Have You Heard? was first produced in 1995. Why have you decided to re-release it?
Most people haven’t heard it. That’s not meant to be a pun on the name! I’d thought about it for a while because it was only released on cassette back in the day; it never made it to CD.
I thought the 20th anniversary would be a good chance to re-do it, get it out, but I couldn’t find the original two-track master, so it meant that I had to find someone with an old Tascam MSR-24 machine to transfer it to the digital domain. I found someone in New Jersey and they transferred it to me, then my friend Shane Wilson remixed it.
I thought I’d reinvent a couple of the tracks. I love the music of Massive Attack, so that inspired the two remakes of ‘Rest’ and ‘The Rain’.
It has all the original members of Delirious? on it, but while we were still doing the Cutting Edge events before we were actually called Delirious?. I hope people enjoy it and it brings back a few memories.
Having had time to reflect on Delirious?, what are your thoughts now?
Well, I miss it, to be honest. I miss the guys. I miss the vision and passion of the thing that we had together. I look back at it with huge fondness. It was some of the best times of our lives. The feeling of being part of something that felt significant, not just for us, but [for] folks around the world who were into the music and into what we were doing – I miss that.
How fed up are you of being asked ‘When will Delirious? get back together’?
[Laughs] I never get fed up with it, but I just don’t have the answer to that! I’m really a big fan of Martin [Smith] and what he’s doing. I notice he’s got the Army of Bones band now. There’s no one cheering louder than I am, and I’m proud of him. If the time is ever right for us to get together and work again, I would love that. I feel like we made great music together. So one day, if there’s a song we can work on together or whatever, that would be awesome. But there [are] no plans right now.
What’s your advice for other Christian guitarists who want to follow in your footsteps?
The thing I advise people is to work really hard – learning your craft and your instrument. Always have the mind of a student. The people who are most successful, bar one or two, are the people who get on with folks the best. In the session scene in Nashville, people are a good hang. So have fun and don’t get too serious.
Have You Heard? (Stugiology Music) is available now from stugworld.com
