Joe Hodgson: “My biggest influences, guitar-wise, would be Gary Moore and Rory Gallagher. What they did spoke to me in ways that no guitar players ever have”
Joe Hodgson is a Northern Ireland-based guitarist who recently delivered one of my favourite albums of the year in the form of Fields of Redemption. An almost entirely instrumental collection of tunes that, in true Hodgson style, blur the lines between rock, blues, and even jazz, the fifteen-track offering is an epic journey that needs to be heard to be fully appreciated.
With a love for Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy, I knew Joe and I would have a lot to chat about, and I was grateful when he accepted our request for an interview. Explaining why his new album features only one vocal track, what he enjoys getting up to in his spare time, and which three albums he'd take with him to a deserted island, please give a warm welcome to our friend Joe Hodgson!
Hi Joe, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us! I'm stoked to be able to re-introduce you to our ever-expanding audience!
Let's kick things off with an easy one...Who is Joe Hodgson, what first drew you to music, and how did you discover your passion for it?
I’m a guitar player and songwriter from Ballymagorry, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. What first drew me to it all was when I heard this music coming from the local parochial hall when I was about 14 years old. I followed the sound and discovered this rock band playing. I was instantly mesmerised, especially by the guitar playing, and my interest grew from there.
Then I heard Rory Gallagher play, and I knew I had to get a guitar. Hearing Gary Moore play, though, was probably the moment when I knew it was what I wanted to do professionally. And I’ve been doing it ever since.
My introduction to your sound came earlier this year when you released your double offering, Since You Had A Hold On Me and Stick Or Twist.
Both feature on your brand new album, but the former is the only track with vocals on the record. How did this come about, and what was it about that particular song that called for lyrics?
Well, the idea came about after I heard Glen Harkin singing in my neighbouring town of Strabane. I was blown away by his voice. He’s just an amazing singer, and I knew we’d work well together and that we could capture something special in the process. I’ve always played blues, and it just seemed the obvious vehicle for Glen’s voice. I don’t think there’s anyone else around that I would have deviated from the instrumental route for.
The song itself was new for me in that I’d never recorded a track of straight-ahead, clean blues guitar before. I especially loved the challenge of weaving guitar lines in and out around the vocal, trying the get the perfect notes each time. We had great fun doing it, and hopefully we’ll do more together in the future.
You've described your new album, Fields of Redemption, as being about "a quest to right wrongs, the search for inner peace, and the reconnection with the land of my birth".
Please tell us more :)
Well, I spent over two decades in London, and although I returned to Ireland in 2018 and recorded my first solo album, Apparitions, here, I was never fully settled, and I was unsure what the future held. But as time crept on, I began to realise that this was where I belonged, and where I felt most comfortable. But in the process, I had to reconcile myself with some things from the past and get used to a much quieter pace of life.
Both my parents also died, so it was a time of huge upheaval for me. But music is a very cathartic thing, and I soon found a life that I think I am truly comfortable with, in surroundings that I know better than anywhere. I also met the woman of my dreams along the way, so that kinda helped.
Who are some of your biggest musical influences? Who did you grow up listening to? And would you say that your tastes have changed over the years?
Band-wise, my biggest influences would be Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy. Zeppelin are especially dear to my heart, and I was totally addicted to their music when I was a kid. I still am to this day.
My biggest influences, guitar-wise, would be Gary Moore and Rory Gallagher. What they did spoke to me in ways that no guitar players ever have. Between them, they had it all.
I was also hugely into Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Peter Green. I also loved the American rock players like Randy Rhoads, Jake E Lee, and Van Halen.
But it’s not all pure rock that I listen to. I love a lot of soul, funk, jazz, country and Irish traditional music. It all comes out in my playing, one way or another.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, “Without music, life would be a mistake”. What would your life look like without music, and what fills your days when you’re not busy creating?
Well, as “The Great Agnostic” Robert G. Ingersoll said, “Music expresses feeling and thought, without language; it was below and before speech, and it is above and beyond all words”. So, based on that alone, I don’t think the question can even be contemplated. It just couldn’t be.
When I’m not making music, I love to sit down, have a few beers with my wife and watch my beloved Leeds United play. But even when I’m doing that, it’s fuelling my music in one way or another. For example, I’ll hear a song on the jukebox or hear an advert that has some great music in it, and that’ll inspire something new in me musically.
When a new song starts to form, what’s your usual approach? Can you talk us through how you develop that initial spark into a fully realised piece of music?
I’ll usually start off by messing around playing random stuff, and then a little spark or idea will come from that, which I’ll then develop into a fully formed song. Then I’ll get a basic groove going on a drum machine before getting a drummer and bass player involved. When I get their parts down, I begin layering the track and dressing it up with whatever other instrumentation I hear in my head.
On the new album, I had a co-producer, Chris James Ryan, and he was fantastic in helping me fulfil what I was imagining in my head, while also adding his ideas to the sound. In general, it’s a pretty organic process, and it usually happens without the minimum of fuss.
OK, Joe – desert island time! You’re allowed to grab 3 albums before being stranded on an island. Which do you go with?
1) Led Zeppelin - In Through The Out Door. That was the first album I ever bought, and funnily enough, it was their last album before John Bonham died.
2) Thin Lizzy - Black Rose. I think this was their masterpiece, and Gary Moore was on fire on it.
3) Gary Moore - Still Got The Blues. This album was a revelation when it first came out, and it still sounds fantastic to this day.
Thanks again for taking the time to chat with us Joe! It's been a treat getting to know you better!
What comes next for you musically, and do you have any words of wisdom you'd like to leave us with?
I’ll hopefully get back in the studio to record again early next year, and maybe do a single or an EP. For the next album, Chris and I hope to do it in Nashville. But we’ve put no timeline on that yet.
As far as words of wisdom go, I’ll leave that to the greatest writer of all time, William Shakespeare: “Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt”.
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