You walk in to a bar somewhere in the middle of this painted desert we call life and there's a really hot 'unknown' singer/songwriter ripping it up in the corner. His voice and songs are so good you think to yourself, 'Why haven't I heard of this guy before?' Been there? Well, John Harley Weston is one of those musicians. Who knows why it happens. Fate has a strange way of weaving it's magic. All you need to know is that you found this remarkable talent before the rest of the world cottoned on.
Some parts of the world already know the name John Harley Weston. As lead singer with Scottish group Frontier signed to Polygram UK he worked with some of cream of the music industry including legendary Steeley Dan producer, Gary Katz, as well as members of Paul McCartney's band. Some Australians will know the name since Weston also wrote a song for the Brisbane Lions AFL team in 1999 called 'The Road To Victory' released via Festival/Mushroom Records. (Not your average football song I might add).
Weston now lives on Australia's Gold Coast on Tamborine Mountain (dubbed Music Mountain as it boasts many great musician and songwriters as residents). His relative anonymity (he says he likes the solitude) can only be because the best is yet to come.......his first solo independent album 'Hope Harbour' (2004) was the start of it........
Songs from his electric guitar based rock album 'Hope Harbour' won some serious awards. The uptempo 'Last Days Of Summer' (think Paul Rodgers) won him the Australian National Songwriting Contest (rock category 2005). The song was co-written with renowned drummer/guitarist Tony Beard (who has worked with Crosby Stills and Nash, Jeff Beck, Hall and Oates and Johnny Winter. The same song placed in the top 20 at the Unisong International Songwriting Contest 2005-2006 judged by songwriting legends and received an Honourable Mention from the 13th annual Billboard World Songwriting Contest.
Another track on the same album,'Brothers and Sisters', (think Paul Carrack) a humanitarian lament about the ongoing conflict in the middle east, also received accolades and held the number 1 spot for an entire 6 months on isonlive Australian Indie radio. This song was co-produced by Wet Wet Wet guitarist Graeme Duffin and Sandy Jones.
Weston's follow up album 'Welcome Back To Reality' (2008) didn't shirk it's responibility. Channel 7 Television added 2 songs to their Beijing Olympics playlist. Five million Australians (where the Scotsman has lived for 11 years) watched the broadcast. (Original song 'Believe In Yourself' and John's version of 'Waltzing Matilda'. (Freddy Celis of renowned 'Rootstime' in Europe says 'Weston’s intimate translation (of Waltzing Matilda) has to be added to the gallery of the greatest'.) This second album paints a more acoustic guitar based folk/rock palette in the vein of Mellencamp, Springsteen and even vintage Neil Diamond.
Being compared to great singers is easy to do on paper. However, John was also voted one of the top 5 best vocalists in the Independent Music World by heavy-weight music publisher Dale Kawashima at singeruniverse.com (Dale Kawashima was previously executive at Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Irving Azoff's Giant Records and Mercury Records). Now that's an endorsement!
It's true what they say that experience goes a long way. Weston's musical apprenticeship was served working with some of the greats. In the early 90’s he was signed (using his real name John Higgins) to Polygram Records Vertigo label (now Mercury Records) as lead singer and co-songwriter with Scottish band 'Frontier'. Frontier released 2 singles in 1992, original song ‘Lonely Heart’ (produced by legendary Steeley Dan producer Gary Katz) and a cover of the Graham Parker song ‘The Sun is Gonna Shine Again’ (produced by Kenny McDonald). Frontier supported Wet Wet Wet during 1992 UK stadium tour which included gigs at Wembley arena. They also supported Gun (band) in the same year on their UK university tour including venues such as London Astoria.
During his solo career, and as lead singer with Scottish band Frontier, John Harley Weston has worked with producers, engineers and session players such as Gary Katz (Steeley Dan), Sandy Jones (see link 8) and Graeme Duffin (Wet Wet Wet), Ian Kewley (Paul Young), Dave Bascombe (Peter Gabriel, Tears for Fears), Kenny McDonald (Texas (band)), Steve Jackson (Bryan Adams), Adam Mosely (Rush), Tony Philips (Seal) and session players Paul Wickens or Wix (keyboard player for Paul McCartney, Bon Jovi, Bob Dylan), Tony Beard (drummer for Crosby, Stills and Nash, Jeff Beck, Hall and Oates and Johnny Winter, Graham Broad (drummer for Van Morisson, George Michael, Go West) and Donny Little (guitarist for Paulo Nutini). He has recorded at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, Wales (birthplace of Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody), Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios in Box, Wiltshire, England, George Martin's Air Studios in London, Jacobs Studio in Surrey England, Jimmy Page's Old Mill Studio, Parklane Studios in Glasgow, Pete Townsend’s Eel Pie Studios on the River Thames in London, Rooster 2 in London, Swanyard Studio, London, Red Zeds in Brisbane (Australia).
Album titles 'Hope Harbour' and 'Welcome Back To Reality' are available from this website and many others.
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