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Hiway UK Revisited: Upending a British Invasion Classic
Hiway UK Revisited: Upending a British Invasion Classic
With his latest single Paul Mark covers Heart Full of Soul which was written by Graham Goulman and first charted by Brit-rock innovators the Yardbirds in 1965. Recorded in New York City, Mark takes this classic track and weaves his trademark trash-can vocal style over showcase vintage guitar sounds.
“I listened to this track all the time when I was a kid,” says Mark. “It was on an LP on the Epic label titled The Yardbirds Greatest Hits. Jeff Beck’s mind-blowing guitar part was the centerpiece of the track. This was before Zeppelin or Are You Experienced? or metal music of any sort.”
So the sonic impact was very strong. The guitar was being pushed to this higher energy level, much higher than, say, the Beatles. Blues dudes in Chicago were already creating these sorts of powerful electric sounds way before then. But it was exciting to hear young white kids from Britain doing it.
“I’d been playing this song since I was a teenager, fooling around with different arrangements. Awhile back I demo’d a couple of acoustic guitar versions of it. Then about a year ago a good friend of mine gave me an obscure vintage electric guitar, a really cool looking instrument.”
“I pulled out some old pedals and amps to see how the guitar sounded, using Heart Full of Soul as a trial song. Before you know it I was producing a finished track.”
Mark’s complete production notes, including a history of the Contessa guitar used on the track, are included in the liner notes that appear on the CD version of Heart Full of Soul.
