Stripped Back And Vulnerable
As with my website, I want every part of this project to tell a story. Each track has its own small film that reflects the narrative in a different way. The songs are arranged chronologically, each one a snapshot from a moment in my life — first written as a poem or a note in my journal, then shaped and moulded into the songs you hear today. The songs wouldn’t be what they are without Mal. Every track grew out of a shared creative space — ideas passed back and forth, shaped, stretched, and lifted by the way we worked together. I’m quietly proud of what we have made. Releasing these acoustic songs on Remembrance Sunday 2026 is a fitting, poignant moment.
As Camus wrote, “In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.”
There are seven songs here, shaped with the help of eleven other musicians who brought their own time, talent, and feel to the work. You can download the tracks individually or as a complete album. The full album is available at a low, accessible price and includes a PDF booklet with the stories behind the songs, the lyrics, and the artists involved. Single tracks have a £2 minimum, with a “price of a coffee” option for anyone who wants to support the project. Each track includes the lyrics, the musicians involved, and a short note about the song.
Stripped Back and Vulnerable: The Full Album
Stripped Back and Vulnerable gathers the quiet truths carried across a lifetime, moving through the weight of what was lived, lost, and reshaped, offering a reflection on the stories we hold and the ones that slipped away.
Includes The Story Behind the Songs, a quiet look at where each piece came from and the moments that shaped them.
The Songs
Soldier Soldier
This song was a gift from an old friend who wrote it about me, given at a time when he had little else to offer. I’ve carried it for years, shaping it gently into my own story.
Forbidden
It moves through the shadows of what was broken and couldn’t be reclaimed. A reflection on the things forbidden to us in different ways — some we carry, some blown away before we can hold them.
Don’t Know Why
A song shaped by the quiet conversations veterans carry long after the world moves on. Its heart lies in the daily weight of remembrance,
Into The Darkness
A slow turn into the inner struggles we all carry, where reflection becomes something shared. It moves through the dark landscapes we touch — sometimes staying, sometimes finding a way on.
This Song has No Title
Written on Blue Beach, San Carlos — a quiet homage to a friend lost in the Falklands. A song about remembrance, innocence, and the silence we carry after war.
Roll of the Dice
A song shaped by quiet reflections on what has been and what is. The choices taken at each fork in the road — the joyful turns, the sad ones, the good and the bad — becoming part of the journey of who you’re still becoming.
Mad, Bad and Sad
Mad, Bad and Sad began as a tongue‑in‑cheek idea and grew into an acoustic piece that questions the labels placed on veterans and the identities we hold,