It was all set up to be a great year for Blackberry Smoke, with the release of a fine new album, Be Right Here. But just a few days after guitarist and vocalist Charlie Starr spoke to TG about the making of the album, it was announced that the band’s drummer and co-founder Brit Turner had died on March 3 at the age of 57.
In this interview, Charlie explained how they had set out to make an intimate-sounding record. Producer Dave Cobb came into the project having just worked on the Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators album – live-recorded with loud Marshall stacks. But with Blackberry Smoke, Cobb encouraged the band to use tiny amps so they could get in tight amongst one another in the room. Now, there is poignancy in how Charlie described the sessions: “During recording I was sitting right across from Brit’s drums…”
