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Musician Marcus Nand agrees that ‘time and tide wait for no man’ (Includes interview)

Born on Merseyside to an English mother and an Indian father from Fiji, Marcus Nand moved to Spain at the age of eight, where he started learning to play flamenco guitar. He then relocated to Los Angeles and has been based there on and off for the past 25 years.

Since the early 1990s, the gifted performer, who very much enjoyed working with Rod Stewart on his latest album Another Country, describing him as “a great guy,” has become a highly respected musician and producer, lending his considerable talents to numerous projects in a wide variety of genres, from rock and blues to World Music, electronica and flamenco.

His debut solo album, Time and Tide Wait for No Man, came out in April this year and the title track will be released as a single next month. “I wrote most of the album myself and also produced it,” reveals Marcus, speaking to me from L.A. “I have a small home studio so I did all the vocals and guitars here and if I needed to record drums, or anything that needed a big studio, I’d go somewhere else…

“‘Time and Tide Wait for No Man’ sort of sums up the whole atmosphere of the album and what I’ve discovered about life, in a way. Being in the music business, you can’t really wait around for things to happen – you’ve just got to do things and find the confidence or the courage to get stuff done. That’s the general theme of the album.”

What made the gravelly-voiced singer, a fluent Spanish speaker, decide to venture out on his own after years of collaborating with others (aside from the artists already mentioned, Marcus has also been involved with heavy metal band Freak of Nature and gypsy rock outfit Ziroq)?

“Well I’ve always had songs and have always wanted to share them,” comes the reply. “More than anything, I love the production aspect of it so it’s almost like the songs became the vehicle for me to produce the record, but I still tried to get them as good as I possibly could.”

“Something I’ve found any time I write or produce is that you have influences inside that don’t come out unless the situation’s right – and they’ll surprise you,” explains Marcus, discussing the different musical styles one can hear on the album. “You’ll hear something from your past, or your childhood, and think, ‘Wow, I didn’t realise that was actually an influence.’

“There’s everything in there. There’s a pop influence, there’s a rock influence, there’s a classic rock influence… Flamenco is in there because I wrote the songs on a nylon-string guitar.

“Also, I draw from Middle Eastern and Indian stuff too. I have a half-Indian background so that’s something that always comes out… I love the Arabic music because growing up in Spain, it’s a big part of flamenco; the influence of the Moors in Spain.”

Ruminating over his favourites among the 12 tracks, Marcus says, “There’s a lot of stuff I like for different reasons. There’s a song called ‘You Become My World‘ which definitely has a lot of that Arabic influence. That stands out to me because it really sets a great atmosphere and the production is something I’m proud of.

‘Along the Way’ is a song I really enjoy. I wrote that very quickly – it’s the third track on the album. I like that because it’s entirely done on nylon strings and it’s actually one of the only songs where other people are playing guitar with me.

“I recorded it in a similar way to how, say, the Gipsy Kings would record, so four guitars at once. It’s about the long, lifetime friendships you have over the years and how you support each other when times get tough.

“Then there’s another song called ‘Tarifa’ which is about a place in Spain. It’s the southernmost tip of Europe – only 26 miles from Morocco. It’s a place I love and I really tried to capture what you’d imagine somebody would experience there, sitting on the shore and looking at Africa.

“Generally with the album I tried to make the listener go on a journey in their mind and reflect when they hear it, which is what I used to like doing with the music I listened to as a kid.”

Nand is clearly enjoying life as a solo act and hopes to start work on his second solo album next year. What other plans does he have for 2016? “Well basically my plan is to work as much as possible, in any capacity, within the music business…

“I have high hopes for an artist I’m producing. She’s Argentinian and her name’s Ana Victoria. She comes from a very musical family and her mum and dad are both big stars in Mexico.

“She was nominated for a Latin Grammy last year – she’s an amazing singer. Her album should be out by February and then I’ll see what doors that opens for me down in Mexico.”

The new single, “Time and Tide Wait for No Man,” will be released on January 22.

The album is out now and can be purchased from iTunes.

For more information on Marcus Nand, visit his official website.

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