Sundry Contemplations

An autobiography is, by definition, a work which its author will never live to complete, and as I begin this narrative there's a strong likelihood that, like the words of Father Mackenzie's sermon, 'no-one will hear' it either. Why should they? I'm not a genius. I'm neither famous nor infamous. I've never trashed a hotel room, been arrested for drug abuse, gone through a series of expensive divorces, or spent time in prison. I come from a loving lower-middle-class family, and have been happily married since 1988. So, what is there to arouse anybody's interest? .... As Goethe remarked in a letter to Wilhelm von Humboldt, on the subject of growing older, 'I appear to myself more and more historical.' So, why not set this history down?

I've been based in Frankfurt since 1981, but have been self-employed as a musician since 1975, so the character who appears under my name in the following pages isn't necessarily the one you'd encounter today. He's a good deal younger for a start, and if it's true that every cell in the human body is replaced over a period of seven years then, in a very literal sense, he no longer even exists. Therefore I can't be expected to take full responsibility for his actions.

If interested contact me via e-mail

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Short Bio

I was born on 7th June 1950, and lived the first four years of my life in Petts Wood, Kent. Next came Taunton in Somerset, where I went to school from 1955 to 1968. But after five years in Taunton the family relocated to Wallington, Surrey; then Boscombe (near Bournemouth), in Hampshire; and finally, in 1969, to Kenton, Devon. During these different moves I remained as a boarder at Taunton School, without much of a clue concerning my future. However I had started playing the guitar on my thirteenth birthday and that, together with literature, poetry, music, history, and the world of myth and legend, was what interested me. 

It would be fair to say that my academic career was far from impressive, and I spent the first year after leaving school working as an English teacher at Roche Court School in Fareham, largely because I had seen their advert on the noticeboard of the school library and couldn't really think of anything else to do. Next came a stint in a small printing business in Exeter, followed by four years at Rolle College in Exmouth, from whence I emerged with a B.Ed. in English and History, and took a job at Twyford School in Winchester, teaching English, comparative religions, and various arts and crafts. That lasted for less than a year, and from 1975 onwards I was a self-employed singer-songwriter, living in Exmouth again until 1981.

I had a couple of Dutch tours in the mid 70s, and in late 1980 spent three months hippying about in Thailand, Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, Bali and Singapore. I returned, virtually penniless, shortly before Christmas; then in January 1981, having earned £ 100 at a New Year gig, I invested £ 50 in a ferry ticket and set off in my little green Morris van for Germany. There was some method in this madness in that I was following up a young woman I had met while playing a gig for the local Language School during the previous summer. When I arrived in snowy Frankfurt Gabriele seemed almost as pleased to see me as I was to see her, and we've been together ever since. 

I played in clubs, pubs and festivals in Germany, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Austria, with brief forays into France and Italy. For eleven years I toured in Norway and Denmark; Croatia and Slovenia were added to the list, and in 1996 I had a tour of New Zealand with Kiwi blues-man Mike Brosnan; finishing up in 2014 with a tour of Bhutan, in company with the internationally-known traditional musician Jigme Drukpa. Thereafter I gradually bade farewell to the road, and in 2015 sold the last of my vans; an eloquent statement of cessation, as any travelling musician will recognise.

In 1984 I released my first album, The Lady, issued by K&M Verlag in Karlsruhe. The next album, Living the Life, was also brought out with K&M, in 1987,  but all subsequent albums came out on the Swiss Brambus label.

For over forty years I was on the road, amassing nine albums of original material between 1984 and 2010. I also ran courses on songwriting and gave performances in schools and Arts Centres, in the U.K., Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Holland, Norway and Croatia. (Arvon Foundation; Westham House; Kilve Court; Dillington House; Exeter & Devon Arts Centre; Theatre Royal, Plymouth; Exeter University; University of Rheims etc.)

Poetry was a constant companion; and a deep, practical interest in psycho-spiritual alchemy, combined with a close study of my dreams, was central to my understanding of the world. My poems have won prizes and appeared in numerous publications (Scintilla, Tabla, Stand, Envoi, Still etc.,), and I presently have five poetry collections, eleven publications on alchemical topics, and have contributed articles to Alchemy Journal and Abraxas. I am a regular speaker at Treadwells Bookshop in London, giving talks and workshops on alchemical themes. 

 I live with Gabriele in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, where for many years I was active on the slam poetry scene, representing the city at national events on two occasions. I am also a member of Shakespeare Frankfurt, and have appeared in roles such as Prospero (The Tempest); Sir Toby Belch (Twelfth Night); Oberon and Flute (A Midsummer Night's Dream. For which I also composed the incidental music); Iago (Othello); and King Lear.  This year 2023 I play Lord Capulet, in Romeo & Juliet.

Together with Gabriele, I delight in travelling to far flung regions of the globe, but when at home am engaged on various writing projects. My autobiography, Sundry Contemplations, is now available (See above). Also in the pipeline is Tales from the Central Fire, a collection of psycho-mythical tales. The most recent publication is Owls & Nightingales, a complete collection of my song lyrics (See under Music).