Thanks for stopping by! I’m a writer and songwriter with

a foot in several creative camps, and here you’ll find links to the

songs, videos, and books I’ve created along the way.

I hope something sparks your interest!

 

As well as writing my own material, I’ve always loved

taking classic poetry and giving it a musical life. The Romantic poets

—Keats, Shelley, and Byron—have been a long‑standing obsession,

and around the site you’ll find folk‑rock settings of their words,

along with videos exploring who they were and why their voices

still matter. Think of them as gateways into the minds of artists

who lived through turbulent times, yet still managed to create beauty

—and imagine a better future beyond the limits of their own age.

 

More recently, I’ve taken that interest a step further.

My book The Closest Thing in History brings the Romantics

into conversation with another seismic cultural force: The Beatles.

It traces the poets’ lives and ideas, noting where they connect

with the story of that epic band, and suggests that The Beatles' career

and impact demonstrate that the Romantics’ belief in imagination, intensity,

and artistic daring remains just as relevant today.

 

Back in the 1970s I travelled overland to India and back

—a journey that left “a set of memories that lingered on in force.”

I recently retold that experience as a narrative poem,

which proved a great way to capture scenes and encounters

vividly and concisely. The world has changed since then, of course,

but I hope The Rime of the Asian Highway conveys the atmosphere,

colour, and sense of discovery of a first encounter with Asia,

and can still gives some insights into important contemporary cultures. 

 

My latest book, The Rough, the Smooth and the Quirky,

continues that poetic vein. It’s a collection of poems rooted

in the present moment, and after exploring the vitality of

human interconnectedness and the fascination of the wider world,

it doesn’t shy away from issues at the forefront of our minds

—Ukraine, Woke culture, and the often challenging encounters

between Islamic and Western values. But the emphasis is always

on problem‑solving and imaginative possibility, and I hope it proves

an observant,mischievous, lively, and ultimately helpful companion.

 

 

If you’re wondering where to begin on the site,

you might drop in on the Poetry Tunes page,

where you can stream The First Fab Four

compilation album for a whirlwind tour

of Romantic lyrics—from the charm of “Jenny Kissed Me”

to highlights from Keats, Shelley, and Byron,

ending with the wistful “So, We’ll Go No More a‑Roving.”

You might shed a tear, but you may also feel uplifted and inspired.

 

From there, you can dive deeper with the Lord Byron EP,

the Shelley album, and the accompanying videos

on Byron and Greece, and the lives of Keats and Shelley.

You might also enjoy my album Finding a Way Through,

and of course the books are always waiting to be explored.

 

Happy wandering—and feel free to

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