He might be Northampton-based now, but singer-songwriter Joe Miles was born in Milton Keynes and lived in Olney for a number of years.
Joe plays The Stables this Saturday (September 2) - the same venue where he would regularly watch his late Grandfather, British Jazz legend, Terry Lightfoot.
He went On Track with Total MK...
The song that first awakened your musical senses
This is a tricky one actually. I was brought up with traditional Jazz music, so in a way, it was this that initially awakened my musical senses, however the first song that I really thought ‘wow - I want to do that’ was John Mayer’s ‘Gravity’. It is such an incredible song, the lyrics, the idea behind it, the recording. I’ve seen him perform it live a few times and it never gets old.
Physical or digital - how do you take your music?
Right now, digitally - I haven’t bought a CD in quite some time. Streaming is such a convenient thing, I can have the same playlists on all of my devices and go between them with no issues.
The first time you thought 'Music - this is the job for me’
I’ve always enjoyed music, both listening and performing, so it’s always something I’ve had in the back of my mind but the moment that really solidified it was touring with Shane Filan across the UK& Ireland in 2016. The whole touring experience of being in a bubble for a month or so, going from gig-to-gig, performing to thousands of people was just inspiring. It’s definitely the best thing about being an artist.
Your best on stage memory…
There are two. The first of which was sharing the stage with my grandad, Terry Lightfoot, Mum, Melinda Lightfoot and my brother Ollie, on stage at The Stables having seen both my grandad and mum perform there many times. Very special. The second was actually during the Shane Filan tour. I performed at The Derngate Theatre, in my hometown of Northampton and the whole
audience stood up and clapped along to a song of mine called ‘Standing On My Own’, of which the passing of my Grandad was the inspiration for that song.
And the worst gig you've ever done
In terms of a bad gig performance wise, I’ve been pretty fortunate in that there has never been a truly awful one, however you always get the odd gig during your ‘rounds of the circuit’ where you end up playing to the barman and the sound engineer - it’s a tough business for a independent artist - there are so many venues that book artists to generate income for the bar with no regard for the artists’ experience/career.
What made you take up singing?
As I mentioned before, I was brought up with Jazz music due to my Grandad and as a child I always sang in the car and around the house. Discovering John Mayer kick started my desire to
sing publicly and my first public performance was a surprise for my Dad at his 50th birthday party, with my brothers band. However, it wasn’t until I was partway through a college course in
motorsport engineering that I really developed a passion for music in a professional capacity - I knew I didn’t want to continue to work on cars for a career - and that was it.
Which one song by another artist do you wish you had written
John Mayer - Stop This Train. Just listen to it. Those lyrics are incredible.
And one - by yourself - which holds special significance
‘Any Other Way’ - whenever I play it, it ticks every box for me. Love the lyrics, love the melody, love the guitar part, love the hook.
Are there any current influences you look to
Outside of my family, all of whom are musical in someway, John Mayer, Allen Stone, Jamie Cullum.
If you could step into the shoes of another musician, living or dead, who would it be and what would you do?
Again, John Mayer - he seems to have such a great time on stage every night, playing with an incredibly talented band, to thousands of fans singing his lyrics back to him. Wouldn’t mind having
his guitar collection either…
And any genre of music that you simply can't stand?
I just don’t understand ‘screamo’. I’m a big Avenged Sevenfold fan, so I’m all up for heavier styles of music, where it’s melodic and I can understand the lyrics - but I just can’t understand screaming over music.
Finally, plug your show in Milton Keynes. Obviously it's a special venue for you…
I’ve spent my entire childhood in the wings of theatres and Jazz festivals watching my Grandad and his band, accompanied by my Mum, including many shows at The Stables Theatre. The last
time I performed at The Stables was actually when I lead my Grandads’ band for a set at a memorial concert we held for him - a bitter sweet gig.
My performance at Stage 2 on 3rd September will be my first ever headline show at The Stables.
The first set will be acoustic and the second set will be full band, featuring some of my older tunes and some brand new, never been heard before ones!
I hope to see you there.
To book tickets fot The Stables date, click here
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