Ger Thompson interview 24th March 2011This week Shane Supple spoke to singer songwriter Ger Thompson who is originally from Dublin but now living in locally. He moved to Cork with his wife Eileen whom he met while studying at Drama Collage. He spent most of his working life as an actor even after he got married. About a year and a half ago he was laid off from his job, like so many others in this current climate and he found it hard to adjust from working every day to not working. But while one door closes as they say another will open and he found that he had time to finish some projects he had always wanted to do but never had the time.
His first project was working on a self scripted film Called Flower which he had written. With the help of his friends and Eileen he gathered the crew and cast and made the film which took several months but once that was over he found that he needed a new outlet, he had written some songs for the film and always wanted to pursue that line of artistic endeavour.
He started writing songs, putting pen to paper, adding music and creating songs which he is now in the middle of recording. Now Ger is not your typical young teenager just out of school who wants to conquer the world, He is married with two children and always worked hard to provide for his family and was a very busy person who now finds he has the time to follow one of his dreams with the support of his wife Eileen one of his biggest supporters and critic. While we were talking, I asked Ger to sing one of his songs. The first song he sang was one he had written about his wife called ”Closer now”, the song is about taking stock of things and looking at the things you have around you. Ger started singing, eyes closed, had back, totally relaxed, his soft gentle voice filled the studio and Alan Reid a friend and guitar player who was with Ger just played along. I found myself drifting off just listening.
The reason I am even mentioning it is that I have interviewed a lot of singer songwriters in the last 17 years and not many of them have brought as calm and peaceful feeling of serenity that Ger brought into the studio that day. I don’t know what, even listening back to the recording of the interview , what exactly it was that carried me away. I don’t like waxing lyrical or offering an opinion with guests I rather tell the story based on facts but on this occasion, the feeling I got while sitting there was just that little bit different to the normal reaction, one which leads me to believe that Ger is very much an undiscovered talent.
We continued talking and chatting about music with Ger playing two more songs One called Meet me under the Clock Gate a song written about the clock Gate in Youghal and he sang a song dedicated to his sister called “Its for ourselves we cry” and before I knew it an hour had passed and it was time to wrap up the interview when I got a text message from a friend of mine who was passing through Youghal on the way home from a gig in Bantry the evening before. He wanted Ger’s number he wanted to book him for a festival he was organising. While this in itself is not enough to warrant special mention add to it other text messages that came in. One was from a lady who was listening in and found herself crying as Ger sang “Its for ourselves we cry”. She said the song was amazing and reminded her of a relation she too had lost. This un assuming, gentle, quite man was able to express himself in a soft warm way and over the airwaves was able to get his message across and touch the people who were listening in.
Ger Thompson is a name to watch out for and keep an eye on because he will in time be a songwriter who no doubt has a wonderful bright future ahead of him in the world of songwriting and performing.
His first project was working on a self scripted film Called Flower which he had written. With the help of his friends and Eileen he gathered the crew and cast and made the film which took several months but once that was over he found that he needed a new outlet, he had written some songs for the film and always wanted to pursue that line of artistic endeavour.
He started writing songs, putting pen to paper, adding music and creating songs which he is now in the middle of recording. Now Ger is not your typical young teenager just out of school who wants to conquer the world, He is married with two children and always worked hard to provide for his family and was a very busy person who now finds he has the time to follow one of his dreams with the support of his wife Eileen one of his biggest supporters and critic. While we were talking, I asked Ger to sing one of his songs. The first song he sang was one he had written about his wife called ”Closer now”, the song is about taking stock of things and looking at the things you have around you. Ger started singing, eyes closed, had back, totally relaxed, his soft gentle voice filled the studio and Alan Reid a friend and guitar player who was with Ger just played along. I found myself drifting off just listening.
The reason I am even mentioning it is that I have interviewed a lot of singer songwriters in the last 17 years and not many of them have brought as calm and peaceful feeling of serenity that Ger brought into the studio that day. I don’t know what, even listening back to the recording of the interview , what exactly it was that carried me away. I don’t like waxing lyrical or offering an opinion with guests I rather tell the story based on facts but on this occasion, the feeling I got while sitting there was just that little bit different to the normal reaction, one which leads me to believe that Ger is very much an undiscovered talent.
We continued talking and chatting about music with Ger playing two more songs One called Meet me under the Clock Gate a song written about the clock Gate in Youghal and he sang a song dedicated to his sister called “Its for ourselves we cry” and before I knew it an hour had passed and it was time to wrap up the interview when I got a text message from a friend of mine who was passing through Youghal on the way home from a gig in Bantry the evening before. He wanted Ger’s number he wanted to book him for a festival he was organising. While this in itself is not enough to warrant special mention add to it other text messages that came in. One was from a lady who was listening in and found herself crying as Ger sang “Its for ourselves we cry”. She said the song was amazing and reminded her of a relation she too had lost. This un assuming, gentle, quite man was able to express himself in a soft warm way and over the airwaves was able to get his message across and touch the people who were listening in.
Ger Thompson is a name to watch out for and keep an eye on because he will in time be a songwriter who no doubt has a wonderful bright future ahead of him in the world of songwriting and performing.
shareshareshareshare
No comments:
Post a Comment