MANN OVERBOARD

Manfred Mann’s latest collection, World Of Mann, takes in his 60s group work and his Earth Band years. Tim Jones caught up with him on good form one morning in London and asked him over breakfast how the career-spanning 2-CD set came about...

“I had absolutely nothing to do with it and never do with anything to do with the past. I find it too difficult and time-consuming, and I can only concentrate on one thing at a time, which is usually what I’m doing at present. There are two DVDs in the offing, though, one of which is a collection of old footage, some of it from Australia in ’71. And we’re perhaps going to record another one later this year in Germany”.

Are you working on new material?

For some time I’ve had an instrumental project in mind, orchestrally arranged, but it’s taken me much longer than it should’ve, partly ’cos I’ve been doing gigs and partly ’cos I’m very slow and terribly fussy. If I’m at home for a time, I’ll go to the studio every day and practise. And when I’m in France I’m very disciplined. But then at other times I’m not. Any musician is slightly mad – not in the sense that we’re weird people. But a lot of us become dependent on work, and they work and sleep and sweat and strain, when you’d be far better off just to sit with a beer in your hand.

Is there anyone you’d like to work with?

People rarely ask me to do something, but I’d be happy to. I was on Look At Yourself with …

by Tim Jones
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