Q&A singer & guitarist Paul Cowley, an unusually authentic feel for country blues with a sophisticated urban lyricism

"Blues music is enormously diverse, has gone through a century of change & development & will continue to change. The impact of the blues has and will continue to shift. On a simple level, the music brings people together, makes them equal, removes barriers & differences. That'll do for me!"

Paul Cowley: On The Blues Highway 

The Mississippi River doesn’t run past Paul Cowley’s granite barn in the rolling French countryside but his acoustic country blues flow deeply there just the same. When Paul says his love of one of the most basic and beautiful of all blues styles grew out of his life in Birmingham, he’s talking England, not Alabama. The blues came late. In his early 40s, with his jazz-guitarist uncle’s steel-string guitar, inspired by Lightnin’ Hopkins’ Coffee House Blues album. “It was like flipping a switch,” he says, on hearing Hopkins’ music, and the hard-wiring that had been part of his early trade as a builder now carried the musical currents of the Delta. The fact that Paul had never been to Mississippi, Chicago, or any of the traditional sources of this unique music, didn’t matter. The blues came calling. Initially, Paul took that guitar, some short-lived guitar lessons from his teenage years, plugged in his new blues influences, and became his own country bluesman — a singer, songwriter and storyteller with a flair for turning the long and winding road of his life into carefully crafted musical adventures.          (Paul Cowley / Photo by Karen Key)

In Birmingham, Paul sharpened his musical skills, and was instrumental in forming the The Sutton Blues Collective. The club booked acoustic blues performers such as Guy Davis, Doug MacLeod, Steve James, Del Ray, Mary Flower, Watermelon Slim and many more over a ten year period. The blues highway beckoned, and after about ten years of music in Birmingham, Paul carried his century-old American country blues from England to another country, moving to southern Brittany, in France. Of course, the country he picked is part of his story. He left Birmingham for a rural setting in Brittany, where he records in his granite barn – acoustic and country in the same space.

Interview by Michael Limnios

What do you learn about yourself from the blues and what does the blues mean to you?

I gravitate towards Country Blues, songs that tell peoples stories. Whether the songs were written a century ago or today, the stories haven't changed a great deal. I've learned that my tastes are fairly simple & that I respond to music that convey's emotion. To me Blues means a music that convey's emotion & tells human stories.

How do you describe your sound and songbook? Where does your creative drive come from?

I've been writing songs for over twenty years. I've written quite a few, some have been recorded, some played frequently, others forgotten. I'm a slow player, I'm into feel & emotion. I'm told often I have good feel. That is worth far more to me than being told I'm technically brilliant, fast or whatever!

My creative drives comes from being immersed in music. Seeing & hearing musicians that inspire, entertain or influence me. Inspiration for songs is drawn from personal experience, experience of others, great music by others etc.

What do you miss most nowadays from the blues of the past? What are your hopes and fears for the future of?

I miss a time before all the themes & topics had been exploited. It is very difficult to write a song with an idea that hasn't been done many times before nowadays. The blues has endured in various forms for over a century. I believe it will endure. Human beings will always express themselves through music & blues will be part of that. Music generally is challenged by the myriad of other choices the modern world forces on people. There are trends cycles, but it will always remain an essential human need.

"My creative drives comes from being immersed in music. Seeing & hearing musicians that inspire, entertain or influence me. Inspiration for songs is drawn from personal experience, experience of others, great music by others etc." (Paul Cowley / Photo by Karen Key)

Are there any memories from gigs, jams, open acts and studio sessions which you’d like to share with us?

A memory that often comes to mind - I was booked to play solo at a blues dance in Derbyshire UK a few years ago. I arrived at a fairly big hall which filled quickly with a significant number of regular dancers. The house music through the PA was loud &up tempo. Whilst setting up I had serious doubts that my original acoustic music would satisfy the needs of the evening. A took a deep breath & went for it. I couldn't believe the reaction. It didn't seem to matter what I played the people loved it all. The dancing was very accomplished, sensual & for a couple of hours myself & the dancers were as one. It was a powerful experience!

What were the reasons that made the UK since '60s to be the center Blues researches and experiments?

The ninteen sixties in Britain were a period of population boom coupled with changing attitudes, needs & freedoms. The music of the sixties was the soundtrack to those changes & was a period of great energy & excitement. American culture was an enormous influence. UK musicians were hungry to absorb & adapt the influences, the blues being one of them. They seemed to have a special empathy & connection with blues. The original blues players seemed open to the attention & advantages that might offer them.

What is the impact of Blues on the socio-cultural implications? How do you want the music to affect people?

Blues music is enormously diverse, has gone through a century of change & development & will continue to change. The impact of the blues has and will continue to shift. On a simple level, the music brings people together, makes them equal, removes barriers & differences. That'll do for me!             

"I miss a time before all the themes & topics had been exploited. It is very difficult to write a song with an idea that hasn't been done many times before nowadays. The blues has endured in various forms for over a century. I believe it will endure. Human beings will always express themselves through music & blues will be part of that. Music generally is challenged by the myriad of other choices the modern world forces on people. There are trends cycles, but it will always remain an essential human need."

(Paul Cowley / Photo by Karen Key)

What's the balance in music between technique skills and soul/emotions?

One needs a degree of technical skill to make an instrument work but without soul / emotion, there is no music!

John Coltrane said "My music is the spiritual expression of what I am...". How do you understand the spirit, music, and the meaning of life?

We are all different, no two people would give the same answer to the question. Personally, music is an expression of my spirit & who I am, I know people that have no interest or connection with music whatsoever. The meaning of life? That one is beyond me!

Paul Cowley - Home

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