John Stamp suggests you switch your phone to Airplane Mode in his new single and video — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
“I’m not gonna say ‘I wrote this in lockdown’ for fear of breaking the cliche-ometer,” the British folk-rocker quips. “I think the idea came after a few years of flying and looking at the airplane mode symbol. The song is summed up by the line … ‘You only get to be a winner when you’re smarter than your phone.’ It’s not preachy; maybe (just) holding up a mirror to us all just now.”
It’s the kind of wisdom you get after several decades of living in the real world, which is exactly where Stamp resides. After gigging around the U.K. in his 20s, he successfully ran a social care company until returning to music in a big way several years back with tracks cut in Nashville. For his latest recordings, work was divided between Atlanta, Norwich, London and the hills of Derbyshire — and include a VIP assist from Sheryl Crow’s touring guitarist Peter Stroud.
“I’d watched Peter Stroud play guitar with Sheryl Crow on her U.K. tour in 2018. I’m a big Sheryl fan and his playing and vibe really grabbed me that night. I reached out to Peter sometime last year and he very graciously came on board and laid down so much guitar work,” he says. “My producer Carl Stanbridge had to find gold amongst more gold! Drums were solidly laid down by Luke Bullen (Joe Strummer, KT Tunstall, Bryan Ferry). Carl Stanbridge played bass and produced.”
Heartfelt and light-hearted, Airplane Mode wise observation on modern-day reality and its weird, sometimes dubious “improvements.” Stroud’s guitar work absolutely shines throughout, and it’s obvious the producer, artist, and guitarist had a blast doing this fun, heartwarming conversation starter. The comical video fashioned from silent footage adds another subtle comment on our chatter-filled culture.
Watch Airplane Mode above, hear more from Peter Stroud below, and connect with him on his website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
