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DANCING IN THE PARK 0s geek- Saxophonist Colin Tully (pictured) will perform the tracks that featured in cult 80s geek- romance Gregory’s Girl. Before he does, fanboy Aidan Moffat catches him for a chat chat
AIDAN MOFFAT: You worked on Bill Forsyth fi rst fi lm, That Sinking Feeling. How did you come to meet? COLIN TULLY: I can’t say I knew Bill well before That Sinking Feeling. His cameraman, Mike Coulter, shared a fl at with me in Gibson Street and Mike may have mentioned to Bill that I was into music writing. My band Cado Belle had folded and I was kind of holed up in my room with a Fender Rhodes writing songs. I was really excited to get the chance to write fi lm music and the themes for That Sinking Feeling emerged in a bit of a torrent. AM: Were you shown any footage of Gregory’s Girl before writing the music? It all seems to fi t perfectly. CT: When Bill approached me to do Gregory’s Girl, the fi lming had all been done. We sat and watched a rough cut in a friend’s house and discussed where we thought music might fi t. It was a case of fi nding the right mood for the shot but also fi nding something melodically ear-pricking. The dancing in the park scene just came together so beautifully with the visuals – way better than I could ever have hoped for. Alan Darby’s gorgeous
sustained guitar work made that track almost luminous. AM: For me, Gregory’s Girl has aged well because it’s not tied down with contemporary cultural markers and works as well today as it did then. How did you feel about it then and now? CT: When I saw it at the premiere I thought it was a great fi lm but had no idea it was going become viewed as a classic. I would love the fi lm even if I had nothing to do with it and am
‘THE FILM STILL FEELS FRESH. THE MUSIC STILL SOUNDS VERY
1980S TO ME!’
very proud to be associated with it. My kids get it out now and again and I fi nd myself chuckling at nuances I hadn’t noticed before. Yes, I think it still feels fresh. On the music side, it still sounds very 1980s to me! AM: Have you ever seen the dubbed
American version? It’s very peculiar, it sounds as though one actor voiced all the characters and some of the dialogue’s altered: ‘Tits, bum, panties’ – the lot. It’s all on YouTube. CT: No! I wasn’t aware there was an American version . . . must check it out. AM: Why revisit the music now? CT: The 30th anniversary last year was the spur – we were invited to play the Gregory’s Girl tunes at the Bristol Film Music 1 earlier this year. AM: You’re performing the soundtrack with your current band, Sensorium. What can we expect? CT: Somebody once described the score of Gregory’s Girl as ‘jazz with a Scottish accent’. Sensorium could share that description. Most of our tunes have a Celtic infl ection. We’ve been together for fourteen years, and we’re still enjoying evolving the sound we’ve built together.
Colin Tully plays at Platform, Glasgow on Fri 29 Jun. Part of the Glasgow Jazz Festival. To win tickets, see page 93. 21 Jun–19 Jul 2012 THE LIST 89