Road To Recovery

Songwriter, musician, producer and gentleman, Edwyn Collins can quite reasonably be described as a musical legend.

Starting off with the long-forgotten Nu-Sonics, this mild-mannered Scot came to the fore as frontman of Glaswegian post-punk pop-funksters Orange Juice, still best known for the quirky Rip it Up. He then pursued his own solo career, hammering out more catchy fare, including the eternal A Girl Like You, followed by a distinguished spell as a producer – working with the likes of the Proclaimers, Space and The Cribs.

But, cruelly for an artist who deserves to be solely known for his work, Edwyn’s place as a hero in the hearts of music-lovers is born not of triumph, but disaster.

At home in north London, on the evening of Sunday, February 20, 2005 – halfway through Antiques Roadshow and while boiling the potatoes for dinner – he suffered a stroke. Five days later he suffered a second stroke.

He was only 45.

Later he had an operation to replace a piece of skull bone which had been removed to allow the neurosurgeons to operate. It resulted in him contracting the ‘superbug’ MRSA.

Edwyn spent six months in hospital, unable to speak, read or write. He couldn’t even sit up, let alone walk. When he returned home that September, he could say only ‘yes’, ‘no’, and the name of his wife, Grace Maxwell.

Fast-forward to 2010 and Edwyn is back; back with a new album, and back on tour – playing Oxford’s O2 Academy a week tomorrow.

“It feels really wonderful,” he tells me. “Every few days I say it… in the car or sitting at home: ‘I’ve done it. I’m back. I can’t believe it!”

Of course, he is not completely back to normal but, he insists, he’s getting by just fine.

“I can shape chords, but not play,” he goes on. “I’m sad about that, but not too sad. Everything important is back, or coming back – performing, singing, writing songs, recording and producing.

“I’m different, I know that, but it doesn’t matter. My life is great.”

He is cheerful and content; far more than you might expect from a man who almost lost it all. But the memory of waking up to the realisation of what had happened that Sunday night has stayed with him.

“When I woke up, I became aware, gradually, in hospital. I was very scared. And I had to face up to hospital life; I felt I was lost.”

He must have thought his career was over?

“Not really,” he says. “I couldn't give up. I was scared of the consequences.”

And, despite predictions for the worst, he fought back.

“I have a good work ethic,” he adds. “It was hard, very hard. Every day I had to do things I wasn’t good at. There was a lot of frustration – but it helped having Grace nagging me!

“Having no more music in my life would have been the end. I had no choice. It was a case of ‘get back to work or that’s the end’. But it took a long time to find songwriting again – nearly four years. I mean, it was really hard.

“But I’m never angry. I accept it. It’s human experience, that’s all. We are vulnerable, all of us. But I’m lucky; I’m much, much better. I’m still alive. Life is wonderful!”

And while he may not be able to play the guitar, he plays keyboards, mouth organ and, of course, sings.

“My voice is strong again,” he says proudly. “In the beginning it was weak. And while my speech is dodgy, my singing is perfect!”

The new album, Losing Sleep, follows 2007’s poignantly-titled Home Again – work he started before his illness.

Both were completed thanks to close collaboration with producer Seb Lewsley.

“Seb is my partner, and my friend. I rely on him and he relies on me. After 17 years beside each other in the studio, we’re telepathic. He is the best recording engineer in Britain, and that’s the truth.”

And the album, his seventh solo effort, is a triumph. “It’s energetic, urgent, happy, direct, focussed and positive!”

But it’s not just Seb who has helped make it the masterpiece it is. The duo were joined by long-term friends The Cribbs and Johnny Marr, and pals Franz Ferdinand, The Drums, The Magic Numbers and Roddy Frame.

I ask Edwyn who he has enjoyed working with most. “Everyone on this album,” he says generously. “I have loved working with every single musician. They are amazing friends and soulmates. Musicians are fantastic. We have our own language together; it’s easy.”

But he isn’t about to turn his back on the tunes everybody loves – including that song. “A Girl Like You is a great pop record,” he says. “I’m proud of it; it’s given me a lot. I always play it. I love it and people love hearing it so that’s it. I am not one of those people who’s into posing and pretending they hate their most famous songs.

“I like to give people what they want, including Orange Juice favourites.

“My set is old and new, I mix it up, but I know my audiences and I’m not annoying them.”

So what does the future hold for Edwyn Collins?

“Hmmm… to keep going,” he says thoughtfully.

“I'll think of new stuff and new challenges – trust me on that!”

* Edwyn Collins plays the Oxford O2 Academy on November 5. Tickets are £15 on ticketweb.co.uk