Chances to see prolific songsmith Russ Ballard live don’t come along often.
Known for penning a string of classics for the likes of Argent, Kiss, Hot Chocolate and Rainbow, the Hertfordshire-raised guitarist’s solo tour of UK venues in 2016 was, incredibly, his first in 40 years.
For Ballard’s Scottish fans, opportunities to check him out have been particularly slim, as that swift venture six years ago included no shows north of the border.
It’s Good To Be Here
Now he’s stepping out again on his It’s Good To Be Here tour – named after his recently rebooted 10th solo album – which launched at London’s legendary 100 Club last night.
The 76-year-old took his first steps on the road to fame back in the late ’50s as the world’s teenagers were going crazy over the rebellious Elvis Presley.
Meanwhile the American’s British rival Cliff Richard was working up his own slant on the emerging rock’n’roll pin-up formula.
“I saw a skiffle group when I was 11 at a fete at my school and just hearing the acoustic guitars was so exciting,” says Russ, who had played piano for three years by that point.
“Rock and Elvis was only just breaking then and skiffle looked easy, and you could start a skiffle band for probably only just £50. Three or four guitars and a washboard, that’s all you needed.
They stood in the wings and they had the make-up and the platform shoes and were ready to go on.
I thought, ‘These guys know what they’re doing.’
“I wanted a guitar, and I saw another band at the local youth club who had an electric guitar and a fantastic looking singer, and his name was Harry Webb (Cliff Richard).
“My dad was in the club and he walked up to me and said, ‘This boy’s better than Tommy Steele.’
“A year later he had Move It out and he was a rock ‘n’ roll singer. What I saw was half skiffle and half rock.”
Aged 16 in 1962, Ballard started working with popster Adam Faith, who was six years older and already a huge star.
He later played on Unit 4+2 chart-topper Concrete And Clay in 1967, before joining ex-Zombies mainstay Rod Argent as frontman of his glam / prog outfit Argent in ’69.
It was a stint that yielded one of the troubadour’s best-known compositions, the 1973 hit God Gave Rock And Roll To You, which was later covered by New York shock rockers Kiss.
“They’ve recorded five of my tunes,” he adds.
“The Academy of Music in New Jersey – I couldn’t believe it. I have played there with Moody Blues, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Argent and Kiss – and I had never heard of them before.
“We went to the soundcheck and they were setting up, and they had this rostrum with this big sign, ‘Kiss’, in the background.
I thought, ‘Wow, this looks like something’, and then the rostrum starts to go round and round, and I thought, ‘These have got to be something else’.
“When they came down in the afternoon they stood in the wings and they had the make-up and the platform shoes and were ready to go on.
“I thought, ‘These guys know what they’re doing.’ I played with them a few times after that.”
A string of hit songs
Other hits penned by Russ include Argent’s Hold Your Head Up, So You Win Again (Hot Chocolate), Since You Been Gone and I Surrender (Rainbow), You Can Do Magic (America) and post-Abba offerings I Know There’s Something Going On (Frida) and Can’t Shake Loose (Agnetha Fältskog), as well as numerous tracks by The Who’s Roger Daltrey.
Asked why he’s so seldom played live in recent decades, Ballard’s answer is simple – family.
“I stopped doing it because I had children and I wanted to see them grow,” he says.
“That was the main thing – I could stay at home and still write tunes, but I always missed going out and playing live.
‘Music takes you somewhere else’
“I did a tour with Roger in the ’80s – it was his first solo tour – and he wanted me to do some of my own tunes and he said, ‘When did you last tour?’
“I said, ’11 years ago’. He couldn’t believe it. But once you get on there, you get that feedback coming back to you from the crowd.
“It’s the reason I got into music. It takes you somewhere else.”
- Russ Ballard plays Kinross’s Green Hotel tomorrow. Check mundellmusic.com for tickets.
