Before a huge show at the Apollo in Manchester, Ricky Warwick chatted to Alistair McGeorge about what it's like to be the new singer for Thin Lizzy.
How’s the tour going?
Unbelievably brilliant, really amazing thank you. We’re just having a blast.
How did you get approached to be involved?
I got approached by Scott Gorham and Adam Parsons, the band manager. I’ve known Scott for a long time, so he knows me, he knows what I sing like. So, he approached me and asked if I’d be interested, and of course I was.
I began talking to Scott about what he wanted, and what he expected from me, and what he wanted to new line-up of Thin Lizzy to be about. I was just like…I’m your man, please let me in the band! We had a rehearsal in London and that went really well, it was all signed and sealed that day. Here we are.
With the legacy Phil Lynott left behind, was it intimidating at all?
Hugely intimidating, it still is. I was such a big Thin Lizzy fan, and Phil was a hero of mine, still is. It was very daunting knowing that I was going to go out and try and recapture the spirit and the greatness he put into those songs. I mean, Phil is irreplaceable.
No-one would ever dream of replacing Phil, you can’t do it. He’s a one-off genius, that’s it. So, all you can do is try and deliver the songs with honesty, integrity, passion and heart and soul. What I want is people to come to the shows and go: “You know what, it’s not the same without Phil, we know that, but that was one hell of a rock and roll show”.
It’s a slightly different band. I think the band’s moved into a different dimension almost. It’s not the Lizzy it was with Phil, but it’s a different Lizzy and I think it’s a very vital band. It’s very cool.
Do you think it’s a fitting tribute to Phil, then, continuing it?
Well, absolutely. Why not? You’ve got three guys out of the original band in Darren [Wharton], Brian [Downey] and Scott [Gorham], and they wrote those songs along with Phil. They were there, they were part of it. Why not? What harm is it doing, if it’s bringing those songs to a whole new generation of people, people who may not have seen Lizzy with Phil? You know, I don’t see the harm that it’s doing.
I hate people that live in the past. Remembering the past is one thing, that’s great. People that yearn for the past, it’s not healthy. I think you have to move forward in life. If Scott wants to play those songs, he’s got every right to do so.
Absolutely. How’s the fan reaction been to it all?
It’s been unbelievable. The shows have been absolutely wonderful, but even a few people sitting on the fence and some of the nay-sayers are going “Wow, this is a really good rock and roll show”. These songs are being played with an intensity and passion that they haven’t been played since Phil was doing them.
I mean, we all want Phil back. If Phil was around now, I’d be in the crowd tonight watching the show. It’s as simple as that, but the cold, hard reality is that he’s not around. Life goes on, and I think people are starting to realise that and come to terms with that. I think when they see the band and see the show, they get it.
Has there been any temptation to write or record some new material?
I think there has been some temptation there, definitely. Again, that’s Scott and the other guys’ call. I’m sure if it is, it won’t be till much later down the road, when the band’s been around and toured for a year, year and a half. The temptation may be there to write a new song, or two…who knows?
Are there any plans for releasing any live DVDs or anything, like of this tour?
I haven’t heard anything that’s been said about that yet. That’s not to say it won’t happen. I know you can buy a USB of each show on the way out, so that’s available. That would be kind of cool, it’d be great if that happened but again, I don’t know.
Obviously, the band includes musicians from Whitesnake, original Lizzy members, Def Leppard and yourself. How do you go about sorting out the set-list? Is there a kind of hierarchy with the original members getting the final say?
No, not at all. The thing with the original guys is that they made us feel we were part of the band straight away. We were welcomed in, we never felt like hired guns. We became part of the band. When it came to the set-list, we were all asked to pick twenty five, twenty six songs and we all e-mailed each other. Obviously, the ones that matched up were the ones that stayed in the set. You’ve got to put ‘The Boys Are Back In Town’, ‘Jailbreak’, ‘Waiting For An Alibi’. Those are must-have songs in any Lizzy set.
Then, we sat about whittling down the ones that maybe the band hadn’t played too much. ‘Wild One’ is in there, the band haven’t played that in a while, even when Phil was alive. So, there’s a few sort of curveballs in there as well. It’s very democratic.
What does the new line-up bring to the legacy of Thin Lizzy?
It’s vibrant. Me coming in with such passion for it, and Vivian [Campbell] and Marco [Mendoza] coming in, it’s really invigorated the other guys as well. Everybody has big smiles on their faces, and just really enjoying playing the hell out of these great, great songs. When you see the show, it’s a full-on show. A full-on, good rock and roll show, great lights show, good movement on stage. Loads of intensity, loads of passion. I feel like we’re doing something really good.
Growing up in Ireland, Thin Lizzy would’ve been a huge influence on you. Is must be a dream come true for you.
It is, it’s a dream come true. I wake up every day like…my God, I’m in Thin Lizzy. I’m up on stage pinching myself. I never take it for granted, and the irony of the whole thing isn’t lost on me. I honestly think it never will be, it won’t be. Even in five or ten years time, I’ll still be pinching myself.
I’d assume those influences had a big effect on your song writing then?
Absolutely. My two favourite bands of all time are Thin Lizzy and Stiff Little Fingers. Especially Phil’s lyrics. He’s such a great, and I think underrated, lyricist. I love his writing, his word play’s brilliant. So, he’s been a huge influence on me.
Do you have any plans to continue working on your solo material alongside this?
Yes, I do. I will be doing that.
Cool, so you’ll be carrying on writing and recording during this?
Yeah, absolutely. Whenever Lizzy aren’t busy…there you go! When Lizzy aren’t busy, I’ll be working on my solo stuff. Right now though, Lizzy are the priority and I’m so over the moon. I’m not even thinking about solo stuff right now.
The main focus of this project is the live shows. Do you have a preference between being in the studio or-
Live, live, live. When I’m in the studio, I can’t wait to get out of the studio. I want to just get it done and get back out there.
How have you found it going from touring, performing your own songs to doing the Lizzy tour?
That’s a good question. It’s very different. I’ve always played the odd cover version, but this is the first time I’ve had to learn a body of work completely by another artist. It’s something I’ve never done before, so it was hard work. I had a lot of lyrics to learn. I wanted to learn all of Phil’s inflections in his songs, the phrasing and the ad libs he’d throw in there.
So, that was quite daunting, but it was getting up everyday and being Thin Lizzy. It was like Singalong With Phil. It was like I was fifteen again, standing in front of the mirror singing along with Phil to learn the songs. It was fun, but it was a lot to learn. Now, I feel pretty good. The last thing I wanted to do, which I hate to see and would’ve been a huge insult to Phil’s memory, to get up there with cheat sheets or an autocue. That’s just pure laziness. I wanted to make sure I knew the words as well as I possibly could. Hopefully, that’s what I’ve done.
You’ve clearly put a lot of effort in then! How long did you have to prepare, from when you found out about it?
I had seven months. Really, I had a lot of solo and touring commitments for the first three or four, when I was on the road so it was hard to be on tour and learn the Lizzy stuff. So, I came off the road in September, and that’s when I knuckled down. I didn’t listening to anything but Thin Lizzy, nothing else. My wife would keep showing me new bands and I’d be like…nothing else! It has to be Lizzy. That’s what I had to do, just to soak it up.
I’ve alluded to it quite a bit, but how do you plan on balancing your two projects? Is it easy enough to do?
Lizzy takes priority.
Is that pretty much it for the immediate future?
For the immediate future, Thin Lizzy takes priority, yeah. I sat down with Scott and I was like…I know I can do this. It’s a huge thing, it needs to be the number one thing. He said that’s what he needed to hear, and that’s great. For now, Lizzy would be the priority.
How would you convince someone to come and see the new Thin Lizzy?
It’s an absolutely amazing show. Let’s forget about the band. To start with, the light show alone is fantastic. When the band’s onstage, you get so much passion and intensity. It’s the closest you’ll ever get to these songs being played with the passion and intensity than when the great man was still with us. You will leave with a smile on your face. No, it’s not Phil, it never will be…but it’s the closest thing you’re gonna get.
Female First - Alistair McGeorge, picture by Ian Taylor
Tagged in Thin Lizzy