Interview with Cal Ruddy: ‘When you’ve got magic in the room, you can really feed off it’

Liverpool-based singer Cal Ruddy brought out his debut country album, Elliston Place, last week, offering us a big slice of rockabilly Americana.

The name of the album references the street where he was living when he wrote it. Ruddy, who was the winner of the Best Live Entertainer at The Liverpool Lifestyle Awards 2019, says that the album has been three years in the making.

‘I actually wrote most of the songs in Nashville three years ago,’ he said. ‘In the spring of 2017, I was supposed to do a tour of California but I got sick and couldn’t go. I was gutted because it was my dream. Later on, I went to a networking event in London and I met Allen McKendree Palmer, a Nashville-based songwriter and producer and he invited me to Nashville to write some songs. I stayed for three weeks and came back from Nashville with 12 songs!’

Ruddy spent the next year playing the songs live to test audience reactions before heading into the studio to start recording them in 2018. The opening track, ‘Listen to Me’, was written in McKendree Palmer’s studio in Nashville with musician and producer, Pevy Pevahouse: ‘That one was written in the first three days,’ Ruddy said. ‘We were in Allen’s studio, jamming on the guitars and Allen had the line ‘listen to me’. It’s about bands not showing respect to their fans or to other bands. I’ve been doing this for 10 years, so this is a reflective song about that.’

The song acts as a warning to those starting out in the industry: ‘I’ve been right where you are walking the same roads. I’ve worn these shoes ’til they are full of holes. I know where you’re going and where you’ve been. The dice are loaded, listen to me.’

‘The more different music you listen to, the more it helps you as a songwriter’

His love of country music comes from his Irish grandparents, who introduced him to Johnny Cash, Irish folk songs and Elvis at a young age. ‘I listen to such a wide array of music,’ he said. ‘The more different music you listen to, the more it helps you as a songwriter. Just this morning, I’ve been listening to T. Rex, The Beatles, Jim Reeves and Neil Young!’

Another track on the album, ‘Mine Is’, was written during his second week in Nashville. ‘I was with my friend Cory, we had a coffee listening to old love songs like The Everly Brothers and thought it would be great to write a classic love song with a 50’s feel. The chorus and the general idea came from the feeling of being really happy with someone, someone you really connect with. When you’ve got magic in the room, you can really feed off it.’

That comes across clearly in the lyrics: ‘You’ve got a way of making me more than I ever dreamed, life is a different kind of beautiful when you’re next to me. Is your picture of heaven on earth a little something like this? ‘Cause I know that I know that I know, mine is.’

Three of the tracks – ‘Buying Time’, ‘Maria’ and ‘December’s Friend’ – were actually written before his trip to Nashville. ‘December’s Friend’ is probably the most reflective song on the album and deals with a break-up. ‘It’s the break-up song of the album to balance out the mood,’ he laughed. ‘You need a bit of light and shade in an album.’

As the song goes: ‘Stop the world I’m coming down. Tell your friends, tell the whole damn town. You’re a beautiful frustration. You’re showing off your soul. Is this how freedom comes? How can you ever know? With a girl called December, you know she’s pretty cold.’

‘I’ve been onstage for 10 years but I’ve started to come into my own over the last five years’

He describes his Best Live Entertainer win at The Liverpool Lifestyle Award last year as ‘such a big buzz because it was a public vote’: ‘I’ve been onstage for 10 years but I’ve started to come into my own over the last five years. When I went to the awards ceremony, I didn’t think I’d get it, so it was really nice to be recognised. I’ve still got the award on my mantelpiece, it’s got pride of place! I feel so honoured.’

Of all the tracks on the album, ‘Been Here Before’ means the most to him. ‘The guy I worked on it with, Blue Miller (a Tennessee-based musician and producer, who worked with India Arie, Isaac Hayes and Bob Seger as a producer and as a touring musician for Fleetwood Mac), passed away shortly afterwards. He was so humble and nice to work with. He listened to my song ‘Maria’ and said he’d love to be involved. I’m really grateful because he took a chance on me.’

If he could tour with anyone, he picks The Rolling Stones. ‘I’d love to open for them,’ he said. ‘If I’m picking from people who have died, either Elvis or Johnny Cash, that’d be amazing. When you think of Elvis, a lot of people think of him in the 70’s but in the mid-50’s, he was untouchable, he was the man. He was legendary, he takes you to a different place.’

We chat about Elvis’ NBC-TV Special (live) album from 1968 and how good it is and how charismatic Elvis is when he chats to the audience. ‘He was hypnotizing,’ Ruddy said. ‘When I play live, I like to try to get people to feel a buzz, I give it 110%. At the end of the day, I’m an entertainer, I just want to give people a good time.’