British guitarist Clive Carroll blends roots genres into an intoxicating mix, and is a captivating performer. He plays Boulevard Music on Friday, and he told the News about what he has in store for Culver City…
What have you been up to since we spoke in 2017?
I started playing live in the family band when I was about nine or 10. My mum played the accordion and sang Irish and country songs, and my dad played bass. My sister played guitar and sang while I was on guitar and banjo. They were great times and we played lots of pubs and clubs in the East of England. I guess I was about fourteen or so when I wrote my first ’serious’ solo guitar piece and caught the writing bug soon afterwards. By the time I completed my degree at Trinity College of Music in London, I was literally knee-deep in pages of orchestral composition and instrumental parts.
Describe your sound…
It’s quite an eclectic mix. In a nutshell it’s probably something like “John Dowland meets John Coltrane in Benjamin Britten’s music studio.” When I write for solo guitar, I often weave musical lines together. These phrases are not always necessarily in the same key, or time signature.
What are your career highlights so far?
The first major highlight was opening for John Renbourn back in the mid 1990’s at my local folk club. I had no idea that night would lead on to several tours and film writing together. Another highlight has to be when I was lucky enough to be the guitar soloist on a recording of Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, with orchestra. Other highlights include several tours with Tommy Emmanuel, the International Guitar Night of America tours, and working with classical guitarist John Williams on a duo piece I wrote a few years back.
Do you have recorded music available?
I’ve recorded four solo albums and most recently, a two-hour double album featuring the music of John Rebourn entitled The Abbot – Clive Carroll plays the music of John Renbourn. I guess this is my most recent career highlight, as I reworked many or John’s pieces (as he did himself… he was forever tinkering with and re-working his old classics). I have 21 guest musicians on the recording and a medieval ensemble.
Have you performed at Boulevard before? Any memories?
I played Boulevard one time before. It was a very memorable show because Carl Verheyen, the incredible electric guitarist and member of the band Supertramp, happened to be in town. I got him up onstage and had a jolly good old time trying to keep up with him!
What can the audience expect from the set?
The recent release of The Abbot double-album also means that I’m currently a walking Renbourn jukebox. So, it would be great to include a few JR pieces such as “The Lady and the Unicorn,” “Pavan D’Aragon,” “My Dear Boy,” and “The Hermit.” Perhaps “Faro’s Rag” even. I will also be playing original pieces, mostly new tunes, and of course you can’t come to one of my concerts without listening to some Celtic doom and gloom.
What else do you have coming up?
After my West Coast tour I’ll be heading across to teach and perform at the wonderful Swannanoa Gathering in North Carolina. After that it’s back to a world of studios and writing music for film.
Clive Carroll performs at 8 p.m. on Friday, July 19 at Boulevard Music. Go to boulevardmusic.com for more information about the show and missyandersen.com for more about the artist.
Elsewhere this week
The Culver Hotel will be hosting the likes of Sylvia & the Rhythm Boys, and Scotty Bramer. Go to culverhotel.com for more info.
There’s a full program of music at the Cinema Bar this week, as usual. The Hot Club of Los Angeles plays every Monday, and Wednesdays are singer/songwriter and open mic night. Other artists performing this week include Jim Doyle & Co., Mick Rhodes, Groovy Rednecks, Tom Gramlich, and more. Go to thecinemabar.com for more info.