Acclaimed folk and jazz musician Ben Somers releases his brand new album, ‘Poor Stuart’ on 7 September 2018 – a polished and accomplished collection of twelve pieces, ten original, heavily influenced by American, Scandinavian and English roots music. Watch him performing the title track live on which he shared the following:
I spent day hanging out with a friend’s cat (named Stuart) whilst he had fleas. The combination of the aggravating collar and the fleas gave him a mix of excitement, anxiety and energy, he seemed unhappy and happy at the same time. Hopefully the tune he inspired me to write on that day might have given him a little solace.
This video was filmed in London, for a few reasons. With the whole band dotted around Europe, Paris, Lyon, Leeds and London, London seemed as difficult as anywhere else to round us all up. I really wanted my good friend Bobby Williams (based here) to film us. We’ve worked together on many projects, I know that he understands my process but has a very clear yet experimental creative process himself. It is important to me that people to see us ‘live’ and that the interaction and improvisation between the members of the group is captured. Improvisation and communication through music are the key aspects that I try to bring to any musical project I’m involved in.
I’m visually impaired so much of what I do when playing with others is non-visual, having lived and played a hell of a lot with such an impairment, I thoroughly promote the use of ears over eyes. I believe it creates a much deeper colour to the music.
We recorded the track in just a couple of takes. I believe that the first couple of takes are always the best, the most exciting. If you keep going back to something in the hope you can perfect it just becomes grey, who wants to hear perfect music? On mandolin is Evan Davies. Evan was recently appointed as mandolin teacher on the Folk Music Degree Course at Leeds College of Music. I’ve known him for a number of years and seen him become an outstanding musician. It was always obvious that he had the right foundation in terms of listening ability, awareness, the understanding of different roles within a musical group. On guitar is Dorian Ricaux from Lyon. He came highly recommended by legendary US mandolinist Mike Marshall who I’ve played with a few times. I was looking for a guitarist for a tour in The Netherlands and booked Dorian only having jammed with him once, briefly in Paris. He was instantly easy to play within added his own voice to the group. On fiddle is Marius Pibarot form Paris. I’ve known Marius for a few years through hanging out in Paris. He plays many different styles and we’ve played in various groups together of varying styles, the most recent (outside of my band) was ‘Medz Bazar‘ a traditional Armenian group.
Showcasing masterful musicianship, the album effectively harnesses elements of folk, bluegrass, traditional and in parts jazz, moving effortlessly between instrumentals and vocal led tracks, which, like all good folk music, are filled with compelling story-telling, delivered by Ben’s smooth and distinctive vocal. Don’t miss their UK tour dates in September, see below.
Catch Ben live this September
1st – Ben Somers String Band @ The Hermon Chapel, Oswestry
2nd – Ben Somers String Band @ Didmarton Bluegrass Festival
3rd – Ben Somers String Band @ Isis Farmhouse, Oxfordshire
4th – Ben Somers String Band @ The Green Note London
5th – Ben Somers String Band @ The Bank Eye, Suffolk
6th – Ben Somers String Band @ The Louis Marchesi Norwich, Norfolk