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The Story So Far...
Altho' I’m better known for acting, for years I was a singer. First with Max Moonlight, later with The London Band, and after that a tight harmony group called Denise Black and the Kray Sisters.
At school I was called foghorn and singled out for speech training. I was a chatterbox and couldn’t sit still. I adored dancing but couldn’t be led. I thought I couldn’t sing until I discovered the tenor part in Handel’s ‘Messiah’. Same time I got good enough on the piano to play Gershwyn and fell in love with James Taylor. I’m crazy about music. I married a songwriter. I’m nuts about musicians’ hands.
I met Graeme Taylor two years ago singing Greek folk songs aboard a rather rocky stage at the Chichester Festival Theatre. I’d been writing in secret for several years and was dying to do another band. I took Graeme sailing under the stars in my boat ‘The Lovely Doreen’ and that was the beginning of the most fantastic music adventure. We call it my Loose Screw.
I taught him knots and he taught me chords. I played him songs by my hubbie, Paul Sand. Graeme introduced me to John B Spencer’s songs – he was in John’s band for years - and played me his own stuff. We’re full of ideas about songs we should cover. We’re like kids in a sweet shop.
Graeme and I juggle jobs in music and theatre. It’s not an either/or. They’re both passions. In the 2 years we’ve known each other I’ve done four plays and a couple of telly’s. Graeme’s done plays at the National and the Novello, a reunion concert of ‘Gryphon’ at the QEH and produced umpteen recordings. We meet most weeks in his studio to write and record.
After one year we had recorded 14 songs and played a sellout week at the Pizza On The Park in a 5 piece with Ben Grove, Hedi Pinkerfeld and Michael Gregory plus special guests.
In the 2nd year Max came in for a gig I’d got at the Band In Wall. I’d also agreed to mc a midnight show in the fabulous Ghillie Dhu for the Edinburgh Festival. Max and Graeme and a bevy of guests came for the ride. We were tired but we were tight, we were chaotic, we were noisy, we were joyful and every night we got the joint jumping.
We’ve just played the National Theatre foyer Sunday lunchtime and I watched as the crowd gathered and the grey heads started nodding in time to the beat, and feet started tapping and the hearts started pumping and the kids stopped pestering their parents. And I knew The Loose Screw was coming of age.
2011 is our 3rd year.
© Copyright 2010 www.graemetaylor.com graphics Endre Herczeg photo James Robertson