Simon Fowler of Ocean Colour Scene: ‘When you’re hanging out with Noel and Liam Gallagher, it’s easy to get led astray’
If you were around in the 90s, chances are you know at least one song by Ocean Colour Scene, one of a wave of successful guitar bands that helped define the music of that decade.
The Day We Caught the Train, perhaps their best-known tune, is classic sing-along fare, while viewers of seminal 90s TV show TFI Friday will be instantly familiar with The Riverboat Song, the main riff of which was memorably used to introduce guests on the Chris Evans-fronted programme.
These days, OCS – who were also famously championed by Paul Weller back in the day – remain a popular live draw and will be coming to the Cambridge Corn Exchange next week.
Last summer, they travelled to the region to perform at Audley End House and Gardens, as part of the Heritage Live series of concerts, and are also set to return this year, as support for Roger Daltrey, on Friday, 1 August.
“We had a really busy year last year,” says lead singer and guitarist Simon Fowler, 59, speaking to the Cambridge Independent from his home in Warwickshire, near Stratford-upon-Avon.
Later that day, he was due to travel to London by train, to go to Harley Street and get the earpiece that he uses on stage “sorted out”.
“And we’ve got a really busy year coming up. We’ve got this tour, then we’re playing festivals throughout the summer, and then in October I go out with Oscar [Harrison, OCS drummer] for about 12, 15 gigs.”
On the ongoing popularity of the ‘Britpop’ bands of the 90s, the very affable musician says: “Well I think it has [remained popular] with the people who grew up with it; I mean we’ve always had great crowds.
“Five, six years ago we played at the Hydro in Glasgow to 14,000 people – we haven’t had a record out for over 10 years. Glasgow’s always been great for us, though.
“But yeah, Blur did two days at Hyde Park – that was pretty amazing – and now of course Oasis have come back so that’s sort of put it in everyone’s mind…
“Cast have always been going, Richard [Ashcroft] has always been going… We’ve always been there, it’s just that things come and go.”
Simon reveals that the band are planning on doing a new album “next year hopefully” and will release it on their own label.
“We’re not going to be selling records like we did in the 90s – we know that,” he says, “but it would be a good idea to update the set a bit!
“But I don’t know how bands do it nowadays, young bands, because the money was in selling records. And we used to tour to sell albums, and now you put out an album to sell a tour, so it’s gone weird.
“And I think also people on record labels, they call it a 360-degree deal – I call it a rip-off, which is where the label also takes money from your live work.
“Well that never happened, the label didn’t touch your live money – nothing to do with the label it wasn’t. I mean strangely, it was really because they put out the record!
“But I don’t know how they [young bands] manage it today – that’s why I think there’s a plethora of solo artists.”
Simon believes that the record labels also became increasingly annoyed with the way that the bands of the 90s were behaving off stage.
“And it wasn’t just the bands, it was the people in the record labels,” he reflects. “I mean if you wanted to get some gear, the chances are you’d be getting it off the guy from A&R! They were as bad as we were!”
Does Simon look back on the excessive rock ‘n’ roll behaviour of the 90s and wonder how they got away with so much?
“Oh it was fantastic, we got away with blue murder,” he admits, “I mean we’d be smoking spliffs and taking coke all night in hotel rooms and think that we were immune from the fact that the whole corridor stank of skunk.
“Looking back on it, it was ludicrous, it was just insane, and we’d be doing the same thing at the TV studios.
“I remember I did This Morning once and they had to move me down away from all the other acts because of the smell of cannabis. Then I went and played live on the Richard and Judy Show…
“The idea now of doing that – you don’t even smoke fags indoors now. There was a certain sense of entitlement I think, to be honest: ‘We’re pop stars we can do what we want’, which I guess is all part of the old schtick, isn’t it?
“And when you’re friends with Paul [Weller] and Liam and Noel [Gallagher], they are very bad influences! So when you’re hanging out with that lot, it’s very easy to get led astray!”
Simon stresses how important Paul Weller was to OCS’s success back in the day: “We recorded the first album [Ocean Colour Scene] at Solid Bond Studios initially, and that’s when we got to know Paul,” he recalls.
“But by ’93, Steve [Cradock, OCS lead guitarist] was in his band – and he still is. So Steve’s been playing in Paul’s band now for 32 years, which is amazing because Paul was Steve’s hero.
“And now Steve’s actually producing an album for Paul. Steve’s story concerning Weller is truly a fairy tale, it really is amazing.
“Their two sons share a flat together now in London as well. I wonder what they get up to?! They’re about the same age, about 19, so I bet they’re having the time of their lives…”
Simon also looks back on how his band became synonymous with TFI Friday, a popular television programme which ran from 1996-2000 on Channel 4, with a revived one-off series in 2015.
“Well without Chris [Evans], this wouldn’t have happened – without a shadow of a doubt,” he states.
“We were signed to MCA, and there was a guy at MCA who was very close friends with Chris – he was almost like Chris’ butler, to be honest, in fact he ended up as Chris’ butler!
“A guy called Ian, who’s sadly died now... So we did Chris’ pilot show and we got on really well with him, and he said, ‘Could I use The Riverboat as the walk-on music?’ We said yes!
“He also at the time was the Radio 1 morning DJ and he made that record Record of the Week two weeks on the trot.
“We went on to his show – the first show – and before we knew it we were on Top of the Pops and the album [1996’s Moseley Shoals] went in at number two and stayed there – at number two – for six months.
“So we were suddenly overnight pop stars after seven years, and it was all down to Chris. I mean we’d got great support obviously from the Gallaghers and from Paul, but that wouldn’t have given us a number two record...
“I think it sold about a million and a half copies, that album – that wouldn’t have happened without Chris. And I’m eternally grateful to Chris and still keep in touch with him, when we can.
“And every time I meet him, it’s like going back to ’96. He’s a great guy and we owe everything to him really.”
Ocean Colour Scene will be appearing at the Cambridge Corn Exchange – supported by Kula Shaker – next Friday (11 April).
For tickets, priced from £35.50, visit cornex.co.uk. For more on the band, go to oceancolourscene.com.
