The Twilight Examiner Amanda Bell had a chance to interview Phil Taylor, Bobby Long's manager. Here are the parts he talks about Rob and you can read the whole thing HERE. If you haven't ordered Bobby's single Left To Lie on itunes, you should. It is beautiful...Phil Taylor, manager for such talents as
Bobby Long (whose song “Left to Lie” has climbed the iTunes chart and who has been featured on the hit soundtrack for Twilight with the song he co-authored with friend Marcus Foster, sung by Robert Pattinson, “Let Me Sign” (Twilight's "Never Think" was co-authored by Sam Bradley and Rob Pattinson)) and FLIPRON got his start in music management when he took the advice of song-writer Tim Rose to “[j]ust get on with it kid, find someone who can write song and sign them.” And so it was.
Taylor set up his production company Up All Night Music back in 1998, seeing the likes of Robert Pattinson and Marcus Foster come across his stage, in London. His company got on its feet during “that awful dance music” time when “no actual musicians could get a gig.” Taylor’s solution? “I bought a little PA system and started booking acts myself.” Soon, “I had 6 nights each week and an office in Denmark St. I thought I had finally arrived, [but] I was 23!”
skippedSpeaking of Bobby Long, I asked Phil what he thought it was that drew him to Bobby back in 2006. He said that Up All Night Open Mic has “[f]or years . . . been the place people have gravitated towards once they want to play live. It is connected to my production company Up All Night Music, so people know that if I like them at the open mic, they will get offered other London gigs and maybe a festival stage or two. One night, Bobby showed up wanting to play, and he seemed a very genuine, humble, and calm person, so I got him on the list. (You have to know there are often forty-five people who want to play, so obviously not everyone is going to get on. I have gotten very good at spotting talent by talking to people.) As he played the two songs (“A Passing Tale” and “This Strange Love) that people get to play, I was immediately struck by just how good his whole performance was.” Says Taylor of Bobby’s performance, it was “[n]ot just his lyrics, or his delivery, or [even] his phrasing and general charisma, but all these elements had been put together in a well thought-out and rounded package, bursting with fresh energy.”
Continues Taylor, “[a]fter only a few moments, the whole room was silent, listening to this great music. Once [Bobby] had come off-stage, I had to chat with him and found out it was his first day or week in London and that he did not know anyone at all in the city. I walked round this room full of talented musicians with him, introducing him to the stars of the scene that we had created. It was then that I introduced him to Marcus and Rob amongst several others.”
About Robert Pattinson, Phil Taylor says, “I had no idea that Robert was an actor. I’ve still not seen any of his films. I just knew that he is a great musician and a very good singer/song-writer. I had probably known Marcus and Rob for about a year or so when I introduced them to Bobby.”
I asked Phil Taylor what he thought it was about Marcus Foster, Robert Pattinson, Sam Bradley and Bobby Long that have made them so well-balanced and cooperative on co-authoring pieces such as “Let Me Sign” and “Never Think” (both of which are featured on the Twilight album). He said, “I think that Rob and Marcus had known each other a long time and enjoyed playing music together, and, as I say, they are both very good at it. Then they met Bobby and recognized that he is also a great musician and that he comes from a very similar musical background to them. Once introduced, they were bound to become friends. That’s why I introduced them, I mean, that’s how you create a scene. [Also,] [p]eople need to remember that those songs were not written for the film, or any film, [but] were written by a group of friends who write songs together and play them live at an open mic night each week. There was never a plan. They just love writing songs and playing them together.” Says Tom McQ, “That was a great time at Up All Night, Phil had the cream of the acoustic scene all hanging out and being introduced to each other, writing songs together, a very creative and special time.”
skipped
About Robert Pattinson, Taylor says “he has not had sudden fame at all. He has worked hard at being a good actor for a long time, and it’s paid off. The last time Bobby Long and I saw him a few weeks ago in London, Rob was exactly the same as he was the night I introduced him to Bobby.” As for the vicious and constant rumors circulating Rob, says Taylor, “that’s just the price of fame. I think they used to spread a few rumors about Marilyn Monroe or Sinatra, or the Beatles. That’s just part of the game we get used to. There is never any truth in any of them.”
As for a possibility of coordinated touring dates between Bobby Long and Marcus Foster, Taylor says “I am booking a tour for Bobby and another one for Marcus this summer in the U.S.A. They will play a few select shows together, but generally they will be playing different towns on different nights.”
Clearly, Phil Taylor is quite a professional. Arming himself with strong team members, having a superb ear for a genuine and time-tested sound, and an organized approach to management, Taylor's representation is sure to propel his clients to the top.
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