Gordon Giltrap: The ClassicRockHistory.com Interview

Feature Photo by Photo © Alan Pye

Gordon Giltrap was, is, and probably always will be a player’s player. He’s hung around with everyone from Wishbone Ash to members of ELO to Rick Wakeman, all while forging a lovely solo career that amounted to dozens of records.

With that, it’s hard to choose which of many records he favors most. One would think it might be 1973’s Giltrap, which features his best-known track, “Heartsong.” But no, Giltrap tells ClassicRockHistory.com: “My proudest moment was the making of Troubadour way back in 1997.”

As for why that is, Giltrap says, “It was with my friend, the late, great Del Newman, when he produced and arranged the whole album. For me, I was at the height of my creative powers at that time and regarded by many as my finest work, in my humble opinion.”

During a break in the action, Gordon Giltrap dialed in with ClassicRockHistory.com to peel back the onion on his long career, gear, and the lot.

Did you choose the guitar? Or did it choose you? What was the moment when you found your sound?

The guitar chose me from among those of mine from the age of ten. A kid up the street turned up with a guitar, strummed the open strings, and that was it. I just had to make that sound. To my ears, it was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard. In terms of my sound, whatever that may be, it just evolved by accident and ignorance. I play the guitar all wrong, using just a pick and the little finger on my playing hand.

What was your local scene like, and how did that shape you as a young musician?

The local scene was a youth club where I played with a group called The Young Ones, playing the music of The Shadows and the Everly Brothers.

Was your household very musical? Can you recall the types of instruments you had around you growing up and as you became more serious about playing the guitar?

Not at all apart from the radio. My Mother enjoyed singing, as did my dad, but just ‘round the house.

Albert Lee was local to your area, right? Did you know each other and ever get to jam? If not, were you aware of each other?

Albert lived just up the road in the mean streets of East Greenwich, but I didn’t know him. Sadly, he and I have never jammed. Maybe we shall one day.

You started out as a folk player. Tell us about that and the creation of your early records to that end.

I loved the idea of just one man and one guitar, and the self-sufficiency and folk music was the embodiment of that to a degree. The first Bert Jansch album changed my life forever. Then later, John Renbourn.

I made two albums for Transatlantic with the legendary Bill Leader, who knew instinctively that I wasn’t strictly a folk musician, and the evidence of that was the very first recording of Lucifer’s Cage, where I was employing so many amazing effects at that time, using strong compression and distortion on just a single acoustic guitar piece.

It was with the advent of my ‘76 Visionary album that I realized I wasn’t a folk musician or no great shakes as a singer/songwriter, and decided then and there to concentrate on purely instrumental music.

Nicko McBrain of Iron Maiden played drums on your album Giltrap. Tell us about that and the making of that record.

My then producer, Martin Clark, knew Nicko and recruited him for the session. It was as simple as that. He, along with Brian Belshaw, was a great rhythm section. Nicko was and still is a great character and a good friend.

What was it like supporting Wishbone Ash on tour in 1976? They were a heavier band than you were. Did you feel at home in front of that audience?

I had known Wishbone because we shared the same manager, Miles Copeland, since 1971. We became friends, still close friends with Ted Turner. The tour with Wishbone was great until I got knocked down by a car in Geneva, and that was the end of that. Our musical styles, though different, fitted well as a support, I believe.

What’s the story behind what’s perhaps your best-known track, “Heartsong?”

It started life as a song with the same open G Chord sequence and just grew from there, incorporating my Pete Townshend-influenced fast strumming.

What led you to get more into electric guitar music and start using a Gibson Les Paul?

Out of necessity. I was bullied into it by my producers. Up until then, I was purely an acoustic player who just dabbled with the electric. I borrowed a Les Paul for a record session and fell in love with its sustain. But later, I switched to a [Fender] Strat for more tone variation and clarity.

How would you describe the ‘80s and ‘90s for you creatively compared to the ‘70s?

My creativity was equal, I think, in all decades. Obviously, I was inspired by the technology, but my style remains the same, and it is what it is.

What was it like touring with ELO in the ’90s?

It was ELO part two. Jeff [Lynne] had left by then. I met Jeff briefly once… a nice guy, I thought. Touring with them was fun and holds great memories.

You started working with Rick Wakeman later on. How did that happen, and what was your creative relationship like?

Rick kindly appeared on my ‘93 all-star version of “Heartsong,” and we became friends. I had performed with him a few times, and there is a cracking YouTube clip that exemplifies that. As time went on, we decided to make an album together. He sent me his tracks and vice versa. We were never in the studio together. Our working relationship was great and still is.

What gear are you using now, and what sounds are you currently chasing?

I use a Helix pedal board and employ the built-in [effects] looper. I have also recently acquired a Stroman Cloudburst Reverb pedal, which makes everything I play sound great! [Laughs]

Where do you go from here?

Where I go from here is to just keep doing what I do to the best of my ability and be the best version of myself as long as the universe smiles down on me.