My guest for this episode is one of the UK’s most in demand guitar players, Adam Goldsmith, on Instagram theadamgoldsmith. Adam’s CV is really something to behold.
He has worked with the likes of Little Mix, Will Young, Rod Steward, Barry Manilow and Robbie Williams to name a few. TV house bands include the first three series of The Voice, series one and two of Pop Idol, The Royal Variety Orchestra, Sports Personality of the Year House Orchestra as well as prerecorded work for Downton Abbey, Stars In Their Eyes and the London Olympics. In Theatre he has had many chairs on West End shows such as Beautiful, Wicked, Billy Elliot and Hairspray among others.
With orchestras he has worked with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as well as the Ronnie Scott’s House Band and the John Wilson Orchestra. Adam has also done countless recording sessions and continues to be one of the top studio guitarists in the UK, having played on multiple films such as Les Miserables, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, The Hobbit, and many more. He also regularly writes a column in Guitarist Magazine from his perspective in the studio and about his life as a musician.
On top of all this he also has his own group the Adam Goldsmith Group, which includes some of the country’s top musicians (including Steve Pearce who also features on a later podcast) and has recently released his first album under that name. He is also a professor of Commercial Guitar at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
Adam is one of the most experienced musicians you will ever come across who can turn his hand to anything required on a guitar and has consistently been at the top of the industry for many years.
In this episode we cover topics including:
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What a music education doesn’t teach you
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Sustaining an income over a career as a musician
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Home session work
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Advice for current young musicians
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And much, much more
Show Notes:
00:00 – Adam’s Background
04:45 – Musical Education
8:35 – Adam's move to London
9:30 – Influence of the Internet and business/self-promotion
14:45 – Macro view of different generations in the music industry
15:15 – Session and TV work
16:40 – Adam's College Education compared to education now and what might be missing
18:30 – Work and life after College as a self-employed musician
21:45 – Sustaining an income over a career
24:45 – Adam's TV break
28:00 – Starting on shows
30:30 – Balancing show work with other work
32:30 – The current session scene
35:00 – Home sessions
39:00 – Adam's TV work
40:30 – Having patience with your career
43:00 – Adam's advice for getting ‘time’ together
47:00 – Adam's advice for young musicians now
49:30 – The importance of meeting other musicians
51:30 – Single styles vs all styles in a career
54:30 – Having patience in finding your sound
55:45 – The Adam Goldsmith Group
57:30 – Commercial work vs personal work
1:00:00 – Employment and frequency of work
1:03:00 – Should you be a professional musician?
1:05:00 – Preparation for the job
1:07:15 – Your personal development throughout your career
1:09:00 – Reading and skills as a musician
1:10:00 – General Advice
1:14:00 – Recommended Listening
1:15:45 – Essential Gear collection
1:16:30 – Gear on sessions
People Mentioned:
Recommended Listening Artists:
Recommended Listening For Guitarists:
