HUGH CORNWELL

GT:Do you have a type of pick that you can’t live without?

HC: I sure do, it’s a Jim Dunlop .73. It’s the only one I’ve found that has any grip on it. I don’t think it’s what they intended but the writing on it gives you something to hold on to. I can get by with an .88 but prefer a .73.

GT: If you had to give up all your pedals but three, what would they be?

HC: I guess a tuner doesn’t count, right? It’s an easy question for me, as I only use three basic pedals. They are a distortion pedal for soloing, a digital delay, and the Electro Harmonix Small Stone, which gives that round envelope you can vary the speed on, sort of like a flangy tremolo.

GT: Do you play another instrument well enough to perform in a band? If so, have you ever done it?

HC: I started out as a bass player and played bass in my first band at school with Richard Thompson. I learnt to play on a homemade bass I bought from a classmate and the neck was a piece of wood 3x2”. It made playing the violin bass I bought next really easy!

GT: If a music chart were put in front of you, could you read it?

HC: I could figure it out if I had a week to study it, but I never learnt to read music fluently. I’m glad in a way because I had to rely upon my ears and my imagination to work out how to play things. And because of not learning the rules of written music there are no laws for me when it comes to composing songs.

GT: Do guitar cables really make a difference? What make are yours?

HC: I think guitars sound different when the sound travels down a cable. It’s a bit like recording: things recorded in an analogue way sound warmer and more substantial than things recorded digitally. I think you get a broader spectrum of soundwaves generated using analogue cables.

GT: Is there anyone’s playing (past or present) that you’re slightly jealous of? (And why?)

HC: Not really. You get to a point where you accept that what you do is what you do, and that’s it. I’ve never been a twiddly twiddly soloist, and really, the more notes you can play the less value each of those notes has.

GT: Your house/studio is burning down: which guitar do you salvage?

HC: Always the number one Telecaster, without doubt. My life depends upon it, and my sanity too.

GT: What’s your favourite amplifier and how do you set it?

HC: I’ve been a Vox AC30 man for many years. I like the tone it creates and always have done. And because it is only 30 watts it will very rarely be too loud. Mine have been modified, and the cut switch is now a master volume, so it’s possible to set your gain up

GT: What was the best gig you ever did?

HC: Now that’s a hard one. I always feel there’s a better one that will come along and surprise me.

GT: And your worst playing nightmare?

HC: This is a real nightmare, turning up for a show and being underprepared. Rather like the common one of having to sit an exam without being warned.

GT: Do you still practise?

HC: Most days. I have to as my present band is so on it. I don’t want to be shown up by them when we rehearse!

GT: Do you have a pre-gig warm-up routine?

HC: I discovered that classical pianists leave their fingers in a bowl of warm custard to improve the blood circulation before a performance, but I’ve never tried that. I like to have emptied bowels, as that can impede your movement. And a few warm-up Vocalzones are essential to clear the throat.

GT: And what are you up to at the moment? (Gigs, tours gear, etc)

HC: Well, we’ve just completed our UK tour in November to promote my new album, called Moments Of Madness, that was released on October 21.

Hugh Cornwell’s new album, Moments Of Madness was released on October 21, 2022, and is available in all good record stores and on all the usual digital platforms. For more news about Hugh, his band and their music, please go to www.hughcornwell.com first without drowning everything else. It helps being a vocalist who became a guitarist, because for me the most important thing that must be heard is the voice.

GT: What kind of action do you like to have on your guitars?

HC: Very low, the higher the action you have, the more energy you use pushing down on the strings to make them hit the fretboard. It also helps me move quicker around from one part of the neck to another.

GT: What strings do you use?

HC: Rotosound Roto Blues, 10-52. They used to be called light top, heavy bottom. When you are the only full instrument in the band you play a lot of chord work as well as single notes, so the bigger lower strings give you the oomph for the chords, while the lighter high strings give you the sharpness you need for the solos.

GT: Who was your first proper influence to play the guitar?

HC: I think I have to say it was a tie between Hank Marvin, Cliff Richard’s guitarist, and Eddie Cochran, the American wunderkid who penned so many great songs when I was growing up.

GT: What was the first electric guitar that you really lusted after?

HC: It was a Fender Telecaster, and it always will be. I think it’s the best-looking guitar that’s ever been manufactured. A work of beauty, in design and execution.