A Guy Called Gerald Interview - Gamechangers (Voodoo Ray)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 20 ส.ค. 2024
- Here's the third in our series of Gamechanger interviews, this time featuring A Guy Called Gerald, the man behind the timeless classic Voodoo Ray.
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In December 1988 New Order played Manchester G-Mex. Acid House had begun to take off in the Hacienda that summer. Mike Pickering and Martin Prendergast were DJing at the Nude night at Fac 51 as MP² and at the G-Mex gig before New Order came on and in-between the support acts (Mondays and ACR).
I can vividly recall that haunting intro to Voodoo Ray being played by the DJ's and the crowd going absolutely mental. That's the only time I've ever been at a gig and a tune played by a DJ getting a reaction similar in size and intensity to the band they'd come to see. I reckon that record on that night was the birth of the boom in homegrown house and techno in the UK.
Everything changed after that night, within a year the entire country had gone from drinking pissy lager, trying to score at approaching 2am when the erection selection was played by a cheesy DJ in some shitty club with sticky carpets and if you couldn't get off with someone there was a high chance of getting in a drunken brawl outside.
To going out, not touching a drop of alcohol, dancing for the entire night after dropping a pill and hugging complete strangers with not even the remotest chance of a fight occurring. Then looking for a blues or a house party after the club had closed or continuing to dance until the sun came up the next morning if it was some illegal party in a warehouse somewhere. That's why the government were desperate to put a stop to it, it was absolutely revolutionary and young people across the country were questioning everything about their lives and what they'd been told. Governments don't like it when people aren't fighting each other, because they might turn their attention to those that are making the shitty laws.
What an amazing accident that the sampler didn’t have enough memory to record “voodoo rage”. Amazing video from an absolute legend
I fell in love with this Masterpiece in 1988, 35 years later and i still play it every day in work! Thank You Gerald!
✌❤😎
Love his advice by the end......"do it for yourself...be selfish"...."use a blank canvas"....
the sheer fact that this video is ten years old, so many years after he came to light.... yet ten years later its still drawing attention just speaks volumes on how massive he is, yet such a humble nice guy, Goldie could learn a lot from this guy
still one of the most influential tunes of all time in the rave scene...what a lovely fella to boot. BIG thanks GERALD .. SIDE NOTE: I've even heard of people asked to have this tune played at their funeral
The clowns running around with Captian Birdseye beards skinny jeans and slippers calling themselves legends could learn a thing or two from him. Absolute hero. True pioneer, true music man.
Yes. Automanikk.
“Captain Birdseye beards” so funny yet so true... 😆👌
@@globalizemeuk Mate, I was going to say the same thing. I'm laughing so hard.
the don
😅😅😄
It's amazing that in the space of around 10 years, we went from Disco to this, Voodoo Ray is one of those tunes, as soon as you heard it in the club, you hit the dancefloor!! A Gamechanger indeed.....
That 10 years is my favourite era of dance music. So much experimentation…
You had to be around in 1988 to really appreciate how different this sounded to what was mainstream popular at the time. Mad.
So right.my favourite track of 88
Blackburn started it all in the uk... non legal warehouse raves. was our thing.
Right man, it blew the shit out of kylie minogue sounds SAW gank.
One of the coolest songs of all time, still on my playlist to this day, my daughter loves it too
Gerald you are a legend ,thanks man .
I can not articulate the influence this Guy has had on me so I shan’t try.Thank you, Sir G.
Still an amazing tune in 2021. Unbelievable!
Wow he was so on it. Figuring out how the chicago and detroit guys were making music at the time.. Today you can just look this stuff up on the internet but how he found out about all the gear and technique back then is pretty impressive.
Humble legend from the North.
I feel so proud to see how Gerald has turned out, like he’s one of my own! What a genial talent, what a guy! I didn’t know him as a regular mate, but I saw him a few times at - Legend nightclub Manchester in 1982, (IMO better than that overblown Hacienda). I also saw him a few times knocking around Oxford road, city centre. His mum often came round to my Aunts house, a lovely hard working lady, God bless her soul. She sometimes mentioned what he was getting upto, but it was a bit over my head to be honest. It didn’t occur to me that he was actually trying to make a career out of music until 808 state made a name for themselves in the mid/late 80s, and suddenly the local lad was famous!!!
Used to work the same shift at Mcdonalds with him. Nice all round guy. He got totally ripped off and never saw a penny from this track.
@@gman1010 Man even said he was still working at Big Mac and walking up and down Princess street with his gear when he had both hits with Voodoo and 808 riding the charts, wtf! Whoever dissed and robbed him deserve to swing by the neck in public at Albert Sq. for that bullshit.
Top bloke . His passion for music unreal
Nice guy. Talented guy. Respected guy
Best thing you ever had on your channel.
Wicked interview! He always comes across as such a safe guy!
Gerald, sat next to you in Webster primary school. So proud of you mate.
So happy that this track gets a bigger spotlight and the artist as well.
what nice genuine lovely bloke .... legend u m8 .
Great to see he's still making music. I remember how Voodoo Ray would fill the dance floor.
what a legendary classic track! 🔥🔥🔥
Absolute legend and just to spend 30 mins with this guy and what he could teach you! Have watched a few interviews with him now and what a humble and pleasant guy he comes across as. Genius!
Ye the guys a legend
All time classic tune is Voodoo Ray... Much respect from Andy Ictus.. aka The Saxon Scoundrels
Who needs MIDI? There's a guy called Gerald who doesn't....Legend❤👍❤
I've bn love this house track for decades & never knew it was British based.
gORGEOUS GORGEOUS HUMAN - THANK YOU, LOVE LOVE THE TRACK A GUY CALLE GERALD
What a legend !!! doff of the cap sir
Very refreshing to see a dance music producer who is the total opposite of the typical hipster douche.
There is also a video of him actually working an 808 and two 101s, the setup he used for Voodoo Ray. It is like Gerald says: a tiny orchestra of seperate devices, which makes for a very different workflow from the typical midi/DAW setup where one sequencer dicates individual notes to all instruments.
Do you have a link at all?
Plus he didn't know about or use the midi
Absolute legend, such epic tunes
A really great interview, I also remember hearing Voodoo Ray, (a real classic), when it first came out. Loved it then, love it now, and great advice. Basically, be yourself and find your own way and try not to just lazily steal everyone else's work by changing a few things and then pretend it's your own! Originality, isn’t and should never be easy! That's why he stands out thousands of others don't, I guess.
YOU INSPIRE ME GERALD
Thank you for your advice Gerald, much respect.
Wow always loved that track and a great interview, thanks
it was supposed to be called voodoo rage but the sampler didnt have enough memory
Is the sample from Derek & Clive live - ‘Bo Duddley’?
Top top man… I’m 56 and remember Voodoo like it was yesterday
This song made my teenage years and is still a big part of it to this day. Fucking tune 💪
Voodoo Ray is a track that is part of the soundtrack of my youth. To hear the legend who created it go into detail on how he came up with the masterpiece is what I love about how we consume media these days - an instant connection with the people that matter to us. This guy deserves recognition for his contribution to UK rave culture, which has profoundly shaped how we experience and appreciate music to this day!
His advice about being a bit selfish when creating something is great advice. Can be applied to design too (architecture etc)
My favourite equation (2 x 101) + 303 + 808 + Pete and Dud = GOLD. Pure alchemy. God bless yer Gerald.
Yessss one of Manchesters finest great video with wise words
I met gerald years ago when he played a club in hull. He let me go back stage while he took my address to send me a record. Such a nice guy. I wasn't even that bothered that it wasn't even the correct record when it arrived.
Ed Barton had sent it and was some mental test pressing about singing in the bath! I was still happy though
Was that The Room on George Street?!?
Changed my youth!
you r awesome. wicked, thanks Gerald, brilliant interview
What a great fella. Genuinely inspirational. Cheers point blank!
Guy Called Gerald was the guy 'Judge Jules, Danny Rampling, Pete Tong, Paul Oakenfold, and Fatboy Slim all Learned from.
What an absolute master of the art, and such an understated man. Big respect.
Still playing his "This is the Right Time" at parties and people still going nuts.
kids today always wonder why the men in their 40's always get excited at the sight of some 3 digit numbers.
this man is one of the reasons.
Hummmm my goodness it was just a bijoux musique! Was a clash and classy track! Thank you so much ! 🙏🇧🇪
Rudy from Belgium, I had a Akai to was was a mes to wrk with !!!! And the plug in! No way!
A true legend.
Gerald gave and gives an amazing original flavor to House, and inspiration to people like me when I first got In to music production. :@) Fantastic Deep Tech House Etc.
Such a great guy. Good interview and advice from one of the true masters.
First heard vudoo Ray when I was 16 in a club called The Gallery in Manchester. Great memories... Could feel the base in your ribs!!! 😂
First heard it back in my hacienda days of 1991 with micro dots. 12 hours of dancing and pure xtc.
i remember the Gallery ,great little venue,
it was first played publicly in the gallery by Hewan Clarke whom was Saturday night dj at the gallery whom also was the original and first dj to open the Hacienda in 1983 and played the hacienda for 3.5 4 nights a week and he was playing house music then but not all night Gerald mentions Hewan Clarke in interview
love your work brother.
Tune at the end is called the Reno by Goldie and A Guy Called Gerald, from his Black Secret Technology album. One of the first ever Jungle albums. Gerald was a proper awesome guy, really funny and down to earth. loved working on this interview
This song is a classic n beyond / cool individual-glad came along this channel 🎼🤙👊
Hardcore origin! Props to gerald
A down to earth, proper talent.
Huge fan of this guy!
Thank you sir!
banger....sound of my youth..so glad i had that time ..ty gerald you're a genius
And to point blank who show some damn pioneers of house music.
We met on paris at gibus club.
Inspiration since 88.
Oh yes i wont give in. Regards mate. . . King of the jngl. You know when you really like a musician. Like the hot lemo. Yes guy i know your music.
A genius of a man.
True Legend. 🤜💚🤛👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Legend
That was awesome. Just be original and be yourself as he said. Expression of oneself honestly.
What a top man. A man who injected magic and soul into the acid. Not many have done it since.
my band was the first to record at station house . I was pleasantly surprised to see voodoo was recorded there , happy days .
Something not discussed in this video is that some parts of the song are in E minor and others are in E major 7th and yet somehow they blend together seamlessly. oo-a-ha is E major, a-haa-a-ha-yeah is E minor. The baseline is E minor, the 303 is E major. This is common in traditional blues, but practically unheard of in dance music. I would love to know if this was a happy accident or intentional. This my all time favourite dance track and I think it is faultless.
Great interview, thank you
they didn't ask him the real question: City or United
Voodoo Ray is probably my fave electronic track ever. For some odd reason, its always reminded me of Pink Floyds Lucifer Sam. The song titles are pretty similar and they have a similar spooky vibe. Lucifer Sam was a key track of the first summer of love, Voodoo Ray a key track of the second.
Omg i totally did NOT expect an English accent from this guy. All these years i assumed he was from Detroit. Lol
Gerald mentions towards the end of the interview, how, while today it is possible to save any tweaked sound and process, while back in the day he was forced to learn to recreate a sound with his hands. I think this is an overlooked detail. Much in the same way a piano pianist or drummer has to store her chords or a beatmaker beats the pads on a MPC, or a synth enthusiast touches the cutOff in muscle memory, or the feeling of that ride cymbal in the right hand, to get that laid back feeling just right every time, music has always been about use of the body as well.
It is a lot more refined and honors the human connection element a lot more to tweak a filter by hand, hit the 7th of a chords a tad bit softer or let the trumpet play the last note of the last chorus 10ms longer.
Playing a vst guitar instrument on a midi keyboard bc it is "close enough" -
all the way to copying and pasting whole blocks of music,
it's worse than calling McDonalds real food.
Music is empathy and connecting. It is the cultural technique of one human being, trying to the best of their abilities to transmit their present or general feelings via an interface (musical instrument) to other human beings (or animals or plants) via soundwaves.
Lettin a profit oriented computer software company dictate that interface, replace the real thing, like for an example a guitar, an instrument and its use and language refined and perfected over thousands of years, will eventually make us all lose that.
Some people think "old skool" is 1992, this guy called Gerald started the lesson in 1988.
Living Legend
inspiring !
Great tune top bloke
love this
Top man.
Leg end !!
Massive heaps of capital Respect☆~!
very interesting thx
Classic.
Excellent advice
This song made playing grand theft more amazing because I used to listen to this song when I was 3.
Legend!!!
juan atkins of the uk... only juan had 2 mates and gez managed on his own! legend
Yes man ! I lived next door love va Alfie and brother tony x
Serious gamechanger!
wicked interview.
This song first time i heard it i was like what the fuck is that is so fucking DOPE!!!! record really got me into electronic music back then. I got the pleasure to meet Gerald in some club in the back then grungy meat packing district when it wasn't cool to hang there.
Nice bloke! Very laid back! I'd love to have a drink with him.
Had to give this the 808th like
Cool Guy, called Gerald..