FINE GOLD UK  

STEVE FORBERT: YOUNG, GUITAR MAN

The folk boy's dream, riding into the city with nothing but belief, a sackful of songs and something resembling a guitar to play them on.

The city was New York, the time the early ‘70s, and the boy in the bubble, Steve Forbert, was soon to be lauded on international stages and turntables across the globe.

To mark his place in musical history a compilation of Forbert's early years has just been released on CD.

Young, Guitar Man comes in at just over seventy minutes and the twenty tracks at hand, personally selected by Forbert, bring to the fore the once young man's lyrical dexterity and melodic arrangements.

As Forbert says, "These stories aren't that far from where I'm now standing - still writing songs, singing, touring - and thus far without any life-shattering catastrophes. Which means, I guess, that I haven't changed that much . . . or, rather, that I haven't been changed that much."

So how did it feel to revisit these songs? "Good, because I can still relate to them. I found some good things in the vault, but I didn't know how many would fit on the disc, or how it would feel overall. It surprised me that it came out so well."

Young, Guitar Man’s opener, It’s Been A Long Time bounces along with the spirit of mid-summer and endless youth, with its author bemoaning the fact those days have passed now he’s reached the age of 23!

For fans of the early Forbert - songs like Romeo's Tune, Going Down to Laurel and Sadly Sorta Like a Soap Opera, weave between Dylan’s wit and intelligence, and the melodic dexterity of The Byrds and The Beatles.

On reflection, Forbert sees the years in New York as crucial to his development - a kind of trial by fire. "My time there was a much-needed thing. I think the experience of really scuffling toughened up, if not the songs, then my delivery as a performer.

“I hit New York with a little sweeter vocal approach, and living there kind of hardened it to a good place where I could present it to the radio and on stage."

The disc is dedicated to songwriting legend Doc Pomus, a figure who loomed large in Forbert's early years. "Doc was somewhat of a guru to a lot of us. He liked coming down to the clubs, although it was with some difficulty, because he was crippled.

“He was interested in songwriters. There was still a thread going from his days to the scene then. He dug it. He liked to keep up with things. A fascinating person. I got to know him, and was able to spend a pretty good amount of time around him.

“I'd go uptown and see him a lot. I don't want to be corny, but I'll be frank - of all the people I've known who have died, I miss him the most. He had such a vitality about him, and a way of giving you good advice and he'd give it to you straight."

Steve Forbert’s new CD Young, Guitar Man is out now! Visit Steve online @ www.steveforbert.com