Inspired #361 - Bailey Tomkinson
Cornwall singer-songwriter Bailey Tomkinson has just released her alt-folk single ‘Can’t Lose’.
Mixed by John Cornfield (Oasis, Muse) and featuring a sleek sax addition from Michael Underwood (Rex Orange County), "Can't Lose" is an ambitious single that shows Bailey's mature song writing style. With warm vocal tones building soaring hooks and urgent choruses, the track propels you into the hazy world of Bailey's alt-indie-folk and boldly labels her as one of the UK's biggest emerging artists.
Bailey's background is already pretty impressive with her single "Bright Red" hitting the #1 spot on the iTunes singer/songwriter charts for criticising a local hotel in Cornwall who destroyed coastal headland for G7 meeting space. "Bright Red" also saw Bailey featured in The Times, The Daily Mail, The Financial Times, The Independent, Cornwall Live and BBC Radio 4. Plus, she's already been compared to Taylor Swift by country music legend Brad Paisley, been supported by BBC Introducing and BBC Radio 2's Bob Harris and supported both Nick Mulvey and KT Tunstall on tour dates.
She took a moment to talk to us about the inspirations behind her music.
Who are your top three musical inspirations and why?
That’s quite difficult because I love so much music and so many artists. I guess I have to say Bruce Springsteen for the sound. Carole King for the depth and Billy Joel for his lyrics.
Is there a certain film that inspires you and why?
There isn’t just one. There are loads and often you can find a sneaky (or not so sneaky) reference in my lyrics! Take “Can’t Lose” for instance…the full lyric is “you can’t lose something you never had” – that’s a direct quote from the movie “How to Lose a Guy in 10 days”. In my teens I worked in our local cinema in St Ives and movies are an important part of my life, I guess I’m quite a visual thinker so often I consider my songwriting is the movie running inside my head just spilling out onto the page!
What city do you find the most inspiring and why?
It’s home. Here in St Ives, Cornwall. We’ve got a mixture of sun, sand and surf – they definitely help to shape my sound. Also, the community that we have, that has helped inspire me so much. From the appalling environmental vandalism by the G7 hosts The Carbis Bay Hotel that inspired “Bright Red” through to the old boys that I sat in guitar circles with in local pubs, learning Eagles songs when I was 14 – this has been such a rich, inspiring place for me.
Who is the most inspiring person to you and why?
I’m really fortunate because I have a lot of people on my life that inspire me. My family each inspire me in different ways. I was inspired to take up the Piano after listening to Carole King though and that’s added a different dimension to my performances and songwriting.
What were your inspirations when writing your new track?
I was listening to a lot of East Coast rock when I wrote “Can’t Lose” – Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen that kind of thing. I had in mind a real homage to the New York sound of that era, adding Michael Underwood who plays with Rex Orange County and his incredible sax to the band really helped bring that energy. I even managed to Macgyver in a nod to Carly Simon in the lyrics too!
How would you like to inspire people?
I love the idea of inspiring people to play music – nothing gives me more pleasure than when I’m approached by a mother and child at a gig and they tell me that the daughter has been inspired to take singing lessons or learn to play an instrument after watching me. It’s how I felt watching Taylor Swift as a young girl and music has given me so much that being able to pass that on feels right.
