The “Sheds” are back with TWO number-one albums this year, and no signs of stopping. Loaded caught up with Rick Witter to chat about the band’s increasing popularity, how they’ve successfully managed to steer the rocky course of the music business for the past 30 years and to discuss my funeral arrangements…
The first Shed Seven song I remember hearing was the single Dolphin. I played it on loop one day till it drove my mate mad. “Can we put on the radio for a bit?”, he pleaded. “You’ve been playing this song non-stop for the past hour”. I relented. He put on Radio 1. It was the Mark Radcliffe late show. He was playing Dolphin too. Shed Seven had arrived on the scene and there was no escape.
Fast-forward thirty years. 2024 has seen a huge run of sell-out performances for the band and a whole host of new material… and TWO number-one albums. The latter achievement means they join an elite list of just twenty acts with two albums at no.1 in the same year. Move over Taylor Swift, Elton John, and Blue. The Sheds are here and showing the major labels just how it should be done.
I’m relaxing on a sofa with Rick Witter in HMV, Glasgow, just before Rick and guitarist Paul Banks head off to play an acoustic set to a group of eagerly awaiting fans.
What a year it's been for the band. A whole host of new music, new orchestrated versions of classic Shed tunes, but let’s start with the obvious. Two number-one albums this year. Has it even sunk in yet?
“We’ve had a really busy year, so it’s been difficult to stop and smell the roses like my dad used to tell me to do. We never did in the 90s. We were young, naive, and full of bravado. We expected success. That stopped after a while and we realise now what’s happening to us. We’re really loving it, but we haven’t really had a chance to stop and compute what’s happened to us, yet.”
We spoke to Shaun Ryder recently and he said he’s enjoying it more these days as he feels more in control. Would you say the same thing?
“That comes a lot with age and experience. We didn’t have the time back in the day to sit back and appreciate it all. Our biggest ever year before was 1996. 2024 supersedes that. It’s been incredible.”
You said in a recent interview you’ve learnt to behave. Does that help?
“Yes, we take things on board and appreciate them nowadays, as opposed to believing we deserve every bit of success that happens to us. When we were 21 we strolled onto the music scene thinking we were the best thing ever, when actually we were just a part of everything else that was going on at the time.
“When we hear bands nowadays saying “We were better than you,” it doesn’t make any sense. You don’t have to like just one thing. You can pick and choose.”
Is the success you’ve achieved this year more satisfying because you’re self-managed now?
“Massively so. We’re very independent, we’re on an indie label, and we’ve done it all ourselves. Paul, our guitarist, is incredible. He’s put a whole new lease of life on what we’re doing. Every decision is made by us. We tried to do that in the 90s on a major label, but they’ve got their own divisions like the artwork section, and they liked to be seen to be doing their job, but it was our art, not theirs.
“In the past, we’d discuss things as a group and we’d have silly ideas, and think it would be brilliant to try them. That idea would then be watered down, and suddenly you’re not doing it anymore. Nowadays, pretty much every idea, silly or not, we’re not pushing to one side.”
Your first No.1 album this year A Matter Of Time featured a whole host of new songs, and your second, Liquid Gold included an orchestrated version of classic Shed Seven songs, rather than a bog-standard ‘Greatest Hits’ album. And what a great idea that turned out to be!
“Well, this is exactly why we did it. We thought, why don’t we reimagine some of our best tunes and make it sound like we’d just written them? We sat down and listened to them and thought about how we could modernise them without losing the essence. We’ve basically added feels to feels that were already there.
“We had to be careful not to upset the fans who have an emotional connection to our songs. We would never dream of ruining our history. We had to do Chasing Rainbows and we spent a long time agonising over how to redo it. That particular song; so many people have said things like “I got married to that song” or “I buried my father to that song”, so it’s really important to our fans.”
I actually said to my wife that I want that song played at my funeral. But only if Rick approves.
“That’s fine. I’ll even come along and see you off. Give you a clap.”
Wow! I’m really looking forward to it now…
“Haha. Well, we understand that these songs mean something to people, and putting an orchestra on anything takes it to a whole new level. So it was really important to look back at what we’d made in the past and lift it a bit more.
“We were really conscious of doing that rather than a Greatest Hits. We thought with it being our 30th anniversary, we didn’t want to put out a load of songs that an old record company owned the rights to. We wanted to give people something they hadn’t had before, rather than the same version of a song they had on an old record.
“For us, Liquid Gold is a love letter to our fans who’ve supported us through the years.”
You got a nice tweet from Liam Gallagher to congratulate you on Liquid Gold reaching number one. Did that surprise you?
“I thought it was a lovely thing to do. We don’t ever expect anything from anyone. He didn’t have to do it, and it showed respect. We’ve had our run-ins with Oasis over the years, but equally, we’ve bumped into them and they’ve been really nice. I guess it depends on what mood people are in at the time.“
Is that a nod to a potential support slot next year?
“It’s not up to us to say, is it?” (He grins)
Well, a wise man once said, “I never say never, ever”. (That’s right. I’m using his own lyrics against him. Dirty tactics!)
“Haha. He did indeed!”
You split briefly in 2003. When you reformed, did it surprise you just how much you were missed by the fans?
“Yes, it did, and it took a lot of time to get used to that. In the “down years,” we missed playing live and when you’re a young kid, you miss getting up on the stage and doing it. It's what we do. Suddenly we’re playing in bigger, and bigger venues and we were a bit shocked by that. Everyone was singing along to every word like it really meant something to them and having the best time. In the old days, you were just doing it and not computing the success.
“Nowadays, fans are introducing their kids to the band and they look like they’re having a good time too and not just dragged there under sufferance.
“We’ll be the next Rolling Stones if these new generations of kids keep coming, we’ll be up there still doing it! I’ll be 84, walking on stage with a Zimmer frame.”
You could be the next Cliff Richard? Maybe a “Sled Seven” Christmas album could be on the cards? But let’s look to 2025. You have three big summer dates to celebrate this year’s success.
“Yes, we’ve got dates at Scarborough Open Air Theatre on 14th June, Castleford Bowl in Manchester on 4th July, and Leeds Millennium Square on 11th July which are all well on the way to being sold out already. It’ll be a massive celebration and a huge singalong.”
I’d like to take you back to 1996. I saw you across the road when I was walking to a Shed Seven gig. I was a bit worse to wear for the drink, and naturally, I raised my hand in the air and shouted “Rick! Rick!”. You ignored me, and I was a bit disappointed. Is there any chance we can recreate that moment, but this time you say “Alright, mate”?
Absolutely
I’ll just get into character…”Rick! Rick!”
Alright mate…and slow down on the drink, won’t you?
Good advice mate. 30 years of therapy wasted. That’s all it took.
One final question. Your latest video, for Getting Better, features members of the public and fans singing along and having a great time. It’s got a proper feel-good vibe to it. So I guess the question is…can I be in your next video?
“I don’t see why not.”
It wasn’t a no.
Thirty years and going stronger than ever. Damn right, they’re getting better all the time.
Check out Shed Seven tour dates and their new album Liquid Gold
Pictures by Lucy Croft
