Based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Richie Harrison is a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who would watch John Denver videos instead of cartoons as a kid. Apart from his solo work, he’s also in a punk-rock band called TNCS, so it’s safe to say he’s got a rather diverse musical palette.
Intrigued to find out more about the skilful musician, I was stoked when Richie agreed to an interview! Taking us through his brand new single ‘Best You’ve Had’, how he takes an idea and turns it into a song, and which three albums he’d take with him to a desert island, please give a big welcome to our new friend Richie Harrison!
Hi Richie! Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with us! Let’s kick things off with an easy one…Who is Richie Harrison and when did your love affair with music begin?
Hi, thank you for having me! Haha, good question! I’m Richie and by day I earn my living doing maintenance on big plant machinery. My passion lies in music though. Since I can remember I’ve always loved music. I’d ask my parents to put on John Denver videos when I was in nappies instead of cartoons. Then I fell in love with Guns N’ Roses when I was 9 and I’ve loved music ever since. I don’t think there is a day that goes by when I don’t have music involved in my life. As well as my solo project, I’m in a punk rock band called TNCS. Check them out as well!
‘Best You’ve Had’ is your brand new single, and it’s a tune I’ve had on repeat for the past few days. It’s super eclectic and unique! What do you want the world to know about the track and do you remember its “birth” so to speak?
Ah, that’s very kind of you to say, thank you!
Erm, I don’t really know what I want the world to know about it. I’ve always liked it when artists don’t really tell you the meaning behind songs and you can imagine what it’s about and make it something for yourself. I suppose I’d just like people to hear it! That’s the hard part.
Yeah, it was quite a strange one to write. It actually happened by accident. There is a part in the song that sounds a bit like an engine stopping. That’s actually me recording my guitar by accident when I dropped it. So I sampled that and added the drums and it just all fell into place from there. It’s one of my favourite songs I’ve done. It’s quite unique.
Now, I’m sorry to pose such a tough question so early on, but what song of yours are you most proud of releasing and why?
Haha, yeah, that’s a tough one. I’d probably have to go with my first single ‘The Firing Line’ though. Not because it’s my favourite song, I’d say ‘Best You’ve Had’ is, but because it took me a long time to build up the courage to release any music. I’ve suffered with anxiety and to release ‘The Firing Line’ and have so many people like it was amazing.
Who are some of your biggest musical influences? And who would I see under “Recently Played” on your streaming service of choice?
I was born in the 80s and grew up in the 90s so Oasis has been a massive influence on my life along with The Stone Roses and The Beatles. There is also music my parents listened to like Deacon Blue and Bob Dylan. As I mentioned earlier Guns N’ Roses as well. I also loved and still love Snoop Dogg’s ‘Doggystyle’ – it’s one of my all-time favourites. Recent influences are IDLES, Sleaford Mods, Viagra Boys, Baxter Dury, and Ghostpoet.
Under my recently played are The National, Fat White Family, Blur, Ian Brown and Billie Eilish.
Could you tell us a bit about your songwriting process? Not specifically for any song but just in general. How do you take an idea and turn it into a piece of music?
Yeah, I like this question. I’m still learning to be honest. I’ve never done any music lessons in any way, it’s all self-taught. I taught myself how to play guitar, bass, a little piano, and a little on the drums. I’m currently learning how to mix, master, and produce tracks myself. I always used to use Garageband and have done so for many years but I recently got myself a Mac and have Logic Pro now.
So, basically, for most songs, I come up with something on guitar, say either a riff or a chord progression. Then I’ll either transpose it to another instrument or record it with my guitar. Then I’ll build the track around that. I’d normally have a melody for the lyrics as well. The lyrics would be last unless I’d written some earlier and made them fit whatever I’m writing. I’ve found lyrics from years ago that were forgotten and added them to recent music. For example, my song ‘Thoughts (That I Should Not Be Having)’ – the music was written last year but the lyrics were written about 10 years earlier.
I get inspiration for my lyrics from all sorts of places. If I hear something a bit odd or unusual I’d often use that. I normally try to stay away from love but sometimes it can’t be helped. I just think there is a song for every aspect of love. Usually, though, it’s normally what I’m feeling that I write down. I surprise myself sometimes with what comes out and don’t even know that I was thinking about some of the things I write about. My favourite lyrics I’ve written are for a song called ‘This Town’ that I do with TNCS. That will be a single one day.
I also like the lyrics for my last single ‘Sertraline’ – that’s quite a personal song.
I love building a song. I used to put a million tracks down on one song and really overproduce them but I’ve learnt less is more. I still often have everything too loud though. I need to reel myself in most times with that. It sort of feels like therapy for me though, making music, I absolutely love it.
I love it so much I literally write a song a day.
What would “being successful” in the music industry look like to you? And is it something that you think about when creating new music?
Being successful for me would be making a living from it. That’s my goal and I think about it every single day haha. I don’t mind in what capacity. I’d love to be a producer though, eventually. I’d also love for my band to be able to tour.
OK, Richie – desert island time! You’re allowed to grab 3 albums before being stranded on an island. Which do you go with?
I’m not going to go with my usual, if it’s all-time I’d have to put ‘Definitely Maybe’ and ‘The Stone Roses’ in but I’m gonna change it up a bit.
So my 3 would be; First, ‘Joy As An Act Of Resistance’ by IDLES. When I first heard this album it was literally saying the things I was thinking. I connected so much with it.
Second, ‘Trouble Will Find Me’ by The National. Such an amazing record. ‘Pink Rabbits’ is an outstanding song. I could easily sit back on a beach and listen to this all day.
And finally ‘Una Mattina’ by Ludovico Einaudi. I mean, it’s just beautiful. If you were stranded on a desert island and this was your only music, you’d be a happy loner.
Thanks again for chatting with us Richie! It’s been awesome getting to know you a bit better! Before we let you go, what comes next for you musically?
Thank you for having me, it’s been fun!
Solo-wise, I have an album, ‘Wisdom is Wasted on the Old” out at the end of the year with one or two singles before. Band-wise, we have a new single out in the next couple of weeks called ‘Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained’. It’s a banger so check that out. We are also playing at Coastfest Festival – a new grassroots music festival on the coast of North Tyneside. Check it out – it’s won awards!
Thank you.
