Air Supply Band: “We plan to celebrate 50 years together on stage”

by time news

Veteran British musician and guitarist Graham Russell greets me on the zoom screen with a wide smile. Time has not harmed the voice or charisma that characterizes him and his partner in the mythical rock band Air Supply, Russell Hitchcock. “Music leaves me young,” says Russell, 71, who lives in Utah, USA. “Every time we go on stage, play and sing our souls to the applause crowd, I get young in a year. It is the drug of life. “

The two will perform together in Israel on May 27 at the Haifa Congress Center (21:00) and on May 28 at “Live Park” in Rishon Lezion (21:00).

You and Russell Hitchcock have been active together for 47 years. What is the secret of magic?
“There is no competition between us because we have a clear role definition: I write and compose the songs and make a second voice, and Russell is the lead singer. It works out well because I do not want to be a lead singer, and Russell does not want to write, compose and engage in the musical production, so there is no conflict between us and we act that way all the time. Each of us is in a place he loves in a couple, and it’s perfect for us so we have a good business and personal relationship. We also do not live next to each other, there is a distance of about 1,000 miles between us. When we are not working, we barely talk, and each of us leads a completely separate life, but when we meet for performances and work in the studio on new songs, we have a lot to talk about. That’s a great balance. “

Do you still have the same excitement on stage?
“Yes, absolutely, I think that’s why we keep performing. As soon as we take the stage, the audience stands up and pays our respects and is ready to go for a fun ride on the train, which is exactly the atmosphere that ‘Air Supply’ produces in performances. The audience experiences moments of passion, joy, crying and pleasure in the performance, and we experience it with them. This is a wonderful and beautiful thing we have created. Usually, when people go to a rock ‘n’ roll show, they want to escape from reality and let go, whereas when they come to ‘Air Supply’ shows, they do not want to run away, but to feel and capture the moments. They take the moments with them when they return home. We are happy about that. “

Do you believe audiences are still excited about rock ballads like the ones you create?
“Definitely, we are lucky because we have many hits. The audience especially deserves to hear the same rock ballads he loves. We only occasionally change the arrangements and the order of the songs. The audience wants to hear it, and we love playing it. We also combine new materials, but our show is a rock ‘n’ roll show for everything, loud and kicking. “

How much longer will you continue to perform?
(Laughs) Many years ago we told ourselves that we would stop performing when the audience stopped coming to our performances because we were performing to share those moments with the audience, and if we did not succeed in doing so – we would definitely stop. I do not see this happening in the coming years, we definitely plan to celebrate 50 years together on stage. “

“Good luck”

Graham Russell was born in Nottingham, UK in June 1950. “I always loved music and even in my house, when I was a child, my parents played Frank Sinatra records on a turntable,” he says. The weird guy who writes poetry while the rest of my class is playing soccer or courting girls. “

A defining moment for him was a performance by the Beatles. “It was the first band I saw in my life in a live show, when I was 14,” he says. “All the songs, and through them I learned the music in the most serious way. I started writing songs thanks to the Beatles. They turned my desire to write and compose into something logical and achievable.”

Russell taught himself to play the guitar, and in his youth was a member of several young rock bands, led by the Union Blues. “I really enjoyed this period, it was a teaching period for me, you learn a lot, you make mistakes and improve as a musician,” he says. “Learning is an important and necessary thing, I still learn new things and it gives me pleasure.”

In 1967 he left Britain for Australia. “The band I played in the UK mostly played covers of choral hits, and I had a burning desire to perform my original songs,” he says. “Yes, and try my luck there. In Australia I formed an original band that performed my songs. The band did not succeed, but it was a start for me.”

In 1975 he met singer Russell Hitchcock in the Australian production of the rock musical “Jesus the Supreme Star”, in which the two participated. “We were a bunch of 20 singers who sang in a choir, and it was wonderful,” he recalls. Russell sat next to me: I saw a skinny guy with an afro haircut. When I heard his wonderful voice, I approached him, introduced myself and we realized we have a lot in common: we both carry the name ‘Russell’, we both attended for the first time in our lives a live Beatles performance at 14 and we both have similar taste in music and literature. I knew Russell was the singer I needed for the band. “

The Beatles 1964 (Photo: gettyimages)

The two formed the band “Air Supply” (“Air Supply”) together. “When we finished recording our debut album, the record company asked for a name for the band and we did not find one,” says Russell. “I told Russell about the dream and we decided to call the band by that name.”

The band, which is known for its powerful rock ballads, has replaced musicians and backing singers over the years. In November 1976, the band’s first single was released, Love And Other Bruises, which became a huge hit and qualified for sixth place in the Australian Choral Parade. A month later, the band released their debut album, which climbed to 17th place on the list of best-selling albums.

“We were very lucky that our first record was a success,” says Russell. “To thousands of other bands in Australia, but it happened to us. We were in the right place at the right time and we took advantage of the momentum. It’s a fact that we’ve endured for so many years.”

The significant breakthrough came in 1980, with the release of the band’s fifth album, Lost In Love, the theme song of which rose to third place in the US Choral Parade and earned Russell the title of “Composer of the Year” in Australia. Other songs from the album that became huge hits are All Out Of Love and Every Woman In The World.

“The song ‘Lost In Love’ was written in 1978 after a six-month tour with Rod Stewart, at the end of which we thought we would break into America, but we did not break out,” says Russell. Money to survive. It challenged us and encouraged us to go back to the beginning, so I sat down and wrote this song. Before we recorded the song, I played it to Russell, and he said to me, ‘This is our hit.’ “He insisted. When our producer Clive Davis heard the song, he said, ‘It’s going to be the biggest hit in the world, you better get ready.’ I still doubted it, but he was right.”

As someone who writes mostly romantic songs, are you a romantic guy?
“I want to believe so. My songs have always been romantic, but it’s not that I planned to write love songs in the first place, but my songs reflect my character and my observation of the world. I always look at the romantic side of life and always find the good things in everything. “

In the ’80s you were big stars. Did you lead a wild lifestyle?
“No, never. We worked so much in the ritual of international performances and recordings. We had no time to do anything but work. We never went crazy. I think we were so into success that we did not want anything to distract us from it. We aspired to create a career for many years, and that’s what we did. “

Over the years the band has released 17 albums and a variety of hits, including: The One That You Love, Here I Am, Sweet Dreams, Making Love Out Of Nothing At All and more. The last album to date, Mumbo Jumbo, was released in 2010.

Why haven’t you recorded a new album in 12 years?
“I do not really know, the years go by fast, and the music industry has changed. Today many people use streaming and do not purchase physical albums. We recorded a number of singles, but soon we plan to release a new mini-album (EP) with the music producer we worked with in the eighties, Harry Maslin, who produced all of our big hits. We hope it will be a great experience for us. “

How was it for you to return to performing with the coronation fading?
“It was good and exciting. About a year and a half did not play or perform, so it was also strange. But I think to everyone in the world it was weird. It’s good to come back and feel the freedom to play and meet our audience. “

What have you done throughout this period?
“I continued to write songs, what’s more I also write musicals these days.”

Hello Israelis

The band’s next visit to Israel will be the band’s sixth time in Israel, having already performed here in 2008, 2011, 2014, 2014, 2016 and 2019. “I am a big fan of Israel,” Russell declares. “Israelis are wonderful people and there are so many holy places in Israel, more than anywhere else in the world. Every time I visit you, I discover something new.”

What is the Israeli site that left the most impression on you?
“We have visited all the holy places, and although I am not a religious person, I think these places have a wonderful power for everyone. To see the different religions there celebrating their faith – it’s an exciting and respectful feeling. “

Weren’t you afraid to come to Israel following the BDS?
“No, there was no threat. We have always taken care to unite and connect people, we never interfere in religion or politics. As musicians, we only deal with music, and that is our goal. “

Do you have a message for the Israeli audience?
“I want to say ‘hello’ to all the Israelis who are reading this interview. If you have not yet been to an Air Supply show, come see the biggest show you will see. We look forward to seeing you. Take care of yourself”.

You may also like

Leave a Comment