Psychobilly appeared in the UK in the late 70s. Alan says, "it was spearheaded by The Meteors with their early recordings and concerts. I was just part of that crowd who were growing a little tired of the Rockabilly scene. I still love the music but at that time the scene was getting so tired. So it was a natural thing to push the boundaries." Whereas Rockabilly might be seen as quite conventional rock'n'roll, Psychobilly is Rockabilly at Hallowe'en. When The Polecats sing about diodes and electrodes in 'Make A Circuit With Me', Psychobillies would probably be singing about putting those very same diodes and electrodes into the corpse of their dead girlfriend to reanimate her. On a very shallow level, a Psychobilly's quiff stands on end like the wearer's had an electric shock, whereas the Rockabilly's is slick and smooth. It's Rockabilly once it's been put through the punk machine. And while Alan says "I think most Psychobillies still love Rockabilly music", it may be the case that the Rockabillies don't share the same view about Psychobillies. Although there's a definite 'retro' feel with both scenes, Alain isn't particularly interested in vintage gear, although "I do however have a fantastic long 1950's real undertakers suit which I got from an undertaker in Yeovil. I've worn that onstage a few times. I even have the hat!" Today's Psychobilly is different from how it was in the early days. Alan says, "like everything it has evolved. It's a lot heavier and a lot less 'Billy in my opinion. Stuff that was considered outrageously psycho back in those days for example, is very tame by today's Psychobilly standards."
Alan was 16 when he had his first tattoo, "and no, I didn't cry." Which is admirable, I'm sure you'll agree. He formed a Rockabilly band, but with the arrival of Psychobilly, they became The Sharks, with Alan on guitar, Steve Whitehouse on slap bass and Paul 'Hodge' Hodges on drums. In 1982, they wrote and recorded their first album, Phantom Rockers in a fortnight, and managed at the same time to fit in signing with Nervous Records. You may, in fact, have heard of Nervous before, from Gary Day's time in The Frantic Flintstones, who released an album with a highly scary/amusing (depending on how you look at it) picture disk called Nightmare on Nervous. The album was released in 1983, but the band split up soon afterwards, with another release on Nervous, First and Last. Alan focussed on producing, and it was through this that he met Gary Day in 1993. He was producing a Frantic Flintstones album, and Gary suggested that he should reform The Sharks. So Alan did, and recruited Gary on bass, and it wasn't long before they were signed to Cherry Red and released Recreational Killer. Tours followed, and an EP called Bitch Attack was released by everyone's favourite home of unconventional music, Vinyl Japan. Some demos, called Ruff Stuff, were released on Rockhouse Records. There was a line-up changes when Gaz left to rejoin Morrissey for a while, and he was replaced by the original bassist. The band released an album called Colour My Flesh, which is one of the few records in the world to feature a solo played on a tattoo gun. The Sharks toured extensively, but in 1999 Alan decided to focus on the other side of music: his recording studio, production duties, and now his record label, Western Star.
In the mid-90s, Gary Day hit on the idea of The Gazmen. Alan says, "Gary basically set up the project and it was Gaz, Me, Hodge (Sharks drummer) and Alain Whyte. Me and Alain played guitars, Gary sang and played bass and Hodge played drums. I produced and engineered the tracks. I loved that session." They released a four track EP, Rigormortis Rock, on Vinyl Japan, though "we recorded quite a few tracks as demos at my old studio which are unreleased, and then later Gary did a few more with the later line up of the band." Rigormortis Rock is a fantastic slice of weirdness. The title track was written by Alan "years ago as a joke and it was first released on Nervous records in the early 80's under the pseudonym of The Space Cadets." It's like a missing song from the soundtrack of Carry On Screaming, with Gary sounding like a crazed Cockney gravedigger. In the background, someone intones 'rigormortis rock' in a comedy Hammer Horror voice - are they, by any chance, Mr Wilson's dulcet tones? "Yes that's me! Ha, oh the shame...." It's thoroughly hilarious, with Gary, on 'Teenage Operation', moaning, "Nurse, where's me bedpan?"
Even with all the bands he was in, Alan managed to spend six years on Deathrow, "a psychobilly magazine I started and owned. It was very successful in the 90's but I shelved it 6 years ago due to lack of time because of my studio and production jobs. Cherry Red Books bought it and have basically picked all the best bits and put them into a book of the mag and is like 400 pages-ish." It should certainly be an interesting read for anyone interested in Psychobilly, featuring interviews with prime movers and shakers on the scene, and a good way to find out about the bands that were around at the time.
And so, onto Alan's producing career. Over the last twenty-odd years, he's had his hand in over three hundred commercial releases, whether playing on them or producing or engineering them. His most favourite studio is his own - Western Star. "It's next door to my house so I don't have to travel. It was designed, built and equipped by me, so each item of gear is something I actually wanted rather than having to use just whatever is available, and I know every piece of kit inside out." Most of his equipment is modern, as Alan says "I don't go for that whole vintage thing." He was once going to produce a band at Liam Watson's Toe Rag Studios in London, a place which is stuffed to the rafters with original pieces of recording equipment from the 1950s and 60s, quite popular with the freakbeat and garage punk crowd, like Billy Childish and Holly Golightly. Alan says, "I like a lot of Liam's work and if you're into that whole retro thing I think it's a good place."
Being a guitarist, Alan loves to collect guitars, especially Fenders. "I have a great collection of old Fenders... one Strat - a Silver anniversary I have owned since new. It's now 27 years old, and eight Fender Telecasters - including a thin-line and a blue flower, an old Fender Musicmaster plus a Fender jazz bass and a Fender acoustic. I'm something of a Fender fanatic." He was given a Dean Psychobilly for free, and also owns a Martin Acoustic. In fact, some of his collection is available to be played by bands recording in his studio.
In 2003, Alan started his own record label, also called Western Star, as "my label only releases stuff recorded here, by me. That's our policy. The studio is hellish busy and the label - which I only started two years ago - is going far better that I could have ever hoped." His current best sellers are Western Star Psychobillies Vol 1 - Various Artists, Sin-Uendo - Jack Rabbit Slim, Western Star Rockabillies Vol 2 - Various Artists and Joe Meek Shall Inherit The Earth - Various artists.
Alan Wilson leads a hectic life, and it's more than likely that if you don't already own a record he's played on or produced, you soon will.
To find out more about Alan Wilson, you can visit his website here: www.howlinwilson.co.uk
Order Deathrow: The Chronicles of Psychobilly direct from Cherry Red here.
