Describe your time with The Wedding Present in five words:

An exciting, fun, unmissable adventure

Describe your time with Cinerama in five words:

Often terrifying but seldom boring

Tell us why exactly you left the band

After 15 years of touring the world, I wanted to be more settled. The turning point came one day when David came into my room excitedly brandishing the next set of tour dates....I had a real feeling of "oh no, not again!" whereas everyone else was really up for it. I hated leaving my dogs for weeks on end. Maybe I would have carried on longer had I been the roadie, but I really did not enjoy performing: if it was natural I would have done it well before my thirties!! For my last tour I was roadie again - showing Jessica the ropes - and I really enjoyed it

In the first few months after leaving The Wedding Present/Cinerama what aspects, if any, about being in the group  did you miss most?

I missed being with my best friends. They are the lovliest people and you do get a special bond when you spend so much time together: vanity goes out of the window as you get used to seeing people at their worst - last thing at night and first thing in the morning....usually after a scant amount of sleep. I also miss the travelling - not the seemingly endless hours of motorways, but the thrill of waking up in a different city every day, meeting interesting strangers and never quite knowing what's going to happen next. Having said that, I just saw them in Manchester, and although the show was cracking they all looked shattered - don't miss that feeling at all!!!

Any regrets? Do you sometimes wish you were still involved?

I am still involved in a way; I meet up with them whenever I can, and David teases me by texting me every time they're somewhere exciting, scenic or just gorgeously sunny. David still asks me my opinion on things, and if he wanted me to sing on record I would.

Do you have a song, or performance that you consider to be your defining
moment in The Wedding Present/Cinerama?

For The Wedding Present it would be just about any gig from the days when they broke loads of strings: it would be full-on for the duration of the show, but I loved it. And I am rather proud of the time in Toronto when I restrung Darren's bass on stage as he contined to play...

As for Cinerama - the best for me was when we sold out ULU (can't remember when - ask David) [Ed: 27th April 2001]. We had to battle against an exceedingly arrogant support band (Tahiti80) who went way over their time resulting in us running around like nutters to get on stage as quickly as possible...by the time we started we were already on an adrenalin high and it just got better and better with the reaction of 1000 people bouncing around and singing along.

Do you have a favourite Wedding Present record that
(a) you played on, and
(b) you didn't play on?

(a) I was going to say Superman because it was fun to play live (and I can almost hear David's thoughts of derision as he reads that!) - but then I remembered H&E, so there's no contest really.

(b) Impossible to say. Everytime I have a favourite song he comes up with something else. Watching them in Manchester was weird - like a musical scrapbook of half my life. I really like the new album. I listen to BBC6 Music alot, and it's just so weird when one of David's songs comes on, especially when it's one with a personal lyric.

The thought of which venue/festival performance sends a shiver down your
spine?

You know what? - out of the 111 I played at, I can only remember a handful. I think I must have blanked them out!! .

You must have lots of amusing anecdotes from being on tour and in the recording studio. Can you tell us some good ones?

Something funny happened just about everyday, but not the kind of thing that would translate well into print! David trying to meet Anna Friel at Reading: "Emma! Emma! I'm a big fan!" or watching Simon Cleave nearly self-combust the first time he tried to play one of the George Best fast-guitar songs. You'd need to get a few of us in a room with a wine box and a tape recorder..once we get started you'll never shut us up!

Tell us something that not many people know about David Gedge...

He has lovely feet.

Have you been to see The Wedding Present or Cinerama live since leaving
the group?

Yes, several times. They're always great! It's always a bit emotional, especially when the play a song which is very personal - the first time I heard Mars Sparkles Down was at the New Roscoe in Leeds and it reduced me to tears. He got a thump for that afterwards.

What is your relationship with David Gedge like now and would you ever
consider re-joining The Wedding  Present?

David's my best friend and an all round top bloke and I have immense amount of respect for him. We never fell out, just wanted different things. Whatever happens in our lives, I have no doubt that we'll always be close.

What are you doing now (what band are you now active in/what other career
do you have)?

I edit exam papers and do some teaching (ESOL). I live in Skipton and have a baby boy called Sid.

Have you got a box full of 'TWP stuff' in the loft? Tell us what's in it...

Er, no actually. I think I've got one of each of the albums on CD - excluding Watusi, before anyone starts putting in bids! David and I haven't separated our music collection yet - I have all the CDs as I'm iPodding them, and he has all the vinyl. We'll probably get round to it when we're retired.

 
Sally Murrell specific Questions:

What is your favourite track from each album?

Tommy- Once More

George Best - Anyone Can Make A Mistake

Bizarro - Bewitched

Seamonsters - Niagra/Heather

The Hit Parade - Flying Saucer

Watusi - Click Click

Mini - Convertible

Saturnalia - Kansas

Va Va Voom - Honey Rider

Disco Volante - Heels

Tornino - Get Up and Go/H&E

Take Fountain - can't say yet

Describe you initial reaction on hearing the lyrics to Take Fountain

I cried. I already knew some of them as I was meant to do the backing vocals on Don't Touch That Dial - but when the engineer played the song through for the first time that was it for me. Impossible to sing with a lump in your throat! David's a bugger: he writes these songs very privately and takes a long time over them and I'm guessing that this time the whole process was quite cathartic for him. However, once he's lived with the songs for weeks and weeks he can treat them more objectively. I, on the other hand. hear them infrequently and each time they take me straight back to what we went through. He is going to hate me for writing all this! Anyway, it's not just the ones that are personal to me that are so emotive: Snapshots is about our friend Julia who dies in her prime, and it's just the most beautiful, poignant song. He has an astounding ability to continually write remarkably articulate lyrics.

What was your favourite TWP line up?

Probably with Paul Dorrington and Keith. Paul was very charismatic on stage and the group was very dynamic then. But don't hold me to it.

Which band member where you most sorry to see leave?

Keith

What was your favourite t-shirt design

I don't really have one

If you had done your back in lugging amps on and off stage, would you have sued David?

No point - what was his was mine and vice verse! I did my back in on numerous occaisions, always my own fault for pretending to be stronger than I was.

Which Cinerama track did you contribute most to in terms of songwriting?

None of them really - the odd lyrical tweak here and there, one or two production ideas. I can't really take any credit.

It is often said that you never liked performing live. What did you dislike about it?

I didn't like the attention. I can't really explain it. David is quiet and shy when he's not performing, but as soon as he's on stage or being interviewed he changes completely. A light comes on. I'm the opposite.

Can you see yourself getting back into the music business?

If David wanted me to sing on record I would, otherwise no. Not interested!