Destry Spigner Interview

Clubbing UK catch up with an immensely talented Chicago born vocalist and musician by the name of Destry Spigner; we discuss some oldskool roots of true Chicago house music. As he kicks back at his London pad, we cover all sorts including his latest releases, projects, when he chilled with James Brown, the lot... read on to further your musical education! Destry Spigner image

"It started in Chicago, first I started working with Hudson Bowdrick - he used to be (back in the day), a mixer for the ‘Hot Mix Five’; they used to do the DJ competitions back in the 70’s and the early 80’s - that’s when they were just starting to, I guess mix. So I worked with him and the first single was a single called ‘Swing Your Body’ which was Project 122, and back then I spelt my name Destri... "

"From there I met Hudson at Taste Entertainment (I used to be a dancer there). Also I met Vince Lawrence, Farley Keith, Jessy Saunders, they all hung out together, Jessy’s gang was pretty big and Jessy’s gang was part of the crew that was responsible for ‘Love Can’t Turn Around’ (legendry 1986 house classic) and Vince Lawrence actually from that point on was the producer I worked with the most, and he signed me to Desire Records (which had Double Trouble and Rebble MC at the time). But I eventually came over and visited Chris Perry who was the manager of The Cure, he owned the record label (Desire) from there we done an album and it just kind of exploded. Marshall Jefferson did remixes, '10 City' did a remix, Evelyn Camp did a remix, that was released in 90-91. The name of the album is ‘Glass House’."

How was the Chicago club scene and how did it differ from ours over here?
"It was a lot like the UK club scene, you had the underground clubs, you had your mainstream clubs, the little clubs that were playing house music imports, pretty much the same - when I landed in London I thought London was like a branch of Chicago really. The music was pretty much the same, all the artists were the same. In Chicago I actually went to an import store to get the Yellow stuff and the Kraftwerk stuff, the import store was behind Jones Commercial Hi-School."

Is Destry you’re real name and if so where does it originate?
"Yeah it is, well there’s two definitions of it, one definition I’m assuming is right, someone told me it’s from the word Destrian, which used to be horses they used to breed for Knights (because they had to breed them stronger for the heavy armour), the other was a cowboy film, ‘Destry’ and ‘Destry Rides Again’. I wanted to change it in school, my mother bless her soul told me ‘No, I not gonna let you change it!’."

You tend not to stick to one style, which genres do you most appreciate and thrive in when singing?
"I’ll always be true to house, old skool house, although I have done some two step on Pure Silk, and I’ve done some two-step on STJ Records as well, Staxx they had a number one about 6 years ago ‘Joy’, I’ve done some two step with them. Because I love all kinds of music I don’t wanna say ‘oh I’ll never do that’, as long as it’s good, as long as I can get 5 on it, I’m on it, I’m all over it. I do rare groove now as well jazz funk (Brand New Heavies style) as well as R&B."

When where you last in Chicago?
"I had a 14 month old son, he was hit by a police car in Chicago and the last time I went back to Chicago was to settle up with the city of Chicago, that was the last time I was there. It’s funny because I don’t go back and forth to Chicago, I know I should but I think because I grew up there, I’ve seen everything I wanted to see about Chicago, for me it was a launch pad and that’s all it was, I have no need to visit it. My family isn’t there, my mom’s dead, my father’s passed away, I have a sister, she’s pretty much closed off to herself - besides London’s a lot like Chicago to me."

Do you have difficulties choosing or getting hold of music to sing over?
"No, if I find that I don’t have enough tracks available, I’ll sit on my computer and do my own. ‘Love Is For Free’ I wrote about 3-4 years ago, it’s one of those tracks that I think every 5-6 years I’m gonna release again, it has that mood and that vibe about it that I think a lot of people can identify with it to the point where regardless of when I release it."

Tell us about Soulja? Any other projects you’re working on?
"Soulja’s R&B, it’s a collaboration of rappers, MC’s, producers that are looking to take R&B that next step, it’s a project that I’m also doing with Jet Stream Records, it’s not rap but it will have some gangsta I suppose back beats and things like that, but more of an inspirational, I don’t like going towards the bling bling and the diamonds and the bigger ego and all that kind of stuff, I try to identify with I guess seeing a more positive outcome towards life, some of that stuff is just hater. Some of the stuff you see coming out of LA and New York is heading for negative ground, I don’t believe that’s the best way forward. It’ll still have those rough beats and that ground moving bass in on it."

Destry Spigner Interview continued here...