In the September issue of the German magazine "Fachblatt Musik
Magazin" there was quite an interesting interview with Keith
Scott, Bryan's guitarist and good friend.
In this interview Keith talks about his upcoming solo-album,
which is really something to look forward to, especially as it
seems it must be quite different than we know from him when he
plays with Bryan.
Thanks to Tina Dauke from Germany, who gave us the details and
translated it into English, we will now print the most interes-
ting parts of that interview. 

Mutt Lange plays guitar on almost every song, how did that
come along ?
Keith: Bryan and Mutt largely wrote the songs together and
recorded some tracks before the actual production. In some
cases they were so good that we took them over for the final
production. They used these takes onto harddisk and later on
inserted them again. Besides, Mutt has an unique style of
playing, a tremendous feeling. Why should I try to copy it if
the take is good anyway?

On "Waking Up The Neighbours" you got song credit for 'Hey
Honey-I'm Packing You In', this time you didn't. Didn't you
have good ideas?
Keith: I had, but my song ideas didn't fit properly. For Bryan
and Mutt my suggestions for "'18 'Til I Die" tended too much
towards "Waking Up The Neighbours". And both wanted to get
away from that style.

What are your concrete song ideas? Do you have other plans
with them?
Keith: My song ideas are always based on the present state of
mind. I write country-, blues-, jazz-songs, all kind of stuff.
I'm not fixated on one direction. Actually I work on a solo
record which will hopefully show these different sides. Of
course, it will be guitaroriented, by the way, I'll sing
myself on some of the songs. I think it would be great if a
couple of friends help me with the lyrics and contribute one
or the other take. Have you heard of the Canadian band "The
Odds" ? A good friend of mine plays with them, we meet occasi-
onally and throw in our ideas. But beyond that I did't have
time so far to work intensively on it with somebody. When I
come home in August '96 I'll pursue that aim further. At first
I wanted to take a few demos along on tour. But I decided not
to work on it during the tour. A good test to judge the quali-
ty of the material. If I still like it after a few weeks of
abscence it's good. Otherwise I will have to go over it again.

From your point of view, is it an advantage or a disadvantage
to start your solo career as "the Bryan Adams guitarist"? 
Keith: I hope it's an advantage. So the people know me and I
don't have to start from scratch. Hopefully the listeners will
give my music a chance, if they perhaps like what I play with
Bryan. My music is certainly different from Bryan's, but,
after all, his influence on me can't be denied. A bit of that
certainly can also be heard on my record, but what the finis
hed result will sound like I don't know myself yet, I can
hardly wait, too.

Lut us speak about the guitarist Keith Scott. If one wants to
charactarize your playing, attributes like "melodic" and
"emotional" are for sure more fitting than "technical" or
"academic" ...
Keith: Right, I don't have a very advanced technique like for
example Steve Vai. I never worked on it particularly intensi-
vely, it was never my goal to play fast or to be a virtuoso.
I'm interested in an individual style, in emotions and energy.
A certain degree of technique only serves as a vehicle.

When I hear you play with Bryan, I often have the feeling that
you always play the "right" notes. Exactly those that fit the
best ...
Keith: Thank you, that's the challenge, because the songs are
very simple structured. Over the years I have learned to
support the singer with my playing, to give him special empha-
sis. That's great and I enjoy it. But one also has to work
hard to find new challenges within a narrow framework. I
concentrate on exactly that. It'd be great if I could show my
other sides as well. For example, I get a lot of praise for
the solo in 'Everything I do...', which makes me proud. But
this is just one colour and I'd like to show different co-
lours. This is the challenge for the next years and for my
solo record, on which there will be no given framework.

Is there a recording of you, where you would say that you fill
the framework - as you call it - best possible?
Keith: I think so, my favourite song is the title track of
'Into The Fire' - still is today. It has a fantastic atmosphe-
re and a strong vibe, even though it wasn't a hit single.
Furthermore I totally like the drum parts and the bass line. I
still remember the solo, it just came out while I played the
rhythm part. It's pure and sounds like me. I didn't have time
at all to think about playing a solo like for example in the
style of Eric Clapton or Ritchie Blackmore. For me here all
the elements, which make an exceptional sound, come together.
Unfortunately we don't play the song live, because it doesn't
fit into the set.

Could you name 5 solos by other guitarists that deeply impres-
sed you?
Keith: Hard to say. I love everything by David Gilmour! He has
so much to say and he has an unmistakable style. He plays
three, four notes and one immediately hears that it's him. The
same goes for Mark Knopfler: The solo in 'Romeo And Juliet' is
timeless. His style is unique likewise. But I also like jazz
guys like Tal Farlow or Pat Metheny. I always come back to
them. Apart from a few exceptions I don't know too much what
to do with the current music. From the younger generation I
like the guy from Soundgarden very much. He has a clear-cut
tone and knows how to colour a song with various sounds.


If you are interested in the 'Keith Scott Fanzine', write to:

     Ceri Evans
     11 Victoria Buildings
     Coytrahen
     Nr. Bridgend
     Mid. Glamorgan
     S. WALES
     CF32 OEA
     England