Blue Rose Code and Caledonia Soul Voices, Queens hall

I missed his guitar playing, but the song selection was fab – long live Celtic Soul! .

Tonight’s Fringe show was a celebration of Caledonia soul voices (in association with Made in Scotland)

Blue Rose Code, aka Ross Wilson, played a full on, energetic set of a classy selection of soul-influenced Celtic songs and with a quality line up of Duke Special, Eddi Reader, Julie Fowlis and Hamish Stuart of the Average White band. I first heard Ross last year at my local folk club and became a fan after hearing his authentic and charged soul voice. Born in Edinburgh, Ross has also been south for several years and now returned to his home town, for which he has written his homage song Edina.

Ross showed us his major musical influences tonight, in the perfect surrounding of the Queens hall – in this celebration of soul and Celtic music - and he has great taste! His firm favourites being legends John Martyn, from Glasgow and London, and Van the Man from Belfast (and the deep south influences). Both mix great bass rhythms with perfect expressive soul voices.  

Ross was clearly up for enjoying this packed show and he was sporting new look longer hair and no beard!  He was backed by a full 14-piece band with a string section. He performed some of his own songs, as well as his soul selection. He finished the first set with John Martyn’s, I Only Want to Know About Love. Then in the second set his well loved song, Edina morphed into the Proclaimers ever popular, My Heart.  

Eddi Reader treated us to an upbeat Perfect. It was another joy to hear accomplished guitarist Hamish Stuart, who performed My Fathers Son and a memorable No More Days. While Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis sang, I Just can’t Get Over You (from the film Garden State) and she knows how to take a song on an emotional and intimate journey.  

BRC spoke of John Martyn’s ‘killing it’, and how seeing him live inspired him to be a soul singer too. Ross said, for him the best Van Morrison album was his live 1975 one and his Caledonia soul orchestra. Ross has an ear for the deep emotion of a song, that catches your breath. And none other than Martyn’s double bass player Danny Thompson played on his album.

For the full encore line up finale we enjoyed the cool vibes of renowned Edwyn Collin’s hit song, I Never met a Girl Like you Before, and an inspired version of Van Morrison's Crazy Love - and of course an exhilarating version of the Average White Band’s Pick up the Pieces! 

What a fun night!  Top marks. Thanks Ross.

Postscript: 

A few nights later legendary queen of soul Aretha Franklin died, sadly BRC hadn’t included any Aretha songs!

Van Morrison grew up listening to his dad’s collection of blues and R & B records.  – and mixed his Celtic and soul influences to create a unique soul genre and fusion: when the poignant Celtic moods and stories mixed with the riffs, vibes and relaxed R & B. Along with the improvisation and instinctiveness of the live musicianship of jazz.  

Ross has worked with renowned Gaelic singers Julie Fowlis, Kathleen MacInnes, BBC Folk Award Winner, Ross Ainslie, 2017’s Scottish Jazz Awards’ instrumentalist of the year Konrad Wiszniewski, leading violinist Seonaid Aitken and three of Scotland's finest jazz musicians; John Lowrie, Colin Steele and James Lindsay. His album ‘THE BALLADS OF PECKHAM RYE’, was nominated for SAY awards 2014 (Scottish Album Of The Year) and featured Danny Thompson, Karine Polwart, John Wetton, Aidan O’Rourke and Kathryn Williams.  He can be heard on BBC (TV and Radio), STV, Alba, TG4, Virgin Radio. He has toured the length of the UK to sold out venues and to festivals Celtic Connections, Edinburgh Fringe, Looe, Summer Isles, Lindisfarne, Southern Fried, Underneath The stars.

Exploring Hebridean Isles: on the Edge

chapel Saint Barr on Barra

boat Oban to Barra

beach on south Uist

We took the Oban ferry to Castlebay on the isle of Barra. On the edge of exploring the whipped dark blue seas held time aloft and the tides carries us across. The bright westward skies shone brightly as we sailed oe’r swells and past looming mountains….

To the edge of Scotia’s Western Isles, to their stunning and varied landscapes, beaches, rocky outcrops, purple mountains, and a haven for wildlife, the roar of the Atlantic surrounds all here.  

This is a place of strong contradictions – from rugged coastlines, to the largest stretches of clear white sands and turquoise waters; and in the late light the bluest softest hues. 

I read of the great Bards and Myth makers. I read of the crofters forced to leave their homelands for unknown fates in far away lands – to Canada, to Indian reservations and not to the farms that had been promised and of how they missed the Atlantic seas.  At the  Castlebay museum I read of Father John MacMillan.  North Uist and south Uist are Protestant and Catholic – and they get along! 

Caisteal Chiosmull castle Barra

And the great war devastated these islands. Before the war Barra was the centre for the herring industry. The war meant all the young men left to fight in the navy. Then in 1921, 22, 23 there was UK government sponsorship to leave the islands. (to populate the colonies with white people)  The population went from 3,700 to 1,800.  Some managed to return, and some died on the journey. I read of the clan chief Macdonald in Edinburgh and his deciding on the fate of those living on the island. I read of Colonel Gordon of Cluny who bought the islands and ordered the clearances to make way for sheep over people.

Vatersay beach

Barra airport

Barra has a 17th century castle Caisteal Chiosmull castle, at the entrance to its bay at Castelbay, owned by the McNeills. Similar to other islands, the drive on the west coast has picture perfect sandy beaches, and the drive on the east coast is rocky and more mountainous. To the north lies the only beach with scheduled flights and we had lunch at the café here.

Out on the peninsula we found the small chapel of Saint Barr.  South of Barra, lies the quiet island of Vatersay connected by a small bridge. We took photos at what could have been a tropical island, although there was cool there. Another photographer told us of the shrine to Eilidh MacLeod, who lost her life a year ago at the Manchester bombing. So sad she left this beautiful place to die at the Arianna Grande concert.

Vatersay

We then took the small ferry over the often difficult crossing to Eriskay and  Uist. Uist has large mountains on it east. We found the bonny location for the Polochar Inn and the drive over the causeways., funded by the EU.  We visited the interesting Uist museum which told the stories of the forced evictions to Canada. There was the nature reserve  to protect endangered birds such as corncrakes. This is part of an important European Conservation Machair environment, conservation, project to save endangered spices. I wondered, will the UK fund and set up a UK Conservation Machair project, after Brexit?

Uist beach

waves at nature reserve Uist

Early on the Friday we headed across on the carefully manoeuvred crossing to the more prosperous isle of Harris. Harris is the most developed Western isles. I had expected it to be more isolated and remote than Lewis. The Harris beaches on the west coast look out over the welcoming Atlantic and are well worth photographing. Tarbert is nestled in its northern mountains – a ferry port with Harris Gin and Harris Tweed shops. Then we took the treacherous Gold Road over the rocky eastern side and stayed at the beautifully renovated old school house.

On Lewis its worth visiting its historic sites – the Callanais stones, the blackhouse village, the Carloway Broche.  Then we headed for the port of Stornaway - it was a Sunday and all was closed except for the church and one hotel - and took the modern Caledonian McBrae ferry, which was like a floating cafeteria, back to the picturesque highland town of Ullapool.

the Callanais stones on Lewis

Ullapool

Carloway Broche

Dougie MacLean at Milngavie folk club

‘Dougie captured the mood with his embracing warm and spiritual voice’

He has become something of a legend for many in Scotland and his songs have deep connections to the land. Dougie grew up in Perthshire where he now runs the MacLean Perthshire Amber festival – his grandfather was a shepherd and his father a gardener. Both his parents taught him the love of music – his mother played melodeon and his father fiddle. His family came from Mull, where they were crofters. Dougie now runs the old school both he and is father attended, as his studio.

For his first set he sang songs from his new album, 'New Tomorrow’ along with older favourites -   

‘Shadow of the Mountain’, ‘Talking with my Father’ when he spoke of his father walking over the moors to school. He spoke of his travels to gig at many far flung places. He sang of the ‘Singing Land’ (Shine on Your Singing Tree), 'Holding On', 'Feel So Near', and 'Holding Back'.

And a moving song too to his grandson ‘New Tomorrow’ with the words – If time will be our friend / I’ll help you to defend/ Your new tomorrows. If fear should enter in /You’ll find me hiding in the wings / Ever near you.

He sang ‘Broken Wings’ at the start of his second set and ‘Child of this Place.'  We all sang along to - Will you Catch me if I’m Falling ‘On This Wild and Windy Night’, Dougie enthusiastically encourages his audience to sing his choruses.His songs are often poignant and tender. And we sang his well loved 'Caledonia’, and ‘She Loves me when I’m Gone’. 

His Encore song was ‘This Love will Carry me.' 

His ’Caledonia’ has become part of Scottish culture – and is sung at weddings, major events and played at the Edinburgh Tattoo. He wrote this song while on a French beach and thinking of his Scottish homeland. He is also a passionate supporter of freedom for Scotland. One fan spoke of the emotions at Stirling castle Hogmanay event a few years ago when Dougie played Caledonia at the new year and hoped that Westminster might hear the singing!

Dougie knows the beauty of keeping things simple – with catchy choruses and also hidden depths.

the Friel Sisters

 *He was ably supported by the award-winning and talented Friel Sisters – whose roots are in Ireland’s Donegal. They included a quality guitarist from Japan.