The Optimist Gallery: Olly Knights

Happy Birthday The Optimist LP;

10 years ago the Optimist LP got it’s international release, (makes you feel old right? Us too) Bigging up your own albums ten year anniversary could be quite a cathartic act but were not in the least bit embarrassed, due mainly to time proving that it no longer belongs to us, it seems it’s constantly in peoples top favourite records to listen to, a long lost friend even…

We of course had not the slightest inkling ten years ago that what we were all making could define our careers, it was a pure expression of the loneliness of the human condition, it had a soul and we all knew it, protected it and built it a musical universe to live inside, by “us” I don’t just mean me and Gale, I also mean everyone around us back then, Phil Passera our manager who 1st saw all that potential and had a huge hand in everything we did, every breath we took, right down to the correct bass sound, Charlie Francis who helped us record the backbone of the record, Albert from Konk studios who placed microphones and had the good grace to simply be there for us, Edd, Rob and “Little” Phil our band who we still adore to this very day, Andy Newmark who pumped out the phatest groves we’d ever heard and simply raised the bar, Philippe Ascoli who A n’ R’d us and told us everything we needed to hear, Chris Stone our press agent who gets more important with every conversation we have about those times and every one else, you know who you were…..

We were all part of an important event, ok maybe it wasn’t the apollo moon landing, more just a minute blip in history but to those who still love it a big blip indeed.

It still has a freshness and innocence on the verge of breaking sound that is subtly shocking and full of intrigue, hell even we ourselves wish we could know the souls who live inside that record, it’s taken on it’s own life and long may it continue, I hope one day aliens find a copy of The Optimist LP…. It might tell them a thing or two about us.

Regards to you all

Olly

This entry from Turin Brakes’  one and only Olly concludes the gallery for this month. However, you can still keep on sending your entries to ethersite@gmail.com. During the next month, the gallery will appear elsewhere on this very website, archived for your enjoyment. Thanks for sharing everyone! It’s been a good month!