HE played his punk rock hero Joe Strummer in the blockbuster biopic Bob Marley: One Love.
Now Nashville and Humans star Sam Palladio, 37, is focusing on his own music career and the release of his electric new single Tennessee.
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The boisterously rocking production, a collaboration with singer-songwriter Ed Harcourt, is a star-studded affair from top to bottom.
Lead guitar duties are handled by none other than Foo Fighters axeman Chris Shiflett, while the Spaghetti Western music video functions Vampire Diaries stars Nashville's Candice King and Jonathan Jackson.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun, Sam said: “I wanted to make a tune that kind of resonated with my kind of American experience.
“I've had that riff in my back pocket for a few years. I'm not really a lead guitarist or anything, but I had that riff and I was [like] “Oh man, something is coming out of this.” So I brought that into the session, plus that kind of chorus idea for Tennessee.”
For the past decade, Nashville has been home to Sam from Cornwall and he became a huge TV star as aspiring musician Gunnar Scott in the country music drama Nashville for six seasons of drama.
So it only seemed right to pay his respects to the city on his debut album.
“Nashville itself has been an incredibly welcoming city and a place where I have felt inspired and safe,” Sam said. “And so a little part of the storyline is almost like retreating from bright Hollywood to the South to find my Southern.” girl and light some fires there.”
The storyline has fire in the belly and so does the guitar work with audio flames sparking from the frets of Foo Fighter Shiflett.
Sam says: “I had met [Chris] through a good friend of mine, Danny Rowe, who grew up with Chris.
“So I ended up going to some Foo Fighters concerts with Danny and I met Chris, the sweetest man in the world. And when I was putting this song together, I thought this needs a ripping solo. We fuzzed out some need guitars. Kind of like a Foo Fighters… Well, maybe Chris [laughs]. So I just called Chris and he said, 'I'd love to.'
“And then sent me back all these incredible guitars and this guitar solo that was an untouched perfect combination of one take, kind of an alternative sound, but a little bit of country in his choice, and that's what he does really well.”
Tennessee is a dramatic change from Sam's previous release, Something on my Mind, a moving tribute to his mother Sally who died in 2018 from a brain tumor.
It prompted Sam to take a break from acting for a year as he grieved his mother and came to terms with the loss.
He says, “That was a big thing in my life and very monumental. I took a year to deal with that process and then I realized, 'Okay, I have something else I want to sing about and something that's really is very bad.' close to home' and then came the conscious decision to go to Britain, back home to Cornwall, to write with British collaborators, and for some reason I suddenly felt very British and wanted to honor my mother.
“This whole record is honestly about my mom, so it's funny that it took so many years, but then I feel like now I have something I want to sing about and there are so many other shades on the record And that's why it's taking so long.”
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RIOT ACT
This year Sam came full circle when he appeared on the big screen as the late Clash frontman Strummer.
In the film, which grossed more than $177 million worldwide, the band gives Bob Marley his first taste of snarling punk after arriving in London.
Inspired by the chaos of The Clash real life performance at the Rainbow Theater Following the release of their debut album, Sam tore through a riveting rendition of White Riot and had a blast doing so.
His casting as a socially conscious musician came 13 years after he played Strummer in his first TV role in Kathy Burke's episode of Skyanthology Little Crackers.
Looking back on his cameo in One Love, Sam says: “I was just happy to make the movie, man. That day was one of those days where I was lucky enough to be a very small part of a bigger story.”
Sam had prepared a powerful speech for Joe to deliver from the stage, but when it came time to shoot the scene, he discovered that it had been deleted.
He said: “So there was one originally Nice small piece of text I had been working on during the concert series in which Joe gave a kind of political speech to the audience.
“Bob is in the crowd absorbing the '70s punk rock ethos that's happening in Britain at the time and it was one of those moments where I would show up and 'okay, here are your scenes for today.'
“It was a bit of a shame, but like I said, I was glad I kept going in the end and I really enjoyed the physicality of it.”
Music is at the forefront of Sam's plans. As an independent artist, he has put a lot into his debut album, both creatively and financially.
He describes the upcoming release as “genre-fluid” with elements of Britpop in it, as well as the country music he is associated with.
Outlining his ambitions for the year ahead, he said: “I would love to break into the UK festival scene with this summer, next one summer, just hit the road and I've got some great supporters with me BBC Radio 2. If I could get some of these songs on the radio great.
“I've already collaborated on this album with someone who's one of my favorite musicians of all time, so I'm feeling pretty good. I've already checked one of my favorites, so maybe I'll do some touring with them.”
After a decade of honing his craft, it finally seems like Sam's time to shine.
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