BLUE WEAVER: Jive Talkin’ with a Legendary Strawbs Keyboardist by Judi Cuervo
BLUE WEAVER: Jive Talkin’ with a Legendary Strawbs Keyboardist by Judi Cuervo
Speak with Strawbs members past and present and it isn’t too long before Blue Weaver’s name comes up. From his extraordinary work on the iconic albums Grave New World and Bursting at the Seams, to fond recollections of him being just a really great guy, Blue is obviously not just a fan favorite but a band favorite as well.
Blue came to the Strawbs following Rick Wakeman’s departure and while Blue humbly feels he could not fill Wakeman’s shoes (literally, that is), his musical contributions led to Strawbs’ most successful recordings.
Below, Blue speaks with us about his early years with Strawbs, his time with the phenomenally successful Bee Gees and, of course, Strawbs 50th Anniversary Weekend where he’ll be part of the very first live performance of Grave New World, in its entirety!:
As far as I know, you were the first invited guest to respond to the invitation to perform at Strawbs’ 50th. From what I’ve heard, you cancelled a few planned shows with Massachusetts to be there and wrote on Facebook “only US immigration” could keep you away. Why? Can you tell us some of your fondest memories with Strawbs?
I always enjoy the “challenges,” especially the musical challenges of playing again with the “old” and the “new” Strawbs. When invited to join them for the 50th celebration, I tried to keep that period in April free from my other commitments and, happily, with my visa very, very near approved, I shall be there!
What are you most proud of in terms of your contribution to the early Strawbs?
It was a challenge musically for me to replace Rick, coming from the successful teeny bopper band Amen Corner and without any real musical credibility especially in the folk world here in the UK. At the time, I believed that credibility would be a necessity for Strawbs–little did I know that we would become a Glam Folk/Rock band!
You replaced Rick Wakeman. Did you encounter any difficulties filling in for one of Strawbs’ most popular members?
Yes. His shoes, cape and the blond wig were all too big for me. And the stilts? Well, I could have had a very nasty accident.
You’re a Welshman…who now lives in Germany. What led to your relocation?
The sausages, my wife and Worpswede. (JC: Presumably—and hopefully–not in that order.)
I was a huge Bee Gees fan and, from what I recall, Hugh Gibb, the brothers’ father was their manager and travelled with the band. Because of that, I’d imagine that being on the road with the Bee Gees was quite different from being on the road with Strawbs. Could you talk a bit about those differences?
It really wasn’t much different from the Strawbs in the early days–Hughie Gibb was fun and part of the team. Obviously, the Bee Gees’ success changed the way we toured—or, actually, didn’t tour, as our time was mainly spent recording. In fact, I believe I only did four tours in the US and Canada whilst I was a Bee Gee. Oh yes, and our last “tour bus” was a Boeing 707.
You’re credited with making an enormous contribution to the sound of the Bee Gees’ Saturday Night Fever. How did you manage such a seamless segue from prog to rock to disco? Or was it not as seamless as you made it appear?
It wasn’t too difficult and I really didn’t have to think too much about it, as I knew on joining the Bee Gees that my job was to come up with something new for the brothers since their recording and touring success had been diminishing over the past few years. Stevie Wonder had always been my idol and when we looked at what was happening in the charts at that time it seemed people wanted to dance so putting Stevie and Groove together with Bee Gees voices and harmony was easy, especially once I used a synthesizer.
Saturday Night Fever was a movie about New York disco so, obviously, dance tracks were what we were after. In fact, “If I Can’t Have You” and “Night Fever” were written and recorded before we knew anything about the movie. To us, “disco” wasn’t a term we really thought about or used, as from the early ‘60s the music being played for dancing in clubs was called “disco”—Motown, Atlantic, Stax and a lot of Soul records. The French created the term “disco” many years before—not Saturday Night Fever and not New York. And since Amen Corner started life as a soul band playing so-called “disco,” there was really no transition for me other than to take the brothers’ music in that direction.
Often, when Dave Cousins speaks about previous members of the band on stage, he’ll mention your very illustrious career (Mott the Hoople, Amen Corner, Pet Shop Boys, the Bee Gees) and says “He’s the richest Strawb of all.” How did your beginnings with Strawbs help (or hinder) your career?
Having been a Strawb definitely gave me the folk band “street cred” that I needed, especially since it became their most commercially-successful period. As for being the richest Strawb, I should’ve been but I think that honour must go to Rick–unless he spent it all or, like me, missed out on a lot along the way. I also think I realised I was never going to be successful trying to copy what Rick had achieved with Strawbs and, technically, I’m not in the same league so my musical approach was different.
You were a member of Strawbs during the 1970s, the Bursting at the Seams and Grave New World eras to be precise. You then left them but returned in 1983. What were the circumstances that led to your return?
After the Bee Gees I returned to London and bought a Fairlight digital synthesizer, put it in a studio at the back of my house and started working with that. When Dave offered me the chance to play again with the Strawbs I was pleased as it got me out of studios and back on the road for a while.
As a previous Strawbs keyboardist who, in that role, has since impressed you the most?
Oh, that’s easy…all of them! Playing in a band that has so many great players (I was just lucky!), is no easy task and each one has brought his own style and personality to the band. They have a relatively young one at the moment–Dave Bainbridge–who is not just a great keyboardist but also plays great guitar.
You appeared at Strawbs’ 40th anniversary celebration in Twickenham. What was your favorite part of that weekend…and what are you looking forward to most about the 50th?
Everything! From the rehearsals to the relief and drinks at the end. Actually, there was one really special moment for me at the 40th: It was the first time I had performed to an audience and sang (Rex Harrison style) a song I wrote for my daughter’s wedding called 07-08-09.
Okay…let’s get silly for a moment. Which Bee Gees song would you most like to hear Dave Cousins perform?
It has to be “Tragedy.”
