Short Bio

Andy John bradford’s Oceans 5 and the Mingulay Boatsong: when you think of Progressive music, you tend not to imagine a 200 year old traditional tune with sea shanty lyrics. However, “prog” is exactly what Folk Singer/Songwriter Andy John Bradford had in mind when he approached guitarist Colin Tench, with The Mingulay Boatsong. They assembled an unlikely band, purely to record this one song. They produced a version unlike any version of The Mingulay boatsong heard before. They cared not if anybody actually wanted to hear such a version. 

This lineup clearly had great chemistry and despite the fact that theywere all busy with their own bands, all agreed that this band has something to say. Andy has a great feel for songwriting and Oceans 5 have proved to be rather good at twisting those songs into a whole new form. From bouncy sing-along to slightly epic rock. The first album “Return to Mingulay” could be considered a progressive/folk rock album in that good old fashioned crossover style. Nothing too clever, just oceans of melodies, a duck and fun, with a lot of content for those who listen out for it. The playing does not get in the way of the songs. 

There are 5 core members in Oceans 5 and although they are all influenced by progressive music, all have very different approaches to composition and style. That combination has resulted in songs that really don’t sound like anyone else. The music owes more to the “anything goes” 1970s than the finely tuned precision of 2013. There are clearly echoes of The Strawbs, Pink Floyd and even Thin Lizzy here.