That Gaby Roslin Podcast: Reasons To Be Joyful - KT Tunstall

Episode Date: April 18, 2022

In this episode Gaby chats with singer-songwriter KT Tunstall. She opens-up about how being adopted has given her abandonment issues but that finding her biological mother and then siblings on the show 'Long Lost Family', was an incredible experience. KT talks about her drive to become a musician and how she never gave up on her dream and she talks with great passion about her move to America. She also gives Gaby the scoop on her new album which is out this summer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello and welcome to That Gabby Rosen podcast, part of the Acast Creator Network. My guest this week on the podcast is the hugely talented and all-round, lovely singer-songwriter Katie Tunstall. She opens up about how being adopted has given her abandonment issues, but that finding her biological mother and then years later her siblings on the show Long Loss family has been an incredible experience. Katie talks about her drive to become a musician and how she never gave up. on her dream and she talks with such great passion about her move to America at her beautiful dogs. We also get the scoop on her new album, which is out this summer. She is really a rock and roll dream. Please can I ask you a favour? Would you mind following and subscribing, please, by clicking the follow or subscribe button. This is completely and utterly free, by the way,

and you can also rate and review on Apple Podcasts, which is the purple app on your IE phone or iPad. Simply scroll down to the bottom of all of the episodes. I know there have been quite a few now. And you'll see the stars where you can tap and rate and also please write a review. Thank you so much. Hi Gabby. There she is. Oh, lovely girl. How are you? I am very happy to be hearing your voice. Do you know, I remember the, so the first time that we met you came into the radio show and you're one of those people and I've got to say that a lot of people say this about you, that we're, that We all feel like we've known you for 100 years when we meet you. You have that extraordinary way of bringing people into your life.

Will you like that always? That's a lovely compliment. Thank you. I'm very happy that people feel like that. I definitely was when I was a kid very quick to make friends. And my mum sort of used to always joke about it that she could kind of put me anywhere and she'd come back and I'd be hanging out with six other kids, you know, and absolutely fine. And I don't remember, I don't remember ever feeling, actually, that's not true. I do remember a period of when I moved school in my teen years that I felt,

I felt a little discompopulated and a little left out, but to be honest, that it probably lasted about a day and then I made really good friends. But yeah, I'd always, I'd always really loved connecting with people. That's very magical because most times, because a lot of people talk about shyness because I'm very open about it, but most times you hear people saying that, especially as performers, that they felt on their own or they felt shy or they felt lonely. And I just, do you know, that's one of the most uplifting things to hear that somebody didn't feel like that. I mean, I think it's a fascinating psychology to get into immediately. is that someone... I know, I didn't know we were going to go.

I love it. That's amazing. Let's not waste time here. But I... Someone once said to me, people who perform either haven't been loved enough or have been loved too much.

I just thought that was really funny. If you look at the reason why, you know, I spent 10 years of my life with no money trying to get on stage and trying to play. for people. And of course, it's multifaceted. Part of it is loving playing. Part of it is loving creating something. Part of it is loving the joy of playing an instrument and singing. But there was

definitely, I think, an interesting psychology for me personally, where as an adopted kid, I'm constantly looking for family. I'm always looking for meaningful. I mean, everybody's different, but for me, I think that my adoption and subsequent, you know, very simple, understandable abandonment issues, it's something very, very innate and baked into me because I still don't know where I was the first two weeks of my life. And I was, you know, taken in by a wonderful family, but it's still a very unusual situation. And, um, And I think, you know, my family weren't massive huggers and they weren't kind of smotherers and I love yous and all of that. It was a, they were an amazing family.

And I'm a very sensitive person. And I think that little area was somewhere where I kind of always wanted to find a hug. I always wanted to find a connection all the time as a kid. And I think I'm probably still like that. But you, what's so amazing. I mean, obviously we were going to talk. about being adopted and then going on long-loss family. And I watched it again yesterday.

I saw it originally. And I watched it again yesterday because I knew I was going to talk to you. Oh, goodness me. I mean, unbelievable. Oh, ho. I mean, meeting your sisters being told on a TV show that your birth father, you weren't sadly going to meet him. And then on a TV show, meeting your sisters, who you look so alike.

I know, it's really weird. After spending a whole lifetime not looking like anybody I knew. And then, you know, whatever it was at 40, 46, well, how old was I? 45 when I met them or something? Absolutely bonkers. Was that, I mean, for us to watch it, it was incredibly moving. Extraordinary to watch. I mean, that show, obviously, is extraordinary.

It's a brilliant show, by the way, and I want to, I'd love to say that, that, you know, we live in a, age of, you know, quite, just sort of quite ruthless reality TV. And it's really a total oasis that show where they were very, very careful and caring of everyone involved. They were lovely. That's so nice to hear. That really is nice to hear. I know. And I wouldn't have done it if I didn't feel that that was the case. But that moment must have been, I mean, nobody can imagine that moment. Well, the strange thing was that I've been through it once before, because I'd met my biological mother. And I'd done that on my own. And I'd found her when I was 23. I'd actually

watched, I'm a huge Brenda Blethen fan. And Brenda Blethen has come to play this really weird, pivotal role in my life. And I have met her and was able to say thank you. And she burst out crying. But it was, it was actually Mike Lee's Secrets and Lies. That movie, which is just an amazing film. If you haven't seen it. It's one of Mike Lee's, you know, most celebrated films and it's about a young woman who tries to find a biological mother and succeeds, and it's Brenda Blevin. And I watched that and it was just such an absolute minefield of nightmares. And it was so funny. And I think just seeing that situation handled with humor, maybe just made me go, I think I could do that. I think I could handle that, whatever it is, because there's just something in me.

And not all adopted people have it at all, but there's something in me where I just had these mysterious corners. There's four parental pillars to my life. And two of them, I didn't know what they looked like. I didn't really know who they were. And I just wanted to see a picture. It wasn't even that I necessarily wanted to meet them and have a relationship. It was just, I wanted to fill in that blank, you know, and know a little bit about myself and my history. And I knew probably more than most people do because we did get quite a lot of information. My parents were given quite a lot of information, but not her whereabouts. And so at 23, I started to search and took about six months.

And it was incredible. It was pretty difficult. It was a very bumpy road. we're in a good place now, but it was a long and bumpy road. And it was not a simple, simple situation, which you would never expect it to be. It's a very, it's very emotional circumstance, you know. And then, so this time round, it was a TV show. Some people might think, why on earth would you do that? And the reason being that I tried to find my biological father, and I couldn't find them. And they called them and said, look, we've got 10 researchers,

We've got social workers who will help everybody involved. You've got someone you can call for the rest of your life if you need to, if it was to do with the show. And I was like, God, I wish I'd had that the first time round. It would have made it so much more easy on everybody. And so kind of in light of the first time round, which I'm forever glad that I've met my biological moments, definitely enriched my life.

It was actually a really great opportunity. For anybody that has gone through that or is going through that, there's always the question that's asked is, do you not regret it, that's the wrong word, but I'm making that bed that's quite neatly all there. And then suddenly pulling those bits up and finding them. Yeah, it's pretty terrifying. because it is a real-time, real-life Pandora's box.

You don't know what you're going to get. You don't know what you're going to find. You might find something awful, you know, and I don't mean just someone that you don't get on with. You might find out something that you really wish you hadn't found out, you know. Of course, of course. And I'm sure many people have been through the pain of that. So I just feel extremely grateful that really,

when you look at the spectrum of what could happen by going down that road and getting curious about it, I think I'd be pretty lucky. And certainly with my sisters, I'm just, I knocked it out of the park. I mean, these two are like my best friends forever. We just, like, we're so similar. And they were just amazing, Lel and Shpon, because can you imagine?

I mean, I knew that I might have siblings, or I might have other family elsewhere. They had no idea. And then someone calls you and says, we think that you've got another family member, a sibling, and they're really well known. I mean, on so many levels. And then it turns out that they'd been to see me at tea in the park.

It turned out that they had my album in their house. And as soon as they were told that, my younger sister said that she turned to my oldest sister, sister, I'm the oldest, but she turned to her older sister and said, it's Katie Tunstall. And Chabon was like, don't be ridiculous, what are you talking about? And she went and got a picture of our father and my album and she just put them on the table. And they went, oh, God. Yeah. And they went, oh my God, it's her. So they knee straight away. So those two weeks that you mentioned at the beginning, those two weeks that you don't know about your life, are you any

clearer about them after speaking to your birth mom? So actually I'm clearer about it talking to my mum. Yeah. So Rosemary's my mum and I'd never asked her really about that. And it had always sort of haunted me a little bit, not knowing. I thought maybe I was in like an adoption clinic or I didn't really know. And because mum had told me about where they had got me from, which was on Hanover Street in Edinburgh, which is where I ended up playing in a restaurant. for 25 quid to me dinner, which was really funny before everything kicked off. Mom actually told me not that long ago that I was fostered for a couple of weeks. So I was with a family because I wasn't sure if I was kind of just in a room with other kids

who'd been given up for adoption, you know. So, and that's weird. It's like, who were they? I don't know who they were, these people who looked after me. Yeah, they took in a baby. What's a beautiful thing to do? and then to hand her over to a family who were going to take her and love her. I mean, these people are angels on earth.

It's like to give your time and your life to that transitional period, you know, where you look after a baby given up for adoption until it finds its family. And it's just, it's such an important time in a human life of having, having a breast to lay your head on and being fed and looked after. But yeah, I'll never know who those people are, I don't think. Wow, that's just made every hair stand up. I'm actually, I've got tears in my eyes. It's crazy, isn't it?

You're right, they're real angels. Yeah. I can't, I don't even know who they are, say thank you. Well, maybe they're listening now. Let's hope they are. Yeah, I hope so. Gosh. If you remember having a funny Chinese-looking baby with loads of hair in a punk,

in a punk Mohawk, Mojkin, that was me. in 1975. So going to the, you're back to your sisters and the fact that they've seen you gigging and they've got your albums. What, what, that, that you're right, that must be the extraordinary circle for them.

When people time around, they say to friends, oh, so we didn't know dad had had a baby before us. I mean, that's blown our mind. But hey, would you like to meet my sister? I know. And their friends go, yeah, what the hell. Of course. Yeah, of course it's Katie.

I know, isn't that weird? And maybe the weirdest part of all of it is we are just family now. After such a short period of time, there's just so much love. And they were incredibly respectful. They didn't tell anybody. They didn't share it at all because there was quite a long time before the program aired. And they said they just wanted us to get to know each other before anybody knew about it, which was just such a lovely thing to do. And they've just never, they've never emotionally or in any other way approached our relationship in anything other than we are sisters.

The music, the fame, it just has nothing to do with it at all. It never has. And that's on them. That's on them being just absolutely amazing people. So did your, because your musical ability, You were quite surprised about that. You know, when you were, I've read that you were four years old when you said you wanted a piano and things.

But your dad was a physics lecturer and your mom was a primary school teacher and then suddenly there's this rock chick. I know that's a cliche, but you really are. Your music through and true. Honestly, it felt like they had just like taken in a wildling. And my mom would try and make me look nice for school. And if you saw my primary one school,

photo. I, she tried so hard. And by the time I got there for the photograph, I just looked like I'd been playing with a hedge. And I just got my hair is just, I look like Hermione Granger from Harry Potter. My hair is just everywhere. And I'm like dead center, mic position. I mean, it was all there written stars, I think. I love that. I remember at school, you know, like, I never understood how these other girls by the end of the day were going home with their shirt still white. I was like, it was like a magic trick to me and I was just completely filthy. But I get that home. Did you always wonder, when you started wearing makeup and everything, did you wonder how everybody else's makeup would stay in place when mine was all smudged and I was

sweaty after games? And nobody, those girls weren't sweaty, were they? No, they just didn't sweat. The magical non-sweety girls at school. Were they aliens, do you think? I absolutely. They're two-need. Different species. Two niece and tiny. Just a different species. So as you said, you know, there you were, you were on the same street extraordinarily, playing for your supper and busking and you were busking in churches and all sorts of things. Music was properly, it was like all over you and it was inside you. You were music through and through, weren't you? Yeah. Yeah. And I really, I'm so grateful to my mom and dad because neither of them were.

And I hear so often growing up and now as an adult where kids have had really strong propensities and compulsions and talent for things and they just haven't had that support to really, you know, explore it. One of my exes would have been an amazing dancer. And there was just no way of him pursuing that. that, you know. And so my mom and dad were, you know, they were just super conscious of just going,

like, we've got to work out what our kids are good at and allow them to flourish. And so they just, you know, they got all the lessons and took us to whatever we were doing. And it was, they were very dedicated to allowing us to be who we were going to be. How amazing. That's so important to life to have that. It really is. I mean, if they hadn't, who knows, because it was that very, I'm pretty convinced it was that very early musical and creative freedom that kind of planted the whole garden for what happened later. But how it happened was that you carried on and you carried on. Were there ever any times before that moment,

and everybody always talks about the moment you were on Jules Holland, that before all of that, was there ever a time that you thought, maybe I should do something else, or were you set on music? It's so funny, Gabby, because as I'm getting older, I think more and more about that. And I just think, how did I do that? It was, it was, I knew it, I knew at 15 that I wanted to be a musician.

And I wanted to do that as a job. And I didn't really care what that looked like. I just didn't want another job. So it wasn't, it wasn't sort of going into wanting to be rich and famous. And traveling the world was definitely high on the line. list. But the rest of the trappings were not. It was just really making sure that I could make a living as a musician. And I'd met these other musicians in my hometown, which was just this amazing little hotbed of incredible musicians. It was King Creosote, the beta band, Vic Galloway had a band,

James Yorkston. We were all from St. Andrews, from a tiny little 11,000 population town. and Fife. It was just so weird. And, but yeah, so I'd met these guys and they were all just brilliant indie musicians. And so that was what I latched on to was this kind of quite anti-establishment. Don't sign a record deal. Do it your own way. I mean, and then the beat of band did sign a record deal and it was all kind of a bit magical. It was like, oh my God, they can do it. But King Creezo at Kenny Anderson, who I adore was really my mentor and biggest inspiration as a teenager. He was very fiercely independent and I really took after him.

So that's partly why it took me a lot longer was that I just didn't want to court the business industry side of it for a very long time. I was trying to do it myself and get music grants and creative art grants and just make my own music and it didn't really work. And so I just found myself getting into this pattern of I would do something. something, try something for a year or so. And then if it didn't work, I just scrapped it and started again. Wow.

That's quite ruthless. It was ruthless. But I was, I was, there was just a clarity to the, to knowing that this was a one in a million chance of me actually being able to have a job as a musician. and in a way that I could live in a house and maybe have a car, you know. And if it wasn't working, it wasn't working. People weren't interested enough.

And so, and it was, I think it was also just to keep my sanity during that time. I think at the end of it all, the biggest realisation was I'm writing all of this stuff myself. I'm getting all the gigs. I'm the one who's promoting all the gigs. I seem to be the only one who really kids. cares. So I'm just going to, I'll just do it on my own. Not bother with the band or trying to, you know, involve other people really. But then how did the Jules Holland thing happen? So by 2000 and,

well, by about the end of the 90s, 98, 99, I was living in Edinburgh and I'd thrown the towel in with the final band that I had because it just wasn't working and no one was interested. And you know, it was just, it was too difficult to see how it would work. But I always kind of put money in shoe books so I could get the bus down to London and play wherever I could at Open Mic Nights because I was just like, look, no one's even, I cannot get arrested in Scotland. No one's coming up to see gigs. There are no A&R guys coming up.

They'd say they'd come. I mean, it was the most disappointing thing. You'd like pay all your spare cash and beg all your friends to come to a show. Because this one magical A&R unicorn guy was coming up from London and then he wouldn't come. And it's just crushing. And so... Tough. I was going down to London.

And one of the things that I ended up doing when I go down, and sometimes it would be with a band and we'd go down in a van. And, you know, we had a great friend in a pub in Marlaboon High Street called the Rising Sun. He would spend his whole month budget on us playing for one night so that I keep going to do open mic nights for the rest of the world. week. And I find this club called Kashmir Club. And it was, it was on Marla Bone High Street and it was under a pizza restaurant. And it was amazing. It was a little, just an absolute little diamond underground. And I, I went through there. James Blunt went through there. Noreena Pallo went through there. Cheryl Crowe ended up playing there. It was the first little, it was a tiny little

basement and it was free to get in, but the payment was you had to shut up and listen. And it was this amazing guy called Tony Moore, who I'm still very good friends with, ran that club, and that's what did it. I was playing that club. Word got out that I was good, and then the A&R people started coming and watching me. That's incredible. You see, can, I mean, I'm a, go on and I bang on about following your dreams. But, you know, you obviously, I mean, listening to you now, you obviously have that talent. You just get it. Yeah, and I didn't have.

I really, most of the people around me in my life did not believe I would be able to do it. But your parents did and you did. Well, my parents, they didn't believe in the job part of it. They were extremely, they were massively supportive in the learning curve. But then they were absolutely terrified. when I said that I was going to be a performer as a living. Right. It was an idea.

I just said the worst thing I could have said to them. And it was very, very hard for us because they were just extremely worried. And also they didn't really listen to a lot of music. So they didn't know if I was good enough. And it just seemed so impossible to them. It was really, really hard. And so I was on my own. Sorry, that's even more incredible that you carried on.

I know. I am surprised that I did that because I didn't get my record deal until I was 29. I know, but you've got that thing. Whatever anybody wants to call it, I'm not going to call it X Factor because we're not going to go down that road because that's a whole,

then that brings up a whole different thing of those shows. I mean, it is funny, isn't it? Because when you talk about those shows, that's the thing that sort of makes me laugh about it is that if you go into any primary school in Britain, you could probably find 50% of them can sing pretty well. Like singing, singing is something that humans can do.

It's not like a magic trick. But the X-Pactor actually has nothing to do with that. It's to do with David Bowie or, you know, Bob Dylan or Kate Bush or name them. And you, you are. Oh, thank you. No, but you are. I strive to, to, I mean, that's more, I think a lot of it is, about how you live your life, the X-Factor, actually.

I think it was a beautiful Helen O'Bronham Carter quote that I saw recently where she was just talking about your life is art. You know, everything you do, everything you wear, everything you think, everything you say is your art. Life is an art form. And I love that idea. And that's you, because you sort of, you live, breathe, eat, music. You know, when you walk into a room, you are music. Gosh, that's quite a big thing to say,

but you are. That's a lovely thing to say, Gabby, thank you. It's maybe one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me. Well, you are. You really are. It's lovely. So for you then, I know, you said you weren't thinking about the fame. You weren't thinking about the money and you like the idea of the travelling. But then later with Jules happened. And then obviously, you know, loads of stuff and you were selling millions of albums

and then obviously the movie suddenly I see and devil wears Prada and then I mean the minute I say those words there are some songs

in our lives that the minute I just say suddenly I see I start singing but I can't help it isn't it mental I mean I just that is such as

that's a very very rare singular experience to sit in your basement in a flat in Gospel Oak looking at a Patti Smith record and write a song in the same way that you've written any other song and then it just turns into this ubiquitous.

It's like a gas. It's just like it's still everywhere and it's still getting used for films and every single country I go to in the world people know this song. It's just unbelievable. Oh, how do what? Okay, you see, unbelievable. But it must be extraordinary. Because obviously, I've never had a hit song. Because last night when I was, and I was, I was properly, I was dancing around the city room. It was, the whole time I was listening to the whole back catalogue. And my 15 year old came in. She said, suddenly I, and she was singing along. And I just, so what does that feel like? So you say it's unbelievable. But is it weird? that people look at you and suddenly break into your song?

It doesn't feel weird, but it's just that, it's that, it's that, you know, it's the holy grail as a, as a performer that you can go out on stage and have a crowd sing your song back to you. You know, that's like the ultimate teenage dream when you want to be a rock and roll star is everybody's singing your song and then it happens. And it's sort of like being in a parallel. universe. And now in my midlife, it's sort of, it's really morphed in a very beautiful way where, you know, as you get older, you just, and you've done well, you're just like, well, what can

I do? How can I help? How can I be helpful? That, that starts to become much more exciting in your life. If you get into your 40s, it's like, what can I actually do this of service in this world? and what and you know I don't need to pick up a shovel or or you know do something that's anything other than completely joyful. I just get on stage and sing a song that I wrote that I still really love and it just transmits joy. And I just see this room full of people, you know, hearing it for the first time live or remembering where they heard it for the first time or the fact that it was their soundtrack through, university or whatever it is, you know. And now I'm reading, now I'm reading kind of tweets and messages from people saying, I remember dancing to that tune when I was a baby.

You know, people are now like, it's their parents' music that they've grown up on. It's their parents' record collection that they've stolen. So it's a whole new experience of younger people getting into it as well, which is just beautiful. But what's so interesting is when you talk to people about a specific thing that they are best known for, there are a lot of people. So if there's a show that you've done or if there's a piece of music you've written or if there's a piece of art and everybody goes back to that, there are times when you want to say, do you know what, I have done other stuff too.

You see, to me, it feels like you're so proud of that and you're proud that you're spreading joy and the people are enjoying it, that you don't have a moment where you think, just stop mentioning that song because there are other songs. I think you have to be grateful. You have to keep a perspective about it. That there's an awful lot of people in the world who would love to do what I do and they haven't been able to do it. They've not been able to make it work.

It's a very, very difficult path to kind of navigate and actually manage to make a living doing it. And so I get a lot of joy. playing that for people. Of course there's some days where I'm like, oh, it would be nice to not have to play it. But at the same time, you know, as I'm talking about it, it's like that those songs, those number of hit songs that people love that I have, I play every gig, they are the vehicles that allow me to play new stuff for people. And if I didn't have those hits, maybe no one would care about the new stuff at all. And I wouldn't get a chance to play that new stuff for people. So

I know exactly what it's like playing to a room for people who couldn't give two rats asses about who you are or what you're saying, they're just drinking a beer and talking over the top of you. I did that for 10 years. So I think going through, you know, paying your Jews in that way kind of embeds in you a gratitude that you don't take it for granted that people are listening.

You're very grounded, aren't you? Because I know you've done a lot. for the soul, mind and body albums and I've read and you've spoken quite a lot about how you feel that your life changed when your father died, oh gosh, 10 years ago now. But you've, all of that is that and your health problems that you've had and you're hearing, all of these things. What I get from you is, and you say you're using the word grateful, but I just get this that you're, you're a realist, you're very grounded and you're just so thankful for each day when it happens. Thank you. I think I'm a rebel and a rebel at heart and I don't like to conform.

I don't like being told what to do. I don't like being under a thumb or, you know, nodding to authority. and I think that within that, I noticed that there was this expectation wherever I went that I hope you don't mind me swearing, but just that I would be an arsehole. And I was like, what is that about? You know, oh, you're so nice, even though you're famous. What are you expecting?

What are you expecting? What are you expecting? Yes, people still do. People always expect you. I don't know. And I think a lot of this actually I put down to my mom and dad because they were extremely big on manners when we were growing up. And it's something that drives me a bit mad in the world

where social media has definitely contributed to us just losing our manners. I agree with you. Completely agree with you. And it's just the basic communicative respect for other human beings. and wait until someone finishes their sentence, which to be honest, I'm really bad at. But saying thank you, saying hello. The amount of times I sort of am caught in a conversation

where someone doesn't even introduce themselves or, you know, how are you? And it's this, it's coming to communion with other human beings from a respectful and open-minded place. And I'm never not going to do that because I just think that that's my life suffers if I don't do that. I agree with you.

I remember going to L.A. for a meeting and somebody saying, hey, how are you? And I said, oh, I'm very jet-lagged. Good. What? You didn't listen. And it was just one of those. Simple things. And as an interviewer, you have to be somebody who listens. And you have to hear what

people are going to say because if you plan to talk about giraffes and they're going to talk about elephants, you're not then going to keep talking about giraffes because then you haven't listened. And I just think people need to also, if you listen and somebody is hurting, then you're going to be there for them. If you listen and somebody is happy, you can take from that as well, give and take. Yeah, and I think also we forget that listening is a gift to other people as well. And I heard a really good question the other day where it was if a friend is losing their blob about something or a family member is losing their blob. And you ask the question, would you like to vent or would you like advice? That's great.

And I thought, what a great thing to ask someone. because a lot of conflict, I think, happens when people can't handle hearing other people in pain and so you try and fix it, when actually sometimes someone just needs to tell you about it. And it's a real gift listening to someone, giving them your time and, you know, absorbing what they're going through. It's a present, I think. What's life like in America for you? Well, obviously, it's an interesting time to decide to move to America.

It's an interesting time in the world, I think, where everything kind of seems very divisive. But I lived in America when I was four. My dad got sabbatical to UCLA. And I was a valley girl in Encino, which is, you know, cluelessville. But we weren't in a push bit or anything. I fell in love with it. And it was basically my first memories of life were Californian. I remember grape flavoring and orange and lemon trees and outdoor swimming pools and sunshine, sunshine, sunshine and hot Christmas with loads of amazing lights and everything.

And I think it just kind of imprinted on me a bit like a baby duckling where I always loved America. And then I went back and did my last year of secondary school there. I got scholarship because I got all my grades and finished school on my 17th birthday because I'd started school young. And I was like, I'm not going to uni when I'm 17 and can't go to the pub. And so I went to America for a year and to school on the East Coast this time. And then travelled about loads and ended up travelling in Chicago and went down to Texas and spent a lot of time off in Vermont. And I just love it. I loved how friendly it was.

I loved how vast it was. I loved the old, you know, the blues traditions and the country music traditions. and the I love the road-tripping tradition that you could, you know, jump trains. I never did that, but it just, it was so romantic to me. And it was sort of where I discovered gigs for the first time. I never used to, I went to gigs going off to St. Andrews because there were, you know, Dundee was, even Dundee was quite a long way away.

And I just never went to shows. So I started going to really amazing gigs in America. Finally found my way back there as a touring musician 10 years later. and then moved there in 2015. I just went to Venice Beach for the first time, you know, and was just like, what? People live here? I want to live here.

This is amazing. And my father had passed, which made me kind of wake up overnight that I wasn't happy. I got out of my marriage. I sold everything I owned and I moved to the West Coast, which is kind of, I guess, like sounds like a bit of a mirror of me trying to get somewhere when I was younger, just going, well, this isn't worth.

working, so I need to do something else. Yeah, but since you've been there, you've, you've embraced it. You've, but you haven't forgotten, you know, all of those cliches, you haven't forgotten where you come from and everything and you gig over here. I'm over here enough that I still feel sort of very connected and my family's here. And I just, I think I've always felt pretty transatlantic and global. And, you know, I love, I can't believe all the places that I've been that music's taken me to. and where I've travelled off my own bat subsequently once I had some cash to actually go anywhere, which was lovely.

But yeah, I've never felt reated. I've never put reits down anywhere. And this is now that I'm in Topanga Canyon in L.A., it's sort of the first time I've felt, especially through COVID, you know, and being at home for a prolonged period of time, which I'd never done since, as an adult, I'd never done. it was definitely pretty special and I felt very very at peace being at home it was great that's fantastic

that's so lovely to hear actually that really is lovely to hear I finally got a dog which was great okay talk to me about your dog love dogs I mean I'm in love there's no love like it it's just the purest most beautiful thing I wake up in the morning I want two dogs and they're just like

I've just like there is a different species. There are creatures sleeping in my bed and they come and kiss me in the morning. It's just amazing and they're just, Minnie, my little miniature pincher, who's a rescue, is totally PTSD. And she's a great, she's a great teacher. She needs to rest a lot because she gets quite stressed at simple things. And I'm just like, I need to rest more, but she's just a little lover. It's, it's just been total joy. But now, but now I miss them. I think I'd designed a life where I didn't miss anything too much because you can't.

Because you're just away all the time and it'd just be miserable. You know, I remember crew guys on the road who just had babies or they had like toddlers at home and they'd be really gutted that they're missing all this stuff. And so I think I'd kind of avoided a situation where I'd miss anything. And now I miss my doggies. They're there and they're happening. Yeah, they're happy. Who's looking after them?

The man. Oh, okay. Okay. They've got a hunky big man looking after them, so they're very happy. Is he going to come over here, though, as well? I hope so at some point. But yes, I think we'll be back over here for Christmas, I think. We'll have a British Christmas.

But you'll get a gig over here, though, aren't you? Yes, I'm unsure with stereophonics at the moment. And how's that? Oh, it's amazing. The lads! What an amazing band. They're very inspiring. I was just talking to Kelly before.

the show last night and yeah he's just written all those songs himself and it blows my mind. He probably feels exactly the same about you. But well, I mean, here's the thing. They're 25 years, 12 albums and I've been playing massive arena shows that whole time. I mean, it's incredible. It's a real, it's a huge achievement because I'm not, you know, I don't play arenas. I'm opening. for them. And it's really impressive that they, that they connect at that level consistently. And they've just had another number one album. It's really inspiring. Amazing. Oh, how lovely. I'm so pleased that you're enjoying it as well. Aren't you also writing, have you written or are you writing a musical on saving Grace? I am. So this is where Brenda Bledhen comes back into our, on our tube map. I love to

think of life as the tube map where these coloured lines just keep crossing each other in different places. Okay, so what colour line is she? Let's give Brenda Blethen. Let's give her the Northern line. It's everywhere and it's deep. It's deep down as is Brenda Blythe. She's wonderful. I got to tell her when I met her

that she'd inspired me to find my biological mother and she loved that. And then now this amazing situation with saving grace where I've been working on it for a few years but it's really only kind of found its traction through the lockdown where we could really intensively work on it. And it's just so much fun. It's a lot of work and it's a huge learning curve,

but it's Lawrence Connor directing, who did School of Rock and Joseph, I mean, one of the best directors in the world. And April DeAngelis, who's an amazing writer, is writing the book. She's so funny. And so two gals looking after scrolls, script and music and lyrics. And it's just, it really actually feels somewhat more suited to my skill set as a musician

where I just love melody and chord progression and emotion. And I want to write earworms. I want to write songs that people are going to walk out whistling to. And popular music at the moment feels, you know, it's really being owned by hip-hop and urban at the moment, which I think is great. There's some amazing music, but it feels like what I do at the moment is kind of on a different part of the spotlight curve at the moment. Musicals are my thing.

Are they? What's your favourite? West Side Story. I watched the original movie not long ago and I was just completely in heaven. The music and the words and the story. It's just incredible, I think, but I love every musical. But saving great. So is Brenda Bledhing going to be in the musical?

No, I mean, it was 20 years ago now that the film happened. But we're trying to, because Craig Ferguson was in it with her. So Craig Ferguson, late, late show, Scottish TV host, now one of my best friends for life. He's just the most magical being and just so much fun. We persuaded him to play the villain because he played the young gardener in the movie. And for anyone who doesn't in the film, it's a middle-aged woman whose husband, She's kind of living, you know, a very charmed life as a trophy wife.

And her husband dies and leaves her in a total financial mess. So she starts growing weed to pay for everything to get her out the mess. Yeah, so Craig was on board and helping out and playing the part of this kind of villainous banker. And he was absolutely hilarious. So who are you going to cast as her? No idea. We've got our dream. We've got our dream people.

But I shouldn't say. It's not for me to say, really. It's all going well. I mean, it's very, very hard world. It's like one out of ten actually makes it to the stage. But it's so funny and it's very moving and emotional. And I love that it's the journey of an older woman. You know, she really finds her mojo.

And I think that's an important story to tell at the moment of a woman in later life, like really blossoming. Hallelujah. Yeah. So which is your favorite musical? I think my favorite musical, I used to love the film musicals when I was younger and I loved Bugsie Malone. Oh, yes. I just, it was just the best songs and I loved all.

I loved it with all kids. And I love Oliver as well. Good choices. Good choices. In every single way, you are an utter joy. Carry on being a joy. Oh, Gabby. so are you. Every time I see you anywhere, it just, it is elevating. You're an elevating human being.

That's very kind of you to say. As my kids say, you're just an embarrassing mom, mom. Carry on enjoying the talk. It's part of your job as a mom. Yes, it really is. And I can't wait to see the musical. I will be in the front row on the first night, cheering it on. And I should tell you, I have a new album out this summer. Yes. And it is the final part of the Soul Body Mind trilogy. It's all done and dusted and it will be out. It'll be with you this year, which is really exciting.

So when, when, when, when? It's bang in the middle of the summer, I think. We haven't got an exact date yet. But it's just really cool. It's seven years work that spans my, you know, crazy situation of my dad dying, marriage, falling apart, moving continents. through losing my hearing when I was doing her album about the body. And then I'm thinking what the hell is going to happen during the Mind record. And we have a global pandemic.

So it's just this arc that's covered a really extraordinary seven years. I cannot wait for that. Yeah, I'm excited. It's a very fun album. It's a really fun album. When are we first going to be able to hear anything from it? Pretty soon. I think you're going to get a first taste song,

very soon. I will make sure that you get a text. Oh, yes. Oh, thank you, my lovely. Carry on enjoying the tour. I so appreciate it, Gabby. It's lovely to talk to you. Next time it's got to be in real life. I know. When you and your guitar get together and just sitting four feet away from you, you blew my mind last time. Absolutely promise. That's how it will happen next time. Thank you so much. Thank you. That Gabby Roslyn podcast is proudly produced by cameo productions and music by Beth Macari. Could you please tap the follow or subscribe button? And thank you so much for your amazing reviews. We honestly read every single one of them and they mean the world to us.

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