Interview with June Carley – Midlands Radio 103, Mullingar Ireland – 20th June 2001
JUNE: Earlier on we had a chat with Ruth Welsh. She comes from England and she happened to be in Mullingar and she gave us a buzz and of course we have been playing her songs on the programme. And that interview took place about 5 o’clock today – only an hour ago. We had a great chat with her and it was lovely to meet her. And Ruth, if you’re tuning our way thank you very much for tuning our way and thanks a million for arranging the interview as well. And that interview is coming up in just a moment.
ADVERTS
JUNE: I am delighted to welcome along to the programme, Ruth Welsh. Hi Ruth, how are you?
Ruth: Hi June, I am good thank you.
JUNE: That’s good, you are welcome to Mullingar and indeed to the Midlands. You are actually from Kettering in England you were telling me, where does your interest in music stem from?
Ruth: I think really it came from my Mum who was very musical and was a singer when she was young. I learned to play the piano, starting when I was seven, and then carried on with that, and learned to play the cello and was in the orchestra, and then I started playing the guitar much later.
JUNE: I am sure the guitar is much easier to bring around than the cello!
Ruth: It is!
JUNE: Absolutely. I know that I have checked out your web site. You actually have your own website and you have your own music on your website as well. Some of your music is available in record shops around Ireland but mostly you can buy from the Internet. Tell us a bit about your music style.
Ruth: Well it is an acoustic style and it is voice, guitar and piano. So, in a sense, it is very simple. But people find, or they have told me, that they like to listen closely to it, it is that kind of music. They don’t necessarily put it on in the background.
JUNE: Have people actually written to your website and to your guestbook and said ‘well I like that song’ or whatever, have you got some feedback?
Ruth: People have done that and one of the reviews somebody wrote was ‘Relax, close your eyes and listen’ and I thought that summed it up. I couldn’t say it any better than that.
JUNE: I know that another artist, well she is actually Scottish, but Isla Grant, she has certainly come into her own. Do you feel that other artists would record your music? Do you feel that you would like to get into that or are you happy enough recording your own songs and having people appreciate them?
Ruth: I would love to do both. I would love if someone else was to record any of my songs. I have got quite a lot more songs to actually record myself and I am hoping to get them out to other people so they can know about them and that would be brilliant.
JUNE: So really what you are doing, I know people can buy them, but also you are demoing what you actually do. And that is very important because you’re showcasing your material… Was it your own idea to go on and have your own web site?
Ruth: I just thought it was the best way to get my music known on just a worldwide scale if I can actually link up to some different people in different countries and get it known.
JUNE: And what nationalities have replied to you?
Ruth: Well I’ve had people in the US I had people in Australia and I’ve had people in Europe – all over…
JUNE: You are actually promoting your material here in Ireland. You are on holiday as well, so, it is a kind of working holiday?
Ruth: It is.
JUNE: Absolutely brilliant and tell us about your web site. What kind of things can we find once we log onto it and what is the address?
Ruth: The address is www.rnwmusic.com. You’ll find reviews and there is an interests page which just goes through different things that I really like. And there is a news section and then there is a section to actually listen to the music online. (Update – Website is now https://ruthninawelsh.com)
JUNE: And you forgot one important thing: you can actually buy online.
Ruth: You can, but I didn’t want to say that.
JUNE: No need to be modest around here! I am sure people are going to get a lot of enjoyment. As some people said, you can actually sit back, relax and enjoy it. Surely that is what we all need in a very busy world where we are rushing here rushing there. It is nice to sit back and relax and listen to enjoyable music.
Ruth: I think so. Someone else said to me, who was interviewing, that they felt that they should sit down at the end of a hard day, glass of wine, lights off and put the music on and I thought that was a nice thing to say.
JUNE: Absolutely. And a good compliment as well. Can we actually see you on stage, will that be happening in the near future or are you happy enough going and having your music played on the internet?
Ruth: No I would love to be playing live and I think that will happen – hopefully next year. I mean I’ve been invited over here to do some things and so maybe I will be able to come and play over here or back in England where I live.
JUNE: Do you have any idea where in Ireland you will be playing? Can you say?
Ruth: It might be in Cork possibly, but it might be in Dublin, I don’t know.
JUNE: It might be in Mullingar, who knows, or indeed Athlone or somewhere like that. But of course, your website, you can actually check it out at www.rnwmusic.com. And life in England what was that like growing up? (Update on Website – https://ruthninawelsh.com)
Ruth: I loved it. I loved school, I loved childhood – very positive things.
JUNE: Has it changed much now?
Ruth: The town where I live has changed an enormous amount because of roads and development. It has just got a lot bigger.
JUNE: And do you actually get inspiration from where you live? Have you ever written any songs about it?
Ruth: It’s not that kind of place… it is more that I write about emotional things, you know about people and their feelings.
JUNE: Do you actually put yourself in the position or do you look around you and see, you know, I could write up a song about that. Or, do you actually have people that you write about?
Ruth: It has to be something that really affects me. So, often I have written about friends and it is as if they are about myself, you know, and they all say to me ‘that is perfect, that is how I feel’. It tends to be related to really deep emotional attachment to things and to people.
JUNE: Do your friends not worry that when you are in conversation that you might just be picking up their life story, or, you might be picking up certain things they say. Because I know that some other songwriters tend to do that and they are nearly jotting down what the people are actually saying! Have your friends ever commented on that?
Ruth: They haven’t and I don’t think I am quite that bad! And I wouldn’t mention them so it would be fine. Only they would know.
JUNE: Well that’s great. Well, Ruth, it certainly has being a pleasure having a chat with you and of course we will continue to play your music. Lets hope that you will be in Ireland maybe next year, you are certainly welcome any time and that website again is www.rnwmusic.com. You can check out Ruth’s website and other details as well. Of course you can buy CDs from the website and we certainly wish you well Ruth, thank you for joining us on the programme. (Update – Website is now https://ruthninawelsh.com)
Ruth: That is brilliant June, thanks very much.
SONG / Ruth Nina Welsh – Fall on Me (Track 1 from ‘As I Breathe’)
JUNE: “That’s just beautiful”, that is Ruth Nina Welsh and she comes from Kettering in England. We had a chat with her earlier on today and let’s hope that she will actually do that tour of Ireland next year please God. And that is taken from her album called ‘As I Breathe’ and absolutely great stuff. She is a lovely lady and we wish her well and we look forward to having a chat with her again in the not to distant future. And her website is www.rnwmusic.com that is www.rnwmusic.com and it certainly is a really really nice CD as well and you can actually buy that from her website and indeed listen to it on her website as well. (Note Update Website is now – https://ruthninawelsh.com)
20th June 2001.