Alistair Griffin - Songwriting

Songwriting

Griffin's songs cover a wide range of genres, from light pop and romantic ballads to anthemic rock. After recording several demos, he obtained a publishing deal with Trevor Horn's Perfect Songs. He has also co-written songs with a number of other artists, including James Hearn, Michael Harwood, Nick Keynes and Jon O'Mahony of Ultra, Robin Gibb, singer/songwriter Richard Chance, Liverpudlian songwriting duo, Chris and Tony Griffiths (ex Britpop band The Real People) and Paul Banks, (ex Shed Seven).

In 2002, "Fade Away", one of several songs co-written with Stuart Hanna, was shortlisted for the Song for Europe competition. That year Griffin also co-wrote the football anthem "England Crazy" which was recorded by Rider and Terry Venables. He also recorded his own version of the Boro anthem "Stand Up", which was included in the compilation album Boro Songs - The Sound Of The Riverside.

Although largely ignored as a singer/songwriter by the British music establishment since his appearance on Fame Academy (that he now describes as a 'double-edged sword'), several covers of his earlier songs have achieved notable chart success in the Netherlands. "You and Me" appears on the #1 album Impressed released in 2003 by Jim Bakkum, runner-up in the Dutch series of Pop Idol; Do’s ballad "Angel By My Side" (co-written with James and Tom Martin) reached the Dutch top 10 in 2004 and "Hungry For Love" (co-written with Greg Fitzgerald and Tom Nichols) was covered by rock band Di-rect, getting to number 3 early in 2005.

Griffin's debut album, "Bring It On" consisted mainly of songs that he wrote or co-wrote before being signed. During his time in Fame Academy he also co-wrote several new songs with the students and the songwriters on the show. "Painkiller", (co-written with Greg Fitzgerald and Tom Nichols) along with " A Heart Can't Lie", co-written with fellow student, Louise Griffiths both appeared on his debut album.

He has also written and co-written songs for albums by Phixx (2004), Ultra (2006), Bel's Boys (2007), and Cascada (2009).

In 2005 he resumed his writing partnership with James and Tom Martin. He has since recorded new versions of several of these songs with Albion, which were made available as free downloads on MySpace in 2007.