Can you be a 20 year overnight success?
After two decades of playing in a band, something weird happened...
At the age of 52 my band The Proposition got cool, and is now playing festivals and roots venues all over the UK, and getting rave reviews.
A slow start
I bought my first guitar at 14 but couldn't play it because I tried to learn right-handed when I'm actually a lefty (and that's why I founded lefty guitar retailer Left Hand Bear).
I didn't try again until I was 30, and, despite my limited personal ability, found myself surrounded by terrific musicians who forgave my instrumental limitations in exchange for a stream of (not terribly good at first) original songs and willingness to jump around on stage.
It was a slow journey, but by 2000 we were opening for Jools Holland's Rhythm & Blues Orchestra at big outdoor shows and getting (local) media coverage.
Having gone through various line-up changes and another 100 original (getting a bit better) songs, we reached the yawning abyss that is 'Dad rock'. By 2009 we were beginning to feel self-conscious: a kick-ass punky guitar band playing on the same bill as bands literally young enough to be our children.
From Dad rock to roots
It couldn't go on, but me and the guys couldn't conceive of giving up music, which had always been a passion more than a hobby. So we reinvented ourselves.
We dumped the Telecaster in favour of banjo, mandolin and acoustic guitar and began to write and play the rootsy acoustic folk-country-Americana that we were actually listening to at home.
We named ourselves The Proposition after an Australian-western movie, and everything changed. Instead of being old fogies we were grizzled and experienced. Instead of being Dad rock we were suddenly part of the new wave of roots music.
