The Bristol-based songwriter on protest music, stage fright, the joy of singles, and playing Glastonbury with Kelis.
Today, the Spotlight is On singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Pete Josef.
The impetus for Pete’s visit was a series of tracks that he has been dropping throughout the Spring and Summer of 2023 - one of which, “Utopia”, you can listen to at the end of this episode. Before we got to his new music, we discussed Pete’s musical upbringing, his connection to classic soul “message music”, and much more.
Pete is an artist deeply in tune with his times, which is reflected in the lyrical content of his music. He is also in tune with the lineage his own work springs from, as you will learn from this talk. It was a pleasure having him on and we highly encourage you to check out his music. Enjoy.
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Dig Deeper
• Visit Pete Josef at petejosefmusic.com
• Listen to Pete Josef’s music on Bandcamp or your favorite streaming platform
• Follow Pete Josef on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube
• Pete Josef…inspirations (Spotify Playlist)
• Rotary Connection - “Lady Jane” (Jerry G. TV show, Chicago, 1969)
• A Guide to Baroque Music
• The Cornet: Secrets of the Little Big Horn
• Moussa Kouyate plays kora
• Kelis at Glastonbury Festival 2023: A sublime, genre-hopping performance
• Later … with Jools Holland
• Sura Susso
• The Master Musicians of Jajouka led by Bachir Attar
• The Griot, the Preserver of African Traditions
• Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’ Is as Relevant Today as It Was in 1971
• What’s Going On? : Marvin Gaye and the Last Days of The Motown Sound
• Stevie Wonder: The artist, the activist, the Wonder(ful)
• Local Groove Does Good: The Story Of Trip-Hop’s Rise From Bristol
• Dartington Arts School
• I Go Shout Plenty: A Guide To The Work Of Fela Kuti
• The Story of Sundiata: An Enduring West African Epic
• Playing the complex West African instrument called the kora
• Where to Start With Afrobeat Pioneer Tony Allen, One of the Greatest Drummers Ever
• Patch’s artwork for Pete Josef’s “Utopia”
• Singles vs Albums – The Dilemma
• The White Lamp
• Theo Katzman
• Rugby World Cup 2023
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Musician
Despite his soul boy roots, Pete Josef’s melodic journey has taken him on a number of diverse musical stops along the way. From playing live drum & bass with Roni Size to producing lo-fi house as White Lamp with Darren Emmerson of Underworld fame, his mellifluous migration between styles reflects his open-minded attitude to creating sound.
Having travelled the globe as bass player and guitarist for the likes of Kelis, playing festivals as far afield as Fuji Rock in Japan, Splendour In The Grass in Australia and the UK’s legendary Glastonbury Festival, Pete finally came home when he signed to Berlin’s Sonar Kollektiv imprint with whom he released the 2015 LP Colour, and the follow up album I Rise With The Birds five years later.
His subsequent work with Rory 'Rag n Bone Man' Graham saw Pete drawn back into the familiar world of the session musician - finding himself separated from the pressure to write, produce, record and deliver in isolation. The experience also inspired him to create something of his own - somewhere to welcome collaborators, and to take this new voyage of creation outside the bedroom and into a space purposed for his own productions. And so was born 'The Orchard' - a large mezzanine cabin made all of gnarled wood and set in the green of the Somerset hills. The rural retreat - an idyll to inspire and escape to, became the enabling foundation of his new creations, as well as the source-space for other new productions, such as Hollysseus Fly and new 2023 project Supalung – a collaboration between Josef and the extraordinary …
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