The Damned bassist Paul Gray reflects on his work with Andrew Ridgeley on Son Of Albert while preparing for The Damned’s 2026 Australian tour return
by Paul Cashmere
Paul Gray of The Damned has detailed his unexpected role on Andrew Ridgeley’s 1990 solo album Son Of Albert, revealing how a chance studio call led to sessions, international promotion and a rare glimpse into major label excess, as the band prepares to return to Australia for its 50th anniversary tour.
Paul Gray, speaking to Noise11, confirmed he performed on two tracks from Son Of Albert, the only solo album released by Ridgeley following the dissolution of Wham!. The sessions came at a transitional moment for Gray, shortly after his departure from UFO, and placed him inside a high-budget Sony-backed project driven by Ridgeley’s ambition to pivot into rock.
Andrew Ridgeley, emerging from Wham!, one of the 1980s’ most commercially dominant pop acts alongside George Michael, attempted to reposition himself within a rock framework. Gray, by contrast, brought credentials from the UK’s pub rock and punk circuits, including stints with Eddie And The Hot Rods and later The Damned.
Paul Gray described the entry point as informal. “A friend of mine worked in an advertising agency in London and one of the guys there was playing guitar on Andrew’s album,” he said. “They asked if I knew any rock bass players. I’d just left UFO, so I went down to the studio.”
What he found was a project shaped by major label investment. “Sony had given George Michael a shedload of money and Andrew a shedload of money,” Gray said. “I walked into the studio and there were records everywhere, AC/DC, Def Leppard, all that sort of stuff. I thought I was in the wrong place.”
Gray ultimately contributed bass to two tracks and was drawn into the promotional campaign, including travel to Japan for television appearances and video shoots. “I ended up going to Japan and doing all these TV shows,” he said. “It was real fun. It wasn’t massively taxing musically but it was a great experience, seeing how the other half live.”
Within Ridgeley’s catalogue, Son Of Albert stands as a singular entry, released in 1990 and not followed by further solo albums. Commercially, it did not replicate the success of Wham!, but it has since been reassessed as a document of an artist attempting to redefine his identity in a shifting industry landscape.
For Gray, the session sits among a broader and often unconventional career path. His credits include work with Johnny Thunders on So Alone, as well as collaborations across punk, rock and side projects including Sensible Gray Cells and The Wingmen. That range underscores the fluidity between genres in late 20th century British music, where session work and touring frequently overlapped.
The current focus, however, returns to The Damned. The band is preparing for a September 2026 Australian tour, part of its 50th anniversary cycle. The run follows a first visit for Gray with the group, which he described as a long-awaited milestone.
“Loved it,” Gray said of the previous Australian shows. “I’d never been there before. Loads of friends had said you’ve got to go, but it exceeded expectations. Can’t wait to get back.”
The upcoming tour carries additional weight following the return of drummer Rat Scabies alongside Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible and Monty Oxymoron. The configuration reconnects key contributors across multiple eras of the band’s history, with Scabies’ involvement marking his first extended return in decades.
Gray pointed to an intuitive musical dynamic within the line-up. “There’s an organic thing that happens,” he said. “You can’t really explain it. It feels like it did 35 or 40 years ago, that raw, anything-can-happen energy.”
Setlist construction remains fluid, reflecting a catalogue that spans from the 1977 debut Damned Damned Damned through to later stylistic expansions. “We’ve got more than enough songs,” Gray said. “There are the ones people expect, and maybe a few they won’t.”
Core material such as New Rose and Smash It Up remains central, reinforced by their continued cultural reach through covers by later acts. Gray acknowledged their foundational role. “We have to play them. They’re part of The Damned’s DNA.”
From an industry standpoint, The Damned’s return to Australia aligns with a broader cycle of legacy acts leveraging milestone anniversaries through curated live experiences. The band’s trajectory, from punk pioneers to cross-genre innovators incorporating gothic and psychedelic elements, provides a template for long-term catalogue sustainability.
There is also an element of unpredictability. While the tour has been framed as part of a farewell cycle, Gray avoided definitive language around finality. “It’s The Damned,” he said. “Anything can happen.”
That ambiguity reflects the band’s history of reinvention. Since forming in 1976, they have navigated multiple line-up changes and stylistic shifts while maintaining a consistent live presence. The current anniversary run, including high-profile international dates, suggests both a retrospective and a continuation.
The September shows offer a rare alignment of historical line-up elements and a catalogue spanning five decades. For Gray, it also marks another chapter in a career defined by unexpected turns, from London studios with Andrew Ridgeley to global stages with one of punk’s foundational bands.
THE DAMNED AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND SEPTEMBER 2026 TOUR DATES
Tuesday 8 September, Auckland, Powerstation
Thursday 10 September, Sydney, The Opera House
Friday 11 September, Brisbane, The Tivoli
Sunday 13 September, Melbourne, The Forum
Stay updated with your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to Noise11 Music News here
Be the first to see NOISE11.com’s newest interviews and special features on YouTube. See things first-Subscribe to Noise11 on YouTube
Follow Noise11.com on social media:
Bluesky
Instagram
Facebook – Comment on the news of the day
X (Twitter)
