13-piece Bruce Springsteen tribute act The Seeger Sessions Revival Band play The Theatre Royal, Waterford on 11 April. We asked Christopher Speer of the band the BIG questions . . .
"Springsteen's Seeger Sessions showed that it wasn’t about writing songs, it was about making music together," says Christopher, who plays banjo and guitar.
"That looseness and freedom is what drew me in. When the brass kicks in and everything locks, it still gives me goosebumps every night we play."
Tell us three things about yourself . . .
I’m a father of two and live in Tyrone, where family life keeps me well-grounded when I’m not on the road playing music, which is a lot of the time with one of my musical projects, The Seeger Sessions Revival. I’ve been playing in bands for over 25 years now and over that time I’ve been lucky enough to perform in many bands across various different countries around the world. Music has really shaped my life, not just as a job but through the people I’ve met, the places I’ve travelled and the experiences that have come with it.
How would you describe your music?
I always describe the music of The Seeger Sessions as 'music that gets inside you and makes you dance from the inside, out’. It’s made up of huge instrumental arrangements, a driving rhythm section and big New Orleans-esque brass solos. The music is a blend of gospel, rock, blues, Dixieland Jazz, country and everything in between and many of the songs themselves are steeped in American and African American history and culture and it’s our pleasure to help in keeping them alive and perform them each night on our current tour in the UK and Ireland.
Who are your musical inspirations?
I listen to almost everything within reason. Obviously, Bruce Springsteen has been a huge influence, especially in terms of storytelling and the energy of live performance but my musical tastes have always been very wide.
My earliest music memory is my older brother, younger sister and I clinging onto my dad’s back as he swung and bounced us around the sitting room to the sound of Little Richard and Elvis blasting from a Jive Bunny & the Mastermixers CD - the sweat blinding us in complete mayhem. I still go back to listen to those songs now - I actually played them for my own children last week, funnily enough. Full circle moments make it all the more magical. Music has that alchemy about it; it forms into many things.
What was the first gig you ever went to?
In 2002, our music teacher got a loan of the school bus and took a load of us to OzzFest at Punchestown - this was my first proper concert. Ozzy himself didn’t actually show up but the line-up was incredible. Tool played an extended set and bands like Slayer and System of a Down were on the bill. It completely blew my mind seeing live music on that scale for the first time and probably cemented my lifelong love of gigs from that moment on. Imagine a teacher doing something like that these days!
What was the first record you ever bought?
The first album I ever bought was on cassette tape and it was Dangerous by Michael Jackson. Sadly the tape was stolen years later when our car was broken into in Blackpool but it’s still an album I love to this day.
What’s funny is that a few years later, when I really started discovering music through Guns N’ Roses’ Use Your Illusion II and then Appetite for Destruction, I realised that Slash featured on Dangerous. It felt like this strange full-circle moment, like my early pop discovery years before and my later love of rock music were connected all along.
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The first single I think I bought was Good Enough by Dodgy… and that’s all I have to say on that. Ha.
What’s your favourite song right now?
My favourite song/album at this present time is Joy of Nothing (Live), the Foy Vance album recorded in Belfast in 2023 with the Ulster Orchestra. I was lucky enough to be there for one of the shows with my wife and it was one of the best concerts I have ever been to. If I had to pick a song off the album, I’d say Guiding Light.
Favourite lyric of all time?
"Poor man wanna be rich, Rich man wanna be king and a king ain't satisfied 'til he rules everything" - Badlands by Bruce Springsteen. That lyric has always stuck with me because it says so much about human nature in just a few words.
If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
A tough question but I would say Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd. It’s one of those songs I keep coming back to again and again. The atmosphere of it is incredible and the guitar solos never get old no matter how many times I hear it. It’s the kind of track you put on intending to listen casually and then suddenly you’re pressing repeat for the fifth time.
Where can people find your music/more information?
You can find us on our website and across social media where we share tour dates, videos, and behind-the-scenes moments from the road. On our website you can sign up to our mailing list as well for some early gig news and occasional discounts.
Alan Corr
