John Sloman is one of the
greatest voices in rock. From "Lone Star" to his solo career, passing
through Uriah Heep, Badlands or Gary Moore, his legacy is extremely precious,
and recorded three solo albums in the last three years, Don't Try This at Home
(2016), The Taff Trail Troubadour (2017) and “El Dorado” (2018).
Q. - Hello John, tell us a little
bit about your beginnings in the hard rock world, what were your main
influences, what lead you to be a hard rock singer?
John - I grew up in the era of
great hard rock bands who all had great vocalists fronting them: Plant, Gillan,
Hughes, Rodgers. Every new album I discovered at this time (early teens), featured
this imposing vocal presence. I’d been singing since I was seven – my
grandmother taught me songs by Bing Crosby and Al Jolson. A bit later I heard
Ray Charles. Then Stax and Motown. Then a friend of mine played me Led Zep
2. Soon after I discovered Deep Purple
(In Rock and Fireball), Uriah Heep (Very ‘Eavy Very ‘Umble and Look at
Yourself), Black Sabbath (First album, Paranoid and Master of Reality) and Yes
(Yes Album and Fragile). From then on I just wanted to be in a great band. Then
one day at school, a classmate came up to on the school playing fields and
asked me if I wanted to form a band. Everything changed after that. School was
a thing of the past.
Q. - You have been very busy with
your solo work, having recorded three albums in the last three years, Don't Try
This at Home (2016), The Taff Trail Troubadour (2017) and “El Dorado” (2018),
how are things going so far?
John - I’m always working on new
material. And the last few years (I hope) has shown how productive I can be. El
Dorado is being well-received. I’m especially happy about that, as the album is
very personal to me.
Q. - You started your solo career
with "Disappearances Can Be Deceptive", was that album a dream come
true?
John - Disappearances was kind of
a dream come true at the beginning. But over-time, it gradually became a
nightmare, and was finally released four years after its initial recording.
Having said that, it still means a lot to me, as it’s the first solo thing I
ever did. I say ‘solo’ – but there was a cast of thousands on that record,
featuring some of the best musicians in the country.
Q. - After the end of Lone Star,
comes the invitation to join Uriah Heep, and the album "Conquest",
how did that happen?
John - After Lone Star, I was
living in Canada. I had a band called Pulsar with Lone Star drummer Dixie Lee
and Pino Palladino. When that faltered due to Dixie leaving and issues with
visas, I returned to Britain with the intention of going back to Canada at some
point. But when I got home, there was a telegram requesting I call Bronze
Records. Trevor Bolder had watched my performance at Reading Festival in ’77,
and was impressed, so when Heep were looking for a vocalist Trevor suggested
they call me. There’s much more to the story of course. But that would take
more than twenty pages to tell. I go into more detail in my forthcoming book.
Q. - Then you formed Badlands,
with John Sykes, Neil Murray and John Munro, but it only lasted two gigs, why
did the band split up so quickly?
John - Badlands had huge
potential. We did just two gigs. Then John Sykes had the offer to join Thin
Lizzy. Also, Neil Murray went on the road with Gary Moore.
Q. - Did you record any songs
with this line up?
John - Badlands recorded a demo
for EMI – which is circulating on the internet. I have no idea who uploaded it.
But it’s there.
Q. - How did the idea of sharing
vocal duties with Gary Moore came up? Did you enjoy the "Corridors of
Power" tour?
John - The offer to join Gary
Moore came via Neil Murray, who was already working with Gary. I’d met Gary a
couple of times and we seemed to have a lot of common ground. Things were going
well. Then I got ill – and stayed ill for the whole time I was working with
Gary. As a result, my memories of that time are not happy ones. But Gary of
course was one of the all-time great guitar players.
Q. - Did you sing any song for
Baron Rojo, when they recorded "Volumen Brutal" in London? For their
English version of the album?
John - I didn’t record anything
with Baron Rojo. But I jammed with them once at The Marquee Club.
Q. - In your opinion, were the
90's hard times for hard rock and heavy metal bands?
John - I thought the 90s were a
promising time for rock music. After the drum-machines of the 80s, Grunge made
it ok to play rock music again, with a great drummer at the helm. And of
course, people were opening up their voices again. I viewed Soundgarden’s
excellent vocalist Chris Cornell as a throwback to that great early 70s period.
I read an interview with him where he referred to himself as having a “classic
rock voice”.
Q. - How did you end up doing
backing vocals on "It Ain't Over till It's Over" for "Fast"
Eddie Clarke?
John - I knew Eddie Clarke from
Heep days, as Motorhead were on the same label. Also, my girlfriend at the time
worked at Motorhead’s office. Working
with Eddie was easy. A studio over in Chalk Farm (I think?).
Q. - And what about Praying Mantis,
did you have some fun recording "The Journey Goes On"?
John - The Praying Mantis album
came about from knowing Dennis Stratton way back. I’d always run into Dennis
when I was out socialising around Soho. He and I always got along. So when he
called me about the Praying Mantis thing, I said yes straight away. And yes, it
was fun doing the album. Dennis, Tino and Chris were fun to be around.
Although, I remember my voice wasn’t at its best, due to having had a virus for
most of that year.
Q. - What plans do you have for
the future? Are you working on new music’s, or is just too soon?
John - I’m already working on the
follow-up to El Dorado, which I intend to release later this year. I also have
a follow-up to The Taff Trail Troubadour which I may also release this year (if
there’s time). I’m also editing a book I intend to publish this year.
Q. - Did you pay attention to the
NWOBHM back in 79/81? What did you think of the whole movement?
John - The NWOBHM was a positive
thing. Punk and New Wave had ruled Britain for several years - Lone Star were
one of many bands who fell by the wayside during this period. It felt like all
the young rock musicians (and rock fans) in the country decided that they
weren’t being catered for, and formed their own movement. And it worked. Bands
like Iron Maiden never looked back.
Q. - Anything more you want to
say, to end up this interview?
John - For many years, I couldn’t
get my material heard, meanwhile all that was available was old Lone Star, Heep
and Gary Moore albums. But then I started recording at home, and that really
set me free to do exactly what I wanted, albeit making compromises here and
there. Over the coming years, I intend to release some of the material that I
couldn’t get released back in the 90s.
Thank you for your time, and wish
you all the best for the future!
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