When 18 year old Mark Watson met the American jazz musician and poet Gil Scott-Heron after a gig in Liverpool in 1984 little did he realise that the star was going to play such an important role in his life.
Mark had just been released from 9 years in the care system and could barely read or write. Nevertheless he WAS streetwise and blagged his way into the backstage area of the Royal Court theatre in the hope of shaking Gil's hand and praising him for his performance.
Something about Mark's character affected Gil and he invited him to become a roadie with the band and over the years their relationship blossomed and Gil became his friend and mentor.
Fast forward to 2022 and Malik al Nasir ( Mark changed his name when converting to Islam 30 years ago) is doing a PhD at Cambridge University and has just released a book - Letters to Gil - describing the impact Gil had on his life and telling HIS story about how the musician saved him where the care system in the UK had failed.
Malik is this month's guest in the Misadventures in Music podcast with Ian Prowse and Mick Ord - both huge Gil fans.
It's a genuinely astounding story about generosity of spirit and the power of music."
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