Bruce Dickinson was approached by Toby Jepson (Little Angels/Wayward Sons) to record guitar on an upcoming charity single. The track was the John Farnham hit ‘You’re the voice’, curated by Wyatt Wendell (Planet Rock). Bruce felt the track had a glorious retro naivety. It is so overblown it transcends uncool and comes full circle into being cool again. An outcome he hopes to achieve for himself.

'You’re the voice’ will be released digitally on the 6^th December, and a special edition CD will be released to accompany Wyatt’s “Road to Roadstock”.

Charitable motivations.

Wyatt decided to release the single in conjunction with his inimitable 2000-mile trek “Road to Roadstock”. In addition, all of the release proceeds will go to the charity “Mind”.  Mind is a charity close to the WaterBear ethos. The charity is commitmed to helping everyone with a mental health problem get both support and respect.

Bruce has been running a direct debit to Mind for twenty-five years in honour of his friend Nick. He played bass in the band ‘Blow’ alongside the guitarist.  A talented bass player who’s playing sounded; “A million years from the past and million years from the future”. Unfortunately for this talent, Nick paid a price, and his mental health suffered.

On the recording...

Bruce

"The recording was great. I am really at home in the studio and the team at small pond got me a truly awesome guitar sound- I've just tweaked my rig with a 70's electro Harmonix graphic. Its as big as two house bricks and has some real mojo, and detail- I use it to whump the amps-  For me it’s always about sound and I can’t compromise on that -so it’s always a joy to run a Plexi or two flat out, without anyone telling me to turn down.

 I had to practice – I don't get a chance to play for months on end. It takes 3 weeks for me to get match fit.  But I don't feel the need to play a lot of guitars. It goes on in my head, so I don't need to pick up a guitar to know what I sound like…

 It was an easy project, it's amazing that at my stage in life people ring me up to do something cool. Especially when they have done all the work.  I appreciate Toby Jepson asking me, I still find it amazing that after all these years people still want to hear me play a bit.

 The vocalists at WaterBear were amazing. I don’t use the term students if possible. Amba Tremain arranged the track and they had it down in the studio in about an hour."

Jodie

"The organisation of the project was brilliant. Everything ran so smoothly due to the professionalism of every musician involved. The WaterBear choir was recording at Small Pond Studios with Amba Tremain running the choir. Everything was well planned and rehearsed, making the process enjoyable and exciting. 

The original track is one of my favourite ever songs! My mum used to play it all the time. I think it’s such an uplifting song and the perfect choice for this cause. I found myself rehearsing a fair amount. Amba offered a lot of rehearsal time for the vocalists of WaterBear to make sure we were all ready. 

All of the musicians at WaterBear are so keen to be a part of projects like this, which is why we were so excited to get the opportunity. We knew that the vocalists would jump at the chance to take part, who wouldn’t?

Additionally, Mind is such a brilliant charity, and they do great things for everyone affected. I’m thrilled to have been involved in such a meaningful project and will be supporting Wyatt when he goes on his cycle! 

As a vocalist myself, who was brought up listening to the original John Farnham track and also brought up listening to most of the bands/members involved in this, I am thrilled to have been a part of this amazing charity single and can't wait for it to be shared with everyone!"

The All Star Band & guest collaborators

A full list of the band and guest collaborators are below, it reads like rock royalty;

Planet Rock Allstar band:

Sam Wood - Guitars

Dave Kemp - Keyboards

Wyatt Wendels - Drums

Nick Fyffe - Bass

Toby Jepson - Vocals and Percussion.

Guest artist contributors:

Guitars - Doug Aldrich, Bruce Dickinson, Tyler Bryant, Rob Chapman, Phil Campbell, Soren Andersen, Paul Quinn.
Singers - Izzy Hale, Dan Reed, Charlie Starr, Tim 'Ripper' Owens, Joe Elliott, Toby Jepson, Tony Wright, Nathan James, Andrew Freeman, Mollie Marriott, Chris Robertson, Justin Hawkins, Todd Kerns, Gill Montgomery, Whitfield Crane, Jared Johnston, Phil Campbell, Alice Cooper - Voiceover
Additional bass tracking - Darren Redick and Dan Reed.
The Waterbear Choir arranged and directed by Amber Tremain - Jodie Amos, Amber Tremain, Izzy Adams, Willow Pitt, Steven Speck, Raymond Roll, Finn Davidson, Tom Halliday, Erin May, Quilla Robinson, Sid Abell, Boudica Pepper.

If you'd like to, you can sponsor Wyatt and donate to Mind via JustGiving!