Ian Gregson and Manny Albeury reflect on their Northern Soul beginnings, creative chemistry, and the musical partnership that continues to evolve.
For Vancouver-based Mr M & The All Nighters, making music has always been about exploring new ideas rather than following a predictable path. Led by Ian Gregson, the project has grown from its Northern Soul-inspired beginnings into a creative partnership with saxophonist Manny Albeury, bringing together two musicians with decades of experience and a shared enthusiasm for experimentation.
Founded in 2006, the project’s name was inspired by Mr M’s, the legendary side room at England’s Wigan Casino, a venue closely connected to Northern Soul culture. Early recordings reflected that influence, but Ian’s musical ambitions eventually took the project in a more personal direction.
Instead of simply recreating familiar sounds, he began using them as starting points for original compositions, breaking down musical ideas and rebuilding them into something entirely different.
Mr M & The All Nighters Interview: Creative Chemistry
A significant chapter in the band’s story began in 2014, when Ian connected with saxophonist Manny Albeury through his live band.
Originally from Dartford in East London, Manny brought an extensive musical background to the collaboration, including studying under jazz saxophonist Don Rendell and touring the UK and Europe with rock band Abacus.
Having both grown up in England before building their lives in Canada, the two musicians quickly discovered common ground.
What began as an experiment to record a few songs has since developed into a partnership spanning approximately 50 recordings.
Their approach has evolved along the way. While Manny initially contributed saxophone parts to compositions Ian had already written, the music gradually became more collaborative, with Ian creating arrangements specifically around Manny’s distinctive playing style.
The result is a partnership where guitar, saxophone, and electronic elements each have room to shape the music.
Mr M & The All Nighters Interview: Exploring New Musical Directions
The duo’s creative approach is rooted in curiosity. A rhythm, melody, or atmosphere might spark an idea, but the finished composition can end up somewhere entirely unexpected.
Their recordings move between energetic rock and more reflective instrumental passages, with both musicians bringing their individual experiences into the process.
That willingness to experiment remains central to the project, allowing Ian and Manny to continue discovering new musical possibilities together.
Following the release of their latest single “I’m Not Scared” and the Flying High project, Mr M & The All Nighters continue building on a musical partnership that shows no signs of slowing down.
Readers can also explore our review of Mr M & The All Nighters’ single “Johnny Drama” for a closer look at their music.
Five Questions With Mr M & The All Nighters
We caught up with Mr M & The All Nighters to discuss their musical beginnings, the creative connection between Ian Gregson and Manny Albeury, and what continues to inspire their evolving sound.
Your journey has taken you from Lancashire, England, to Vancouver, representing Canada at two Paralympic Games, working in film and television, and eventually forming Mr M & The All Nighters. Looking back, how have those different chapters of your life shaped the musician and storyteller you are today?
The different chapters have certainly provided a lot of experiences that can convert in to music. Whether it be personal relationships, politics, travelling around the globe or just spending the first 20 years of your life in a place where music was the thing [and yes I lived through the hot summer punk in 1976]. Combine the experiences with the ability to convert them in to music and lyrics is the fun part.
You’ve spent more than 25 years working on productions ranging from The X-Files and Supernatural to Twilight and Fire Country. What has that experience taught you about chasing creative dreams, dealing with rejection, and finding success on your own terms?
Working in the film industry taught me a lot of things. Collaborations can work; film is a team effort but it can also be the downfall of any given project. So it is vitally important to work with people who share your vision and are willing to work towards its successful outcome. That’s where my good friend Manny Albeury comes in on sax. I had 50 or so people in Mr M over the years when it was a true Northern Soul tribute band, some stayed for weeks, months or years.
Ian, here’s something people might not know: Mr M & The All Nighters actually worked on the 2012 movie This Means War, starring Chris Pine, Reese Witherspoon, and Tom Hardy. How did a Vancouver rock band end up involved in a Hollywood action-comedy, and what exactly were you doing on set?
I was able to wrangle a few band members to “play” in the film. Tom Hardy wasn’t really well known at that point. Chris Pine was about to be the new Captain James T Kirk, but we didn’t know that on the day. Chris came up to the stage and asked to play my almost brand new 2007 G&L ASAT, I did reluctantly. I mean he was just some actor at that point. However, I have often since bragged about how Captain James T Kirk played that instrument. Turns out he had been a singer and guitar player in a real life band and had starred in Small Town Saturday Night in 2010
We have to ask about November 2002, when a chance encounter with fellow Lancashire native Sir Ian McKellen reportedly changed the way you viewed your future in the film industry. What happened during that meeting, and why did it leave such a lasting impression?
This was pure opportunism on my part. I knew Sir Ian was in town filming X Men 2 so I wasn’t surprised to see him at the Dame Edna show. I walked up bolds brass and introduced myself as Ian from Wigan which caught his attention, since he also is an Ian from Wigan. I was working at SFU at the time and he told me they wanted to film at the university but SFU had a no filming policy after major damage had been done to their iconic steps by Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “The Sixth Day”. A few weeks later Sir Ian hosted a seminar for the Fine Performing Arts Dept at SFU and by some coincidence the university scrapped their ban on productions shortly thereafter. I ended up filming there on a few shows myself after I left the university sector.
Your previous single, “Johnny Drama,” was inspired by Kevin Dillon’s character in Entourage and your own experiences in the Vancouver film industry. What was it about that character that connected with you so strongly, and how did those feelings eventually become a song?
I found Johnny Drama such a sad yet inspirational character that was consistently banging his head against the wall. I guess I identified with that aspect significantly. Then when he finally got the gig of a lifetime [playing an angry animated gorilla] he initially thought it wasn’t for him.
There are two shows that I strongly encourage new actors and background performers to watch. 1. Entourage and 2. Ricky Gervais in Extras. Both fairly accurate in their portrayal of the industry.
I originally wrote the lyrics back when the show was first aired 2014 or so. My songwriting and singing skills were a little raw at the time, but I kept going back it over the years. The track is based off the Thin Lizzy classic “Johnny the Fox meets Jimmy the Weed” but I could never get the funky Brian Downey beat where I wanted it. A few years ago Thin Lizzy released “1976” that contained all the demo versions from Jailbreak and Johnny the Fox, including a basic demo version of the track that inspired me. The beat was a lot more clear in this demo version and so I resurrected the song and added the sax from Manny and a fresh set of improvised vocals.
Your upcoming project, Flying High, arrives November 6 and draws inspiration from everything from personal relationships to world events and television. Was there a particular experience or creative spark that set this collection of songs in motion?
The whole project came about due to my collaboration with sax player Manny Albeury. Initially, it was just a couple of songs then it blossomed over 2025 and 2026 in to about 50 tunes. I just kept going further and further back in my recordings are redoing them and adding Manny’s sax. Most of the tunes on the release are brand new but the next release will probably feature the “new old stock” tunes.
One of the interesting things about Mr M & The All Nighters is the freedom to move between guitar-driven rock, atmospheric electronics, and jazz-influenced saxophone. How do you decide which musical direction a particular song should take, and how does Manny Albeury’s saxophone influence that process?
I think the 40 or more years as a collector of music, on-air dj and the general need to listen to new things came out in the music itself. If you listen to guys like Steve Hillage, Bill Nelson, Ultravox, David Sylvian they all have this guitar and synth vibe that I have admired over the decades. But it was Manny’s sax playing that lifted everything to another level. Having such a raw acoustic instrument took the guitar and synth vibe some place else. It kind of echoed Dark Side of The Moon in some ways but also bands like the original Colosseum and CCS where jazz and rock fused together.
Having experienced the worlds of competitive athletics, film, television, and music, you’ve seen several sides of the entertainment and creative industries. What advice would you give someone pursuing an artistic dream who might be struggling with setbacks or wondering whether to keep going?
For me personally competing in sport led me to me to playing music with certain level of stubbornness. Its a basic human trait if you train yourself you generally improve over time. I applied that to music when I made a new century resolution to myself in 1999. I told myself I would stick to music, get better at it, develop my talent and see where it would take me. Sadly, my dedication to music led to the end of my first marriage. Opposingly, my second wife strongly encouraged me to get more involved in music and so I formed Mr M & The All Nighters in 2007. My advice to anyone in music or sport is simply believe in your own inherent talent and skills regardless of their initial quality or general appeal. I don’t come from an athletic or musical family, so neither activity is in my DNA. Just be patient with your progress, its not a sprint its a marathon. Coincidentally, I recently took up Gravel Bike racing a totally new activity; so my appetite for athleticism is also on its own path, somewhat parallel to my music.
With “Johnny Drama” introducing listeners to Flying High, what are you most excited for people to discover when the full project arrives on November 6, and what might be next for Mr M & The All Nighters?
I’ve been making and playing music for over 20 years now. I only got the original music bug back in 2013 or so after writing a Northern Soul influenced tune called “Silver Shoes” My band played this one original song in a set of Northern Soul covers yet to see people dancing to my song just knocked me over and sent me on a totally different musical path. Flying High is part of the musical journey I am on and I invite anyone and everyone to hitch on to it and join me, it will be a fun ride. I should also mention “I’m Not Scared” will be released October 20, its an atmospheric instrumental, a very different vibe to Johnny Drama.
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