Jamie Griffin, left, and John Waterman, who are looking for the next Lennon and McCartney. Picture by Robin Crossley.
MUSICTWO MEN in the local music business hope to unearth potential songwriting genius in the Lennon-McCartney mould and turn their ideas into hits.
John Waterman, who runs Solent Records, and musician Jamie Griffin, of Brighstone-based Flyte Studios, are inviting those with songwriting ability to send in a one-song demo CD. All mainstream musical genres are accepted. Lyrics and even catchy riffs will also be considered.
Their aim is to create a Stock, Aitken and Waterman-style hit factory — comprising a songwriting team of Islanders with the potential to compose tight, three-minute length, radio-friendly hits.
The songs will then be recorded at Flyte Studios by carefully selected local session singers and musicians and released on Solent Records.
To ensure the recording gets the maximum airplay and promotion, John, of Buckler’s Drive, Ryde, will put the word out to his many contacts in the music industry worldwide through his other venture, the Bandit A&R music journal.
The idea came about during a chat between the two over a coffee.
Jamie, a songwriter, guitarist, and member of Kieron Cooney’s Wight Hot Pipes project, said: "There is so much talent across the Island coming through I believe they should have a chance to submit their work. We want to create a catalogue of great songs and give people with great ideas the opportunity to earn a lot of money out of it.
"We are looking primarily for the songwriting talent. If the song is really good, everyone’s a winner.
The project will be run in two phases — to create a team of writers, followed by group meetings to discuss the songwriting process, brainstorm ideas for songs and encourage collaboration within the team.
John, 61, a former BT engineer, said: "The songs should be relevant to the audiences. The public are interested in the song, not so much the artist, which is crucial and why there have been so many one-hit-wonders over the years."
Submissions can be sent to Solent Records, 68-70 Lugley Street, Newport, PO30 5ET or Flyte Studios, Warracote, Gagger Hill Lane, Brighstone, PO30 4DX. You can also post a link to your track to md@solentrecords.co.uk or studio@flyte.org.uk