Mark Strigl and John Ostronomy of Talking Metal speak with Ricky Warwick (Black Star Riders, Thin Lizzy, The Almighty) about his new solo album, When Life Was Hard And Fast, songwriting, Andy Taylor (Power Station, Duran Duran), Black Star Riders, Scott Gorham and more. Check out the interview below.

Warwick: "Scott Gorham is bored out of his brains. He's doing well, he's locking down. Scott's missing everybody. He's bored and he's ready to get back out there. We have written the next Black Star Riders album; it's done, it's demoed. We're just waiting for when it's safe so that we can all come together and get into the studio, which will be here in LA. I'm hoping this summer we'll be able to get in and get it recorded."

Warwick recently announced that he will be releasing a brand new studio album, his first since 2015. The new album is titled When Life Was Hard And Fast and will be released on February 19 via Nuclear Blast.

The second single, "You Don't Love Me", features a guest guitar solo from the inimitable Luke Morley of Thunder, who also makes an appearance in the video. It's a direct song with a direct meaning that tackles the all too familiar feeling of realizing someone doesn't feel the same about you as you do about them.

In relation to the new single Ricky says, "'When the flavor of the month starts to leave a bitter taste'. Luke Morley from Thunder demonstrating why the invention of the electric guitar was the turning point in the history of western civilization!!!"

Luke comments: “When Ricky asked me to play on 'You Don’t Love Me', I was only too happy to oblige! We’ve known each other for 30 years and it was a pleasure to play on such a fine tune by an old mate and fellow rock’n’roll survivor.”

Pre-order the album on various formats, including a 2CD digipack which includes the bonus covers album Stairwell Troubadour, here.

For the process of recording the album, Ricky was joined by Robert Crane (bass), Xavier Muriel (drums) and Keith Nelson (guitar) as well as a number of special guests including Def Leppard's Joe Elliott, Andy Taylor formerly of Duran Duran, Thunder's Luke Morley, Dizzy Reed of the mighty Guns 'N Roses and even Ricky's daughter Pepper. Keith also produced the new album, having previously worked with Buckcherry, Blackberry Smoke and Alice Cooper.

Keith noted that, "Ricky is a true rock-n-roll soul... he’s got incredible stories to tell and a unique way of telling them. It’s been an honor to be asked to partner and contribute to this record.”

When Life Was Hard And Fast tracklisting:

"When Life Was Hard And Fast"
"You Don't Love Me"
"I'd Rather Be Hit"
"Gunslinger"
"Never Corner A Rat"
"Time Don't Seem To Matter"
"Fighting Heart"
"I Don't Feel At Home"
"Still Alive"
"Clown Of Misery"
"You're My Rock N Roll"

Stairwell Troubadour tracklisting:

"You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)" (Dead Or Alive cover)
"Ooops!...I Did It Again" (Britney Spears cover)
"Summertime Blues" (Eddie Cochran cover)
"1000 Dollar Car" (Bottle Rockets cover)
"Cocaine Blues" (Johnny Cash cover)
"I Don't Want To Grow Up" (Ramones cover)
"I Fought The Law" (The Clash cover)
"Burning Love" (Elvis Presley cover)
"Jesus Loves You...But I Don't" (The Almighty cover)
"Wrathchild" (Iron Maiden cover)

"Fighting Heart" video: