THE ZOMBIES
Photo by Alex Lake
Colin Blunstone interview
by John Wisniewski
(February 2022)
Known as the voice of beloved British Invasion group the Zombies, Colin Blunstone strode out by himself in the early '70's with his wonderful solo album One Year, which has recently seen a long-overdue reissue and has been commemorated with an extensive reissue by Sundazed Records. After a handful of reunions in the late '80's and '90's, the band returned full steam in the early millennium with several tours and a trio of new albums: As Far as I Can See... (2004), Breathe Out, Breathe In (2011) and Still Got That Hunger (2015). To cap it all off, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019. Here, he speaks about his solo album, his time with the Zombies and future recording/touring plans.
PSF: After being in the Zombies for a number of years, you left the music business. What did you do then?
CB: All three of the non-writers in The Zombies had to get jobs to simply survive after The Zombies finished. I took the first job I was offered; it wasn't a career choice. It happened to be in an insurance office.
PSF: Why did you decide to return to doing music after the band broke up?
CB: I was offered the opportunity to record again when The Zombies had a belated hit with "Time Of The Season," firstly as an experiment under the name of Neil MacArthur and then under my real name with Rod Argent and Chris White of The Zombies producing.
PSF: Even though you were beginning a solo career, you were working with former members of the Zombies and recording some of the songs that other members wrote. How did you feel about putting your own stamp on that work, separate from the band?
CB: Well firstly, The Zombies no longer existed so there was no feeling that this was "separate to the band." Secondly, although in theory One Year was my first solo record I always thought of it as a team effort with recording engineer Peter Vince and arranger Chris Gunning joining me and Rod and Chris.
PSF: Related to that, could you talk about the sessions for One Year and how it went? What in particular stands out for you about working on that album?
CB: Abbey Road had very strict rules in those days. Sessions lasted from 10am. to 1pm. and 2pm. to 5pm, and 7pm. to 10pm. It meant that there was an added energy to all our sessions as we had to be finished by specific times. The 10pm. curfew might seem a bit of a surprise but Studio 3 where we recorded was right next door to a big block of flats and the studio wasn't particularly well sound proofed so there used to be complaints about the noise!!! I think all the Abbey Road engineers were fantastic thinking especially of Peter Vince and Geoff Emerick. Everything changed on the album when we were introduced to arranger Chris Gunning. His wonderful arrangements were totally original and unique. I had never heard anything like them before and haven't since!!!
PSF: You also had your own songs on One Year. When did you start writing songs and how was your work effected by the songs that you did by Rod and Chris (Zombies)?
CB: I don't think I would have ever started writing if I hadn't watched Rod and Chris evolve as fantastic writers. They really inspired me to try and write and The Zombies did actually record 2 of my songs. But it was in the period between the end of The Zombies and the beginning of my solo career that I first started to write seriously and 4 of those songs made it on to One Year.
PSF: "Goodbye Caroline" is a particularly moving song from that album. Could you talk about that song?
CB: When anyone starts writing they will very often write from personal experience. This song was written about a specific period of my life. It was never my intention to use the real name of the girl concerned but although I really tried I couldn't find another name to fit. With the recording date fast approaching, I decided to throw caution to the wind. Caroline was a famous model in the U.K. and went on to make many films and so much has been made of this song written about her.
PSF: You also recorded a few singles under a pseudonym. Why did you decide
to take that route?
CB: There were 3 singles recorded under the name Neil MacArthur. I never really understood why I was asked to change my name but at the time, I was really only "testing the water" to see if it was at all possible to start a solo career and felt it was probably "best to simply go along with it."
PSF: You also recorded three solo albums on Elton John's record label. What
was that period like for you? Were you working with John himself?
CB: I worked most closely with the late Gus Dudgeon (Elton's producer) although I did discuss my career with Elton. I thought Rocket was a great label, always putting the interest of the artist first though unfortunately, I wasn't able to give them a hit record.
PSF: When One Year was recently reissued, what did you think of the album
all these years later?
CB: I think One Year has stood the test of time well. Chris Gunning's arrangements sound as fresh and relevant today as they did 50 years ago and most of the songs have a timeless feel about them too. Listening to One Year after all this time felt quite emotional as so many memories were triggered by this my first few steps into the world of being a solo performer.
PSF: Going back to the beginning of your music career, how did you get involved in the formation of the Zombies?
CB: It was a strange set of circumstances... At 15, although I played guitar, I don't think I had ever thought of playing in a band. At the time, I went to quite a strict all boys school where everybody had to sit in alphabetical order which meant I sat next to a boy called Paul Arnold. Paul lived in the next road to Rod Argent who incidentally went to a completely different school. Rod asked Paul to be in his soon to be formed band and then Paul asked me. This band would become known as The Zombies. It intrigues me that if we hadn't sat in alphabetical order at school I almost certainly wouldn't have joined The Zombies!!
PSF: What in particular made you want to working with the other members in a band?
CB: To be honest, they were the only guys who had shown any interest in having me in a band!!
PSF: Since the band was in the middle of the British Invasion, breaking out with success past England, was it a little head-spinning to have the success of international singles? How did you deal with this?
CB: When you're young and everything is moving very fast, I think you tend to take whatever life throws at you in a very relaxed way. I was touring the world with my mates playing the music I loved. It felt like a brilliant adventure!!
PSF: What kind of memories (good or bad) do you have about touring America with the band?
CB: Incredibly enthusiastic audiences and the thrill of working with wonderful artists who had seemed from a completely different planet only a few months before.
PSF: What stands out for you about recording the Odessey and Oracle album?
CB: We recorded on such a minuscule budget that we had to rehearse everything really extensively before we got to the studio and then record very, very fast.
PSF: What caused the Zombies to break up?
CB: We were very poorly managed and after 3 years of continual touring, the three non-writers in the band were completely and absolutely broke.
We wrongly perceived ourselves as being unsuccessful but later realised (there was no internet so it took time to find out about foreign charts) that we always had a hit record somewhere in the world.
Maybe there was also a feeling that the band had simply run its course and it was time to begin new projects.
PSF: When Odessey and Oracle finally did come out a while later, what did you think of the final product?
CB: It's always very difficult to judge your own work so I couldn't be sure if it was good or not but I did think that it was the very best that we were capable of at the time!
PSF: What kind of details can you share about the upcoming Zombies record?
CB: We realised when we were recording our last album Still Got That Hunger that all of us playing together "live" in the studio gave our recordings an extra energy that wasn't there when we recorded our parts separately. Because of the pandemic it has been challenging to record this way (especially as Soren [Koch, bassist] lives in Denmark!!) but it really has been worth the extra effort.
PSF: How have the recording sessions gone?
CB: The recordings have gone extraordinarily well. All of the members of the band are fine musicians and a joy to work with.
PSF: When was the material written?
CB: Most of the material was written either just before we started or during the time we were recording.
PSF: What was some of the inspirations for the new songs?
CB: As Rod wrote most of the songs I may not be the best person to ask.....I only know they are great songs to sing!!!!
PSF: Of course, the whole music industry is up in the air about the latest
variant of COVID, but what are the band's tentative touring plans?
CB: We have just had to postpone our U.K. tour till next year but very much hope that the rest of the years tours will go ahead as planned.
PSF: What kind of precautions have you been taking during COVID? How
comfortable are you going out to public places now?
CB: I've tried to be as sensible as possible. I have been vaccinated including a booster jab and I wear a mask in public. Otherwise, I try to live as normal a life as possible.
PSF: I get the feeling that you are one of those very dedicated musical
types that has no intention of retiring. Does that sound right?
CB: Performing, especially the traveling side of touring, can be quite challenging. I've promised myself that I will tour for as long as I'm physically able to which hopefully will be for some time yet!!!
And see our interview with Rod Argent and our 2007 article about the Zombies
and our 2011 article about the Zombies