19 to just dive head on in to making a real career in music. After doing his first paid gig at age 15 he was already four years in to this way of life anyway and had more cash in his back pocket than all his mates at sixth form. He was signed by an independent Dublin based record company called Tandem Records in 1999 and recorded his first album ‘In A Whisper’ and then moved to America where he lived for six months in the year 2000. He lived in Connecticut at first and then moved to New York where he appeared on TV for a dedicated half hour show of performing purely his own material. He then did many performances around New York, New Jersey, Boston, Hartford and Connecticut as a solo act. Clive could have stayed in America but missing home too much he decided to return to his native Malvern (Worcestershire). While in America songs where penned for the second album ‘Purple Sky’ – the title song written on Rockaway beach in Long Island one Sunday afternoon in June 2000. This album was released in 2002. (A later version of Purple Sky was recorded later in 2010 for ‘The Spirit’ album.)Clive went on as a solo act to perform relentlessly up and down the country and slowly found he kind of slotted in to the country music genre although these self penned songs aren’t out and out Country & Western but festivals and clubs kept on booking him. There are however quite a few pop based songs on these earlier albums also as Clive was finding his style. Shortly followed where the third and fourth albums ‘Life’ and ‘Another Day’.
Through Clive’s Irish mother he was brought up with traditional music always in the background and this rubbed off with love for this style as an adult. The next album ‘Impressions’ contains a mix of mainly original songs again mixed with some versions of Irish classics. A real favourite this one.
The last album of original material in this burst of creativity since the year 2000 was ‘Time’ and contains the heart felt title song that relates to so many of the working people in today’s society, where there simply isn’t enough time to do the things you want to do or spend with your family. Clive’s knows this only too well these days! After this album it was to be nearly four years (due to the rise of ‘Johnny Cash Roadshow’) before the next album.
The last album ‘The Spirit’ was recorded in May 2010 and has been the best selling album to date. The title song won an award as best song of the year at the 2011 British Country Music Awards and the album was nominated as best album also. Clive was sure at this time it would be his last solo album of original material ever as his life was completely absorbed by the ‘Johnny Cash Roadshow’ by now.
However he kept on writing songs whenever the time and inclination was there and slowly built up enough material before even knowing it. Finally a gap came up in the diary when a short tour in Denmark got cancelled (September 20th – 22nd 2017) and this time was used to record the eighth album – ‘A Brand New Beginning’. The recording process was three full on days but Clive and the band are so used to playing live in JCR that the music was laid down very quickly without any loss in quality. Also Amanda Stone on backing vocals and Ben Church on dobro really added the colour to this amazing album. Clive insists these days on everything being played live and no sequenced or false sounds. So with this in mind a string quartet was brought in for this album which really has added a polish like nothing before. The combined effects of maturity and experience in song writing, performing, recording and musical prowess has made this album Clive’s finest work to date and he is rightly very proud of it. It is a pleasant surprise that has turned out to be well worth the eight year wait since the last album ‘The Spirit’! Clive didn’t think he was ever going to record his own material ever again, however he returned with a collection of extra special songs out of the blue and presented them with the finest possible taste.
Clive has been writing songs during lockdown including ‘Every Cloud’ (about the covid situation) which organically reached over 33,000 people on facebook. A new album is on the horizon at some point.
Although he no longer performs his own material, the odd song gets an airing at the Johnny Cash Roadshow concerts. Clive is planning on doing literally a handful of concerts playing just his own material at some theatres in the UK and possible abroad so keep an eye out.
If you don’t get a chance to ever hear Clive in concert, he has always said - how many house hold named artists have you never seen in concert? Still you buy the music and enjoy it in the car or at home and this is also the same with Clive. The music can be listened to forever…
