Country stars Ward Thomas could never have imagined topping the album charts

 

WHEN UK country act Ward Thomas hit the top of the album charts last year, no one was more surprised than the band.

Twin sisters Lizzy and Catherine’s incredible rise to the number one spot in September was predicted by no one, least of all them.

“Our management didn’t tell us we were No. 1 in the midweek charts,” explained Lizzy.

“We spotted the information in a newspaper while we were in a petrol station. We texted them and asked, ‘What’s going on?’

“The rest of the week was tense. We had simply been hoping Cartwheels would reach the Top 40, but when No. 1 was in our sights, it became different.

“Our manager called us on Friday morning and was quite calm, so we didn’t think we had done it at first.

“Then there was a lot of screaming! We weren’t allowed to announce it until 6pm.

“It was completely unexpected and we still can’t believe it happened.

“I think it’s down to a lot of hard work and luck, as well as writing genuine music, because people can hear that when they listen.”

Ward Thomas’s first album, From Where We Stand, had reached No. 41 just two years previously.

That too was deemed a success for a UK country act who at that point were on an independent label.

“We were really surprised at how big our first album went,” 23-year-old Lizzy continued.

“People such as Terry Wogan and Bob Harris really supported it and, at the same time, country music seemed to become cooler.

“People started listening to it, maybe because of the Nashville TV show or Taylor Swift starting off in country, and others came out of the woodwork who admitted liking it.”

Raised on a farm in Hampshire, the twins were educated at a convent school, where their love of singing developed.

“We were in the choir at school, Catherine was alto and I was soprano, and we learned to harmonise.

“Our family was also quite musical. Our parents were in a 1970s cover band, playing songs by Fleetwood Mac and The Kinks.

“We started playing in pubs and family gatherings and it grew from there.

“When we went to college we started songwriting lessons.”

Fate was to provide a helping hand when it turned out their music teacher at college had connections in the home of country music, Nashville.

“She had been a session performer there and she sent one of our songs, Footnotes, to her contacts,” Lizzy explained.

“We were invited over – as you can imagine, we found it hard to concentrate on our last exam!

“To go to Nashville as teenagers and be in the room with these amazing musicians, who learned about seven of our songs in one day, was just amazing.

“We went back and forth for two years, spending three months there when we were 19.

“It was during that period we wrote Cartwheels, the title track of the second album.”

The hard-working sisters have just released a covers EP and are about to begin their biggest UK tour, which includes sold-out dates in Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Later in the year they’ll play Glasgow as support to one of their musical heroes, Miranda Lambert.

“We’ve met her briefly already and it was a complete thrill.

“And we recently came back from Australia, where we were on the same bill as The Dixie Chicks.

“They were the band that got us into country music.

“Catherine and I loved their style and that’s what made us want to write music in that genre.”

Being on the tour and living out of each other’s pockets is hard for most bands, but is it even worse when it’s your twin sister?

“Everyone who spends that much time together bickers and needs space, but we’re used to each other.

“We’ve done everything together our whole lives, so we’re used to each other’s company.

“We have different personalities, we’re not competitive with each other, and it feels like we’re one person at times.

“So it’s nice to have each other on tour.

“It’s a comfort and feels like we have a piece of home with us when we’re away.”

Ward Thomas, Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, April 30, Lemon Tree, Aberdeen, May 27