Damon Minchella: Born and bred in Liverpool. My Dad's a blue. My aunties are blues. The whole family are blues. There's not been any reds. So yeah. It had to be Everton. (With that the mobile goes off and it's Z-Cars). My wife doesn't follow football, but when she was with me in the Winslow last season and Z-cars came on she said she got the same feeling as I did with the hairs on the back of your neck standing up.

Blue Kipper: Who were your hero's as a kid?

Damon Minchella: Dave Thomas! My first match was at Birmingham City when I was 6. My Mum and Dad were working in Birmingham. I remember watching a game against Bristol City. I don't know if it was a cup match. I can remember this fella behind me singing "BAA RISTOL..BAA RISTOL" every minute all through the game. But to see Dave Thomas going down the wing and cross the ball for Bob Latchford was brilliant. But people like Geoff Nulty I really like. The less obvious players. Then of course you've got the Everton team of the mid 80's and it was everybody from John Bailey upwards. There were the obvious stars, but the likes of Alan Harper was a good player. So I'd say Dave Thomas and Mike Lyons.

Blue Kipper: What was your most memorable game you've been to?

Damon Minchella: I'd probably have to say the FA Cup win against Watford in 1984. Not actually in football terms. We'd moved from Merseyside and were settled in Birmingham and I remember going to the League cup when 100,000 people were singing "Merseyside... Mersyside" at the end of that game. We'd taken over the capital. That was a bit of a moment. But to go back to Wembley and beat Watford 2-0 when I was 14 or 15 was something.

Blue Kipper: Everton or a bass guitar?

Damon Minchella: Ha Ha Ha! Everton.

Blue Kipper: Honestly?

Damon Minchella: Yeah definitely. Definitely. I wanted to be a footballer when I was a kid. I was a pretty good goalkeeper. I played at a decent level at School. I was coached by Dai Davies. I broke my leg playing in goal. I broke my tibia and fibula when I was 14 and it was only when I was in plaster and I couldn't walk for 4 months that I started playing the bass guitar. An old scally mate of mine came around and gave me this old bass guitar. I used to play alot of Jimi Hendrix records as that's all I had in. It's just as well as there's not many 5 foot 9 goalkeepers. That's what I was good at. Outfield I wasn't that good, but in goal I was ok. There is a tie in between goalkeepers and bass players anyway. They both just keep all tidy, but every once and a while they do something that just stops the shows. Do you know what I mean?

Blue Kipper: So you started playing the bass. How did you start Ocean Colour Scene?

Damon Minchella: I was in a few bands, but me and the singer from our band called The Fanatics met up with the other lads in Birmingham and then Steve Craddock and we became Ocean Colour Scene.

Blue Kipper: Where did the name come from?

Damon Minchella: Weed and the library. We were stoned in the library. We went out to the pub a few days later and met up with some friends. When the asked what the name of the band was, we were whispering 'Ocean Colour Scene.' They were going What? We couldn't tell anyone, as it sounded so stupid. It sounded ok when we were stoned.

Blue Kipper: The riverboat song being played by Chris Evans on TFI Friday did it help or hinder OCS?

Damon Minchella: No no no definitely good. It became a bit of an irritant but it really helped the band. We knew we where onto a winner when we went into a guitar shop and people where practicing on a guitar they always use a riff. We went into a guitar shop in Birmingham and there's this lad playing a guitar and we heard "der der der der der der" and we went "bloody hell" that's the riverboat song.

Blue Kipper: So you had big success with Ocean Colour Scene what happened at the end, did you have a big bust up?

Damon Minchella: Yeah I fell out with the drummer big time, 9th November 2003 we had a bit of a punch up and that was that. I'd sort of had enough anyway so I left. I'd been thinking about leaving for ages.

Blue Kipper: How did you join up with Paul Weller?

Damon Minchella: Weller just asked us. We supported him in 92 when he was doing his first solo album tour, that was when our first album Mosely Shoals came out which was shit, but he liked me and Steve the guitarist, so then he got Steve into to do the Wild Wood tour in 94, and he did not have a bass player for the Stanley Road Tour and asked me if I wanted to do it, and I was on the dole at the time even though we were making Mosley Shoals so it was a question of do you want to be with Paul Weller or do you want to be on the dole.

Blue Kipper: So did you like Paul Weller when he was in the Jam?

Damon Minchella: No not at all. In my school you where either a Two Tone Fan or a Jam Fan. All me mates where all Evertonians and we where all into the Specials, I wouldn't say the Red Shite were into the Jam I'm just saying the others were into the Jam. At that sort of age 11/12 you sort of go with what your mates go with at that age, its only since I've been in Paul's band and hearing his songs, and have gone back and listened to the Jam and realised what a good band they were. So I have come into it the wrong way round.

Blue Kipper: The Who at Live 8, how did that come about?

Damon Minchella: They asked us again, we had done quite a few gigs with the Who in Japan, and Roger Daltrey had been questing on a few Weller gigs for the Teenage Cancer Trust, so they just asked us if we wanted to do it and we said yes.

Blue Kipper: So what was Live 8 like? Do you ever stand back and go 'Fucking hell I was in Live 8?'

Damon Minchella: Not until the next evening when I got home, coz doing it you know, you just do it, but when I got home me mum had videoed it for us and me wife and I went round and watched it. When you see all the other bands, it's probably the biggest gig the world has ever seen, or will ever see. It's God!!!!!!!!! I mean it was crazy. It was like playing in the world cup final for a musician, doing that as a musician it was the only time I have been scared. The only other time I have ever been scared was when I played in goal at Dave Watson's testimonial.

Blue Kipper: Tell us about that.

Damon Minchella: It was an England celebrity 11 against a Scotland celebrity 11, and the main match was Everton v Rangers. During the game I had 3 saves to make and made all 3. When I ran out I was so scared, I was late, missed the warm up so I had to get changed and go straight out. The ground was about half full because our game started before the main game. As soon as I went into the goal the first corner came over and I was scared and just went fuckinhell. The corner came over and I just missed it, and flapping in the air and I had a broken toe as well which didn't help. But there was not way I was not gonna play.

Blue Kipper: So going back to Weller, do you like his music now?

Damon Minchella: Yeh, The fella is unbelievable. I love his version of Wishing on a Star, when he told us we were gonna do it I put the base on after woods. Him and Whitey had recorded it. He told me we were doing 'Wishing on a Star 'and I looked at him and said "What?" because the original is a real girls song, but its a classic, set in stone. As soon as I put it on and heard his voice the first words out of his mouth was like "your a genius mate". To sing that song and make it sound like it was his song.

Blue Kipper: So The Players, how did that come about?

Damon Minchella: Steve White and Mick Talbot have been mates for God knows how long, and I have known both of them for about 15 years, and it was just something that we fancied doing. We are writing a new album right now, and instead of just getting a couple of young unknown vocalists, we are gonna go for broke on this and ask some big names. We're gonna write and record this year, the album will be out in April, and then we are gonna do a tour. We've we have got a few good names lined up already Paulo Nutini and Richard from Hardfi. we are gonna ask Al Green if he will do it. W we are just gonna go for broke. If we ask 10 superstars, hopefully 1 or 2 will say Yes!

Blue Kipper: I read somewhere that you had dinner with Duncan Ferguson, is that true?

Damon Minchella: No, I've met him, but if I would have had dinner with him, I would have been that nervous I would not have been able to eat.

Blue Kipper: What is your stance on the ground move?

Damon Minchella: Do you know what, I am in a big hole and between 2 stools here, I think everyone is, how are you gonna leave Goodison Park and what's it gonna be called? But this is the way football is going now, the way the reds have got Stanley Park is sickening.

Blue Kipper: So, do you get to many matches?

Damon Minchella: Yeh, I mean it's difficult, Saturday matches are the hardest, coz me Missus is saying you are always away on tour, and when I go to the match on a Saturday I can't just go straight up and back from Stratford, I have got to see me mates and have a few drinks, and when you've got a hangover on a Sunday she is not too happy. Last season I got to a few home games and quite a few away games including us getting hammered at Man Utd. I was in the main stand and listening to Man U supporters whinging about their team, when the we 3-0 up with 20 mins to go. They were saying things like we need 2 strikers, they were all miserable and all the Everton supporters were singing their heads off, and Beattie couldn't even kick the ball straight, but the fans were still backing him, showing the Mancs what it's all about.

Blue Kipper: Hopes for this season?

Damon Minchella: I would like to think we will have a good cup run, I don't know about the UEFA cup run. Vaughany is gonna be a big miss at the start of the season, because at the end of last season he was on fire man. So he is our secret weapon, I am a bit unsure about Victor, but Vaughany's there already just unlucky that he bust his shoulder in a friendly but that is gonna happen it's just the way he plays.

Blue Kipper: Have you meet any players doing your day job?

Damon Minchella: One of the strangest experiences honestly was doing a Weller gig in 96. It was after Riverboat and my band were playing in Manchester and this guy taps me on the back of me shoulder in Weller's dressing room. I turned round and the guy says: "Damon, can I just say hello?"
And I turned round and said: "fuckin hell it's Barry Horne"
He said: "How do you know me?"
I said: "We've just won the FA Cup and you were playing. You're one of my hero's."
So that's when I knew things were weird. Barry Horne asking to say hello to me.

Blue Kipper: How do you deal with the fame thing?

Damon Minchella: I'm not that famous. I find it funny. I used to work in Tesco's in the cold meats department and I've been on the dole. So It goes with the job and it's a good job. I never get that much. I get my side of it. You get people who are interested. But you get some of the people I'm in bands with Gallaghers and Weller. You see the arsey side of it. But they kind of love it aswell. Maybe that's why I'm a bass player and a goalie. I like to be in the team. I don't want to be in the front.

Blue Kipper: Do the other members of the band follow football?

Damon Minchella: Oh yeah! Whitey's a big Charlton fan. We have a bit of banter. Paul says he's a Chelsea fan. But he wouldn't be able to tell you anything from say the sixties.