Page 6 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine Issue 114

BV114 pg 04-09 CJ cover Interview.qxp_BV114 pg06 12/06/2026 21:05 Page 3

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Art Of Being Free’, what I’m saying is getting away
from that rock ‘n’ roll thing, because it’s poison. If
you’re touring all the time and you’re getting high, get-
ting drunk, every single day and it’s relentless, and it
goes on and on and on, there’s going to be some ca-
sualties; there just are. That’s what I’m singing about,
getting away – because it was mental. And, fortunately
for me, I stopped when I was 40. I stopped doing all
that nonsense. I should have stopped a bit earlier, but
I did get out of that rock ‘n’ roll game. Someone said
to me, ‘Musicians, especially ones who are signed,
like, big deals, and work at a certain level, it takes
them longer to grow up’. Because you’re basically
kids. They’re diving into the Smartie jar, aren’t they?
They’ve just got their hands in there. You’re getting ev-
erything thrown at you. Everyone’s got to grow up
eventually. You’ve just got to – or else you’re going to
end up a casualty.”

uckily, CJ did get out of that rock ‘n’ roll mad-
Lness. And, while he’s released seven solo al-
bums (plus a compilation and live album) in the past
12 years, he’s calmed down a lot. So far, in 2026, his
touring schedule has been quiet, with the musician
only playing a couple of shows. At the start of May, he
headed up to Carlisle and Kirriemuir with his band for
a couple of shows, which he later said were life-affirm-
ing.
“I meant to say life-reaffirming,” he says. “I didn’t
want to play the shows, if I’m honest with you. I’ve
done hundreds, thousands of shows over my career. I
did my first show when I was 16. That’s 42 years ago.
I like playing at a certain level, which I’m not at any-
more. I like having a full crew, a tour bus, and I like to
play in front of 1000, 2000 people a night, and I don’t
do that anymore. So, sometimes you kind of look at
the shows, and it’s like, ‘Do I really want to do this? Do
I really need to do it? Is it going to help me in any way?’
So, I looked at these shows and I came really close to
cancelling them. Not because I’m like some miserable
sod… because I still have a bit of pride in me. I look at
these shows and sometimes, you know, if you look too
deeply, it can look like you’re taking a step back from
where you were ten years ago, or 20 years ago, or 30
years ago. So, I went into these shows, it was a bit of
a test to me. Carlisle was amazing. I’ve played there
with The Wildhearts and I’ve play there with my solo
band, and it was the best time I’ve had at that venue,
but the show was just brilliant. For me, it was almost
like a lifeline, because it pulled me back. I was so close
to walking away from this, but both those shows have
put their hooks in me and they’re kind of pulling me
back into the game.”
While he’s not playing to massive crowds, we def-
initely feel that there’s still an audience out there wait-
ing to discover him. CJ’s solo music is very
punk-based, and there are a lot of punk rock fans that
have somehow not yet checked him out. A large por-
tion of CJ’s followers are obviously Wildhearts fans,
but we can’t help but feel that he could acquire a much
larger punk rock fanbase if he could get his music out
to more punk fans.
“I tell you what, one of the hardest things in my ca-
reer has been to try and reach the true punk rockers,
because I don’t come from that background, although
my music, especially my solo music, people describe
it as punk. It’s punk ‘n’ roll. If you listen to the new sin-
gle, it’s very punk, but what I have noticed of the new
single is a lot of punks are getting into it. For me, it’s a
real compliment if you get those old, true punks getting
into my new music. Although I’m an older musician,
I’m seen as a new kid on that sort of scene. I always
knew it was going to be hard as I don’t come from that
background, But, if an old punk rocker likes my music,
it’s a win for me, definitely.”
He describes his vocals and sound as having ‘a
scrappy edge’. While his 2014 release, ‘Mable’, has its
tongue firmly in the punk rock and pop camp, as CJ’s
progressed, his music has become heavier. He says,
“There’s a bit more fire. I’ve always believed that, as
CJ WILDHEART