Paul Ariss

FROM SCRIBBLES TO SPOTIFY – THE UNCOMFORTABLE BIRTH OF A SONG

The insecurity around releasing a song can be creatively traumatic. What if it’s rubbish? What if I’ve inadvertently stolen it? What if I love it and no-one else does? Can I still change my name and live in an igloo without any internet connection? Putting a song onto streaming platforms such as Spotify and AppleContinue reading “FROM SCRIBBLES TO SPOTIFY – THE UNCOMFORTABLE BIRTH OF A SONG”

LOOKING AHEAD TO THOSE POST-PANDEMIC RUBBERNECK DAYS

Sitting in traffic on Tuesday morning it was hard not to get lockdown nostalgia. The hour- long delay to my journey brought about a reminder of a world it was easy to think lay in the distant past. It was my first traffic jam for over a year. Yet it felt so depressingly familiar. TheContinue reading “LOOKING AHEAD TO THOSE POST-PANDEMIC RUBBERNECK DAYS”

WORDS AND ALCOHOL: THE BOOZE-FUELLED ROUTE TO CREATIVE HEAVEN?

I came late to alcohol. Domestic circumstances, of which I won’t bore you to drink with, meant I was 25 before I was hit with the pile driver of my first hangover. I was the lyricist in a two-man song writing partnership with composer Bob Mouat, and we had generated interest from a couple ofContinue reading “WORDS AND ALCOHOL: THE BOOZE-FUELLED ROUTE TO CREATIVE HEAVEN?”

WHETHER BOOKS OR VINYL, THE MORE TORN AND TATTERED THE BETTER

There’s a school of thought that says a that a book should look like it’s been read. By that I mean read and downright enjoyed. As a consequence, any tea, coffee or general everyday stains and physical scars are merely evidence that the book was a constant daily companion, treated like a friend and had accessContinue reading “WHETHER BOOKS OR VINYL, THE MORE TORN AND TATTERED THE BETTER”

HOW ANXIETY FOR HONG KONG’S FUTURE PULLS ME CLOSER TO MY PAST

When I was three months old my parents boarded a BOAC flight at the notoriously dangerous Kai Tak International Airport to take the three of us to England from Hong Kong where they had been living for two years. My mother and father may have been going home, but I was travelling to a foreignContinue reading “HOW ANXIETY FOR HONG KONG’S FUTURE PULLS ME CLOSER TO MY PAST”

WHY THERE’S SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL ABOUT AN OLD NOTEBOOK

I’ve never considered myself a hoarder as such, but then again I don’t expect a hoarder would recognise him or herself as a hoarder anyway. They would probably prefer to be described as passionate or a collector. Well if that is the case I am a passionate collector of notebooks. But then, who doesn’t loveContinue reading “WHY THERE’S SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL ABOUT AN OLD NOTEBOOK”

THE WIDE OPEN SPACES BETWEEN TALENT AND FAME

One of the great joys and advantages of writing is coming across enormously talented people that I wouldn’t otherwise be aware of; be it other writers, songwriters or in the performing arts as a whole. Many, particularly in this difficult time for performers to ply their skills in front of a live audience, have hadContinue reading “THE WIDE OPEN SPACES BETWEEN TALENT AND FAME”

BETTER TO BE A HAPPY OPTIMIST THAN A BITTER CYNIC

As medical researchers fought hard and long to produce a vaccine against Covid 19, all of us encountered cynics who sneered at the speed it took to develop. Many also voiced concerns whether there is an ulterior motive in its development, citing the insertion of a tracking chip enabling people such as Bill Gates toContinue reading “BETTER TO BE A HAPPY OPTIMIST THAN A BITTER CYNIC”

WHEN DID JESUS STOP GETTING INVITED TO HIS OWN PARTY?

You know what it’s like when your birthday is coming up, part of you wants a fuss and a part of you wants to keep it quiet that you’re yet another year older. Well, up to maybe the age of 21 you want the fuss full-on, then with each year comes a decreasing willingness toContinue reading “WHEN DID JESUS STOP GETTING INVITED TO HIS OWN PARTY?”

HALLOWEEN AND LIGHTENING AND NOT A BEACH BOY IN SIGHT

I always had a distinct and clear view of how it would be when I finally made it to California. I’d be driving, or would be being driven, along a freeway heading towards LA. From the car stereo, nice and suitably loud, would be the Beach Boys. Of course. It mattered not which track, Wouldn’tContinue reading “HALLOWEEN AND LIGHTENING AND NOT A BEACH BOY IN SIGHT”