Extraordinarily fragile songs - THE FLY.  A boy and his guitar - JOHN PEEL.  Sweet charming piquant pop gems - RECORD COLLECTOR.

THE ANT HISTORY PAGE.  

Click on the ANT LOGO to return to the HOMEPAGE. Click on each RECORD COVER below for the LYRICS & MP3 SAMPLES.

1998. I began writing my own songs way back in the summer of 1988 in my bedroom on the Isle of Wight. Nine years later with over one hundred songs recorded on a small four track, the best of which fill a five volume cassette ANTHOLOGY, I eventually played my first solo shows in London at the very intimate 12 Bar Club, supporting the wonderful Rhatigan. Shortly afterwards I began the first of many fruitful recording sessions with Suzanne Rhatigan and her cat, in her living room, with John Morrison and his Fender bass on the sofa. The recordings were done on an old reel to reel, quarter inch, eight track, for Cushy Productions.  Also around this time, Hefner, the band I played drums in, signed a record deal with Too Pure.

1999. I HOPE YOU’LL ALWAYS BE THERE/NOT SLEEPING THE SAME WAY. Double A sided 7” single on Evil World Records UK (SIN 1). I was lucky enough to have my own record released in 1999 on the label of Jen Denito (Linus) and Darren Hayman (Hefner). A catchy little disco number twinned with a more melancholic track. Both songs were from the Cushy sessions with Suzanne Rhatigan singing and playing Wurlitzer and John Morrison playing bass.

1999. WHERE HAPPINESS BEGINS/THE QUEUE TO YOUR HEART/YOUR HEART GOT BORED. CD single limited to 100 copies each with a numbered sleeve, on Fabulous Friends Records Sweden(Friend 01). In November my second single was released this time on the Swedish label of Roger and Anna (Nixon). I had met Roger when Hefner played the Emmaboda Festival in Sweden.  The single featured three slices of gentle acoustic pop, also taken from the Cushy sessions. This time with Menlo Parks Johnny Viola Greswell ( violin and viola) joining Suzanne Rhatigan (drums, Wurlitzer piano, keyboards and singing) and John Morrison (bass guitar).

2000. CURES FOR BROKEN HEARTS. YOU’VE LOST YOURAPPEAL/TONGUES/THE CURE FOR BROKEN HEARTS/FLY ON YOUR WALL/SPOIL.A 5 song mini album CD on  Fortune and Glory Records (FORCD104), Moseley, Birmingham.  After a very busy time Hefnering, I got to release my first mini album in the summer of 2000, on my new friend Hendricks’ label. The 5 songs were all taken from the first few sessions I did with Suzanne Rhatigan and are still my favourite recordings. They too featured Johnny Viola on violin and viola, John Morrison on bass guitar and Suzanne Rhatigan on Wurlitzer piano and backing vocals. If you listen very carefully during Tongues, you can hear Suzannes' cat Bobby making a subtle entrance through the catflap!  

2002. A LONG WAY TO BLOW A KISS. THE TRICK/MAYBE LOVE WILL RETURN/ANY GIRL CAN MAKE ME SMILE/HISTORY/WHEN I NEED YOU TO/WASTE THE DAYS AWAY/A LONG WAY TO BLOW A KISS/I ALWAYS HURT THE ONE THAT I LOVE/EVERY DROP OF RAIN/TODAY AS YESTERDAY/APRIL RAIN.11 song CD album on  Fortune and Glory Records (FORCDALB107) UK. 2001 must have been a very busy Hefner time as it wasn’t until April 2002 that my first full length album was finally released featuring 11 new songs, including new versions of the four used in the John Peel session.  This time I recorded the songs at home, alone, on my new digital eight track, during 1999 and 2001, whenever I had a few days off from all things Hefner and mixed it late 2001. Once again John Morrison played perfect bass across the album (he came over and did all his parts in one afternoon) and I took my wee studio around to Suzanne Rhatigans, where she transformed the title track with her old, hissy Wurlitzer piano and her beautiful clear voice.

2003. FLOATING ON THE BREEZE. THE SILENCE HAS BROKEN/FLOATING ON THE BREEZE/CRY YOUR LITTLE EYES OUT/THERE ARE GREY CLOUDS IN THIS SKY TOO/WHITE SWANS ON THE WATER/BLAME IT ON THE LANGUAGE. 6 song mini album CD on Homesleep Records (HOMESLEEP REC 2015) of Bologna Italy, March 2003. The 6 songs were all recorded at home on digital eight track. This time I made good use of the Hefner drum kit (which stood in the corner of my front room) and I tried my hand at playing the violin for the first time (sorry violinists!).

2003. IMPRINTS OF EMOTION EP. MOUNTAINS/BREATHE MY NAME. A limited edition split 7" vinyl EP released on two Swedish labels Zenith Recordings and Smudgey Records (ZEN 04/SMUDGE 01) November 2003. 2 old songs, newly recorded at home on digital 8 track. This EP was split with Swedish singerAirliner & also split between 2 labels, Gothenberg's Zenith run by Arnar & Malmö's Smudgey run by Åse . It was then licensed in England by Hendricks' Fortune and Glory Records as a very limited autographed edition.

2004. SAD TO SEE IT'S MORNING. WHERE HAPPINESS BEGINS/YOUR HEART GOT BORED/I HOPE YOU'LL ALWAYS BE THERE/THE QUEUE TO YOUR HEART/I ALWAYS HURT THE ONE THAT I LOVE (THE MACHINES REMIX)/BREATHE MY NAME/THE TRICK, EASY/NOT SLEEPING THE SAME WAY/THAT SHINING SMILE/MOUNTAINS/PATHWAY (previously unreleased)/YOU'VE LOST YOUR APPEAL (LIVE). 13 song compilation CD released in October 2004 on Fortune and Glory Records (FORCD114). A collection of the three singles to date with all the b-sides and all the compilation tracks released to date, plus an exclusive remix, a previously unreleased song and an exclusive live track.

2006. FOOTPRINTS THROUGH THE SNOW. WHEN YOUR HEART BREAKS (INTO MANY LITTLE PIECES)/IN YOUR DREAMS/SLIPPED AWAY/SHE'LL BE HOME SOON/SPENT TOO LONG WALKING WITH NO HEART TO FOLLOW/THIS GOODBYE KISS/LOOK HOW TIME FLIES/THOSE MEMORIES/CHANGE WITH THE SEASON/UP STICKS AND GO/HAVEN'T YOU GOT ANYWHERE LEFT YOU CAN RUN TO?/WE DIDN'T MOVE A MUSCLE/HEADING HOME. 13 song full length album and first proper studio album on Homesleep Records released in Italy in January 2006. Recorded in the Alpha Airbase studios in Bologna Italy in August/September 2004. Giacomo Fiorenza recorded and mixed it, with additional help from Francesco Donadello, and Matteo Agostinelli (Yuppie Flu) mastered it in May 2005.

2006. WHEN YOUR HEART BREAKS (INTO MANY LITTLE PIECES) (acoustic demo version). Limited split 7" vinyl with Swede The Odd Fiddler on Let's Expect Art Records (Sweden) limited to just 100 copies, released in April 2006. Featuring the acoustic demo of the leading song from the Footprints album.

2006. I COULDN'T REMEMBER THE DREAM, Limited edition split 7", this time on Black Candy Records of Italy with Italians Pecksniff. Released late summer 2006. A nw song recorded at home.

2007. LONELY BOY & OTHER TRAGEDIES. DECONSTRUCTION (OF POETRY)/GIRLS AND LOVE/BETWEEN THE LINES/LONELY BOY/KJODELIG FRIHET/SEASIDE SORROW/WORLD'S RESUME/DECONSTRUCTION (REPRISE). 8 song mini album CD on Filthy Little Angels (Angel 11) released February 2007. A low key collaboration where I wrote music for some poems by Norwegian poet Eivind Kirkeby and recorded and performed the pieces at home.

ANT SONGS FEATURED ON COMPILATIONS.

2000. EASY featured on a compilation CD called C188 which was given away free with the Papercuts fanzine (issue 4) in London IN 2000. It was another song taken from the Cushy sessions, this time featuring the tiny Mary Richards on cello alongside Johnny Viola on violin and viola and Suzanne Rhatigan singing and playing Wurlitzer piano.

2000. NOT SLEEPING THE SAME WAY made it’s second outing also in 2000, this time on the BRUMARIO compilation CD on the very cool Spanish label Acuarela Discos.

2002. THAT SHINING SMILE was released in June 2002, on a compilation CD called HIT MUSIC ONLY, on a small, new Swedish label called Heavenly Pop Hits run by Tommy and Marie. The song was another of my digital eight track home recordings, recorded at the same time as the A  Long Way To Blow A Kiss sessions.

2003. THE TRICK had its second release on a limited edition compilation CD on sale only at the the GoJonnygogogogo3 Festival.

2004. THE TRICK made its fourth outing in July 2004, this time on the cool and very indie Swedish compilation CD, THIS IS POPKONST AND WE LOVE YOU (POPK02) released by Niklas and Marie from Popkonst.

2004. ALL THESE IMPOSSIBLE PICTURES I PAINT IN MY HEAD, an old song which was especially rewritten and recorded for the ACUARELA SONGS 3 (NOIS 1043) double compilation CD on Acuarela Discos of Spain. The song was originally written back in 1995 and is one of the songs featured on the ANTHOLOGY four track tapes.

2005. THOSE MEMORIES (acoustic demo) came out in December 2005 on the free download only christmas album HAVE YOURSELF A FILTHY LITTLE CHRISTMAS on Filthy Little Angels (little 004p).

2006. THOSE MAGIC CHANGES came out on the free download only album DOWN TO GREASE ON HOLIDAY (Little 006), on Filthy Little Angels, in July 2006. My first cover version, , originally done by Sha Na Na. The track was recorded on my mp3 player.

2006. LET IT SNOW. Another free download compilation album on Filthy Little Angels, Hark! The Filthy Angels Sing, featuring my second cover version, The track was again recorded on my mp3 player.

2007. HE'S THE BEE'S KNEES. A new song (my first for Leo)  especially written for the compilation CD called Let It Bee (with the theme of bees and honey) for My Honey Records (Italy). Feb 2007.

2007. HOME. I did another christmas song for Filthy Little Angels, this time a cover of a song by the late great English singer songwriter Clifford T Ward for their Tis The Season To Be Filthy download album. Rcorded at home.

2008. THE SILENCE HAS BROKEN. March 2008  saw the second release of this song on a double compilation CD called Thermos 10, featuring a collection of bands who have played at the venue Thermos in Ancona Italy.