Interview: Alexander O’Neal

Alexander O’Neal is a legend of soul music. He’s recently been  re-recording the hit album Hearsay which sold over a million copies in the eighties. The release is intended to celebrate the record but also bring it into the now and he’s accomplished that with a full live band. Alexander is also stopping by Colston Hall next year to bring the record back into the live environment. We shared a few words ahead of all this.

So how did the decision to re-record Hearsay first come about?

Well I moved up to Manchester and got a new team of people around me. I’ve got new producers and a manager and we decided to re-record the album. We thought that it would be a brilliant idea. I’ve never heard of anybody doing it. It was a really good project, we wanted to put a different twist on the music. You know the first Hearsay was a young Alexander O’Neil and this is the grown up version with a different twist on it.

It’s one of your most successful records, does it hold a special place in your heart?

Oh of course it does. I mean when I first heard the songs on the album I knew that it was going to be a hit album because the music was so great. So we did expect a lot from it. Especially because we were working with two special producers like Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

The original sold over a million copies, was there a pressure to do it justice?

Definitely. We were thinking hell, if we could just get a percentage of the record sales of that then we would do well. That wasn’t my main motivation for doing it though. My main motivation is always the music man. It’s always the music first. It was a challenge for me and I wanted to see if I could do it because I’m singing the songs in the same key at my shows as I did thirty years ago. So I thought if I could do that at the show then maybe I could go into the studio and do a good job. I’m very pleased with what we came up with as a team.

Was it a nostalgic process for you revisiting these songs in the studio?

Of course there was a certain element of nostalgia to it. I was looking forward to putting a 2017 twist on it. I was working with a the band called Mamma Freedom. They’re a great group of guys. We collaborated and I explained to them what kind of album and music I wanted and how I wanted it to be perceived. The band gave me everything I asked for so I’m very pleased.

It definitely packs a urgency to it, was that the intention?

It was the warming up. If you look the first album it was a little commercial. It was great for what it was but when you’re working with a band opposed to two producers you get a different feel. I wanted that different feel. I wanted that live feel. I wanted that more soulful feel, and that’s what I got. So it really worked out well. I’m very very proud of it.

Are you excited to see the response out on the road?

It’s going to be great. We’re still doing what what we do best. We’re touring and we’re just going to keep going and see what comes up next. First of all I don’t downsize my music, I’ve got a nine-piece band which I bring to the party and they’ve got a whole lot of soul singing and a whole lot of soul music. I enjoy coming to England. It’s always one of my best experiences so I’m really looking forward to it.

Alexander O’Neal plays Colston Hall on April 19. 

Tickets are available here: www.colstonhall.org

Hearsay30 is out on December 1 you can pre-order at www.alexanderoneal.org