You don’t last 40 years in music without figuring out what works. For Paul Carrack—who’s quietly built one of the most consistent, underrated careers in pop and soul—that means doing things his way. His new album, Soul Shadows, doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it doesn’t need to. It owns the wheel. And Carrack’s still behind it, steering with unshakable confidence and a smirk that says, “Yes, I know it sounds familiar. That’s the point.”
“I like the same old, same old,” he sings on the record. “Which, you know, is kind of true,” he chuckles. “That line started as a bit of nonsense in a jam session with my son on drums. But I thought, ‘Yeah, why not?’ I made a song out of it.”
That blend of humility and confidence pretty much sums up Carrack’s vibe. After decades of being the guy behind the mic on hits by Ace (“How Long”), Squeeze (“Tempted”), and Mike + the Mechanics (“The Living Years”), Carrack has carved out a sturdy solo career in the UK, releasing roughly one record a year. “I’ve got a good little cottage industry going,” he says, not without pride. “I’m not trying to reinvent anything. I just follow my instincts and try to have fun.”
But that doesn’t mean he’s standing still. In recent years, Carrack joined Eric Clapton on the road—something he says did more for his confidence than any hit single. “You’ve got Steve Gadd, Steve Jordan, Nathan East, Willie Weeks, Eric himself... to feel like you belong with players like that? Yeah, it lifts your self-esteem a bit.”
Still, Carrack remains self-deprecating about the creative process. He admits he’s a lazy writer, but says when it’s time to make a record, he locks in. “I’ll put down little ideas on my phone, but I tend to write all at once when the time comes. If I force it, it doesn’t work.”
As for Soul Shadows, it’s rooted in the same American soul music he’s loved since his youth. “I’m an English guy, but that’s where I naturally go,” he says. “I’m not making a pastiche. It just rubs off on you.”
The result is a record that manages to be both comfortable and vital. Songs like “Keep on Lovin’ You” and “One in a Million” feel like they’ve always existed, nestled somewhere between Memphis and Muscle Shoals, by way of Sheffield. Even Spotify took notice—“One in a Million” racked up a couple million streams. “Unbelievable, really,” Carrack says. “I mean, I’ve done the Spotify debate a million times. As a fan, I love it. As an artist? Well... it’s complicated. But exposure’s exposure.”
Live shows, though, remain the real bread and butter. “That’s where people show up,” he says. “We did Glastonbury—our stage held about 6,000 or 7,000 people. Art Garfunkel went on after us. That’s some heritage, right?” Carrack laughs. “We had the whole crowd singing ‘How Long’ and ‘Over My Shoulder.’ It was brilliant.”
Still, he’s wary of becoming a “retro act.” His focus remains on the now—new records, new material, and keeping the catalog moving forward. “It’s important for me to have my own body of work,” he says. “Yeah, I was a part of those bands, but I’ve built something on my own now. I’ve put the legwork in.”
And the legwork hasn’t always been glamorous. At one point, Carrack’s entire gear haul was stolen while on tour. The twist? He got it all back—after appearing on the UK’s Crimewatch TV show. “They found one of my guitars in the house of a guy they were investigating for a different crime,” Carrack says, still sounding amazed. “Led them to a whole lock-up full of our stuff. They didn’t even know what they’d stolen.”
So what now? Carrack’s upgraded his home studio, spent a lot of money on it, and—by his own admission—has no plans to stop. Touring the U.S. still feels like a logistical pipe dream (“It’s just too vast”), but he’s game if someone makes it work. “We’ve got a real good band. Just tell me where to play.”
And in the meantime, he’ll keep doing what he’s always done—writing the occasional classic, singing with soul, and proudly loving the same old, same old.
Listen to the interview above and then check out the videos below.
