He has a hardness in his eyes while his songs are sensitive and true. I first heard his Baker Street album during my folk festival days, with its' soaring sax and hard-hitting lyrics. Then he had a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic with "Stuck in the Middle With You."
He always refused to play the big Label game and refers to this in this hit song with the lyrics - 'Clowns to the Left of me, Jokers to the right...' . He never toured in the US, even while this song had No 1 Radio airplay. In a sense Rafferty was full of those Scottish contradictions with his strengths and weaknesses. He was from Paisley and sadly died early this year from alcohol related illness. His funeral was held at St Mirin's Cathedral in Paisley and attended by the first minister Alex Salmon.http://www.gerryrafferty.com/
ArtWorks Scotland - Gerry Rafferty: Right Down the Line - BBC 2 Scotland Documentary aired August 2011
Where are the great singer songwriters of today? They are still here (I hope), they are simply hard to find these days and seem to be buried in a sea of 'commercialism' with over-hype, instant sound-bites, over-production and glossy videos. A telling moment on a recent BBC show was simply Simon and guitar on the Parkinson show. The creative genius behind great music, bands and orchestras is simply this and to find the heart of great art requires it is 'stripped back' to basics.
What are the best songs of the past 2 decades that compare to the great songs of the 60s? I was making myself a playlist of favourite songs and I was struggling to think of songs from the 90s and noughties that will last the tests of time...? Names that came into my mind were Radiohead, Arcade Fire and Coldplay - all bands. Many great singer songwriters started off in bands - Richard Thompson ( Fairport Convention), Rafferty (Humbelbums), McCartney (the Beatles), Simon (Simon and Garfunkle)...more. Perhaps it is easier to find your artistic voice through collaborating. I know it can take years for classics to emerge.
Culture has changed, the internet has given us access to instant media-music. In the 60s music was more of an investment of our time and money and involved a trip to the Record Shop! I feel certain there are advantages to online streaming but drawbacks too. It was a big deal for 50s artists when they were able to hear the blues legends on the radio. So the advancement of the new technologies means that all the arts can now develop at a much faster pace than ever before. Yet the young people seem to crave nostalgia...
Does the proliferation of Talent Shows these days (both local and on tv) have a lot to answer for when they are mainly about producing musical performers and are not about the craft of the songwriter. I guess there is still the folk scene for singer songwriters. Many say that their music is rooted in traditional folk music - for example Dylan drew on Woody Guthrie, and Elton on Leon Russell.
I worry though that the arts are loosing the 'heart' of what makes art or music truly great and unforgettable in their rush to pursue the business side of it all. Reflecting on music and songs of recent times I began to wonder is there not much 'substance' or heart behind much of it, that tells me something new emotionally I've not heard a million times before? To quote Rab Noakes - ' a future with no past has no idea'.
Singer-songwriting is about finding your own unique voice.
Last week the BBC4 ran a show BBC Singer Songwriters. On my list were many on this show - Joni, Rab Noakes, Rafferty, Paul Simon, Cohen.. all there. Those were simpler times back then. Great acoustic music is still here, it is just hard to find it these days : )
Last week the BBC4 ran a show BBC Singer Songwriters. On my list were many on this show - Joni, Rab Noakes, Rafferty, Paul Simon, John Martyn, Cohen.. all there. Those were simpler times back then. Great acoustic music is still here, it is just hard to find it these days : )
PS - Are older singer-songwriters doing enough to encourage and offer platforms for the younger artists?
I include a clip of Joni Mitchell on the BBC. Joni is probably my biggest inspiration for singer songwriters.
This blog is mostly about music, but it is also about how music and words/lyrics/poetry and art work together. While I enjoy Mozart, the music I enjoy most is also about the music and power of words. Edinburgh Festival is quite unique as it celebrates all forms of creativity in a major way - from the silent performance movement of the award winning fringe show LEO, the music of the Edge and the main International Festival, it's Arts festivals and theatre and drama all abound here. 2,500 shows at 250 venues over 3 to 4 weeks, over one million visitors.
Some of the authors at EIBF were also musicians and artists. For example Norwegian author Jo Nesbo who is known internationally for his crime novels and who also writes songs for the band Di Derre. Also Nobel prize winner for Literature from ChinaGoa Xingjian. He is a writer, poet, playwright and painter. Gao describes himself as a 'total artist' creating novels, short stories, essays, plays, paintings and film. His 'Ballad Nocturne' continues his ongoing experimentation with dissolving and redefining artistic boundaries, and with melding aesthetic forms. After speaking out against the cultural revolution he now lives in exile in France, in his Second Life. As happened in Russia, the 'free thinkers' and the creative people have had to flee China.
Revolutionary change and times was the main theme for the EIBF this year. Change is not simply a good but also a necessary thing. Which begs the question - why have recent years seen such an upsurge in revolutionary thinking. Is it Twitter and Facebook!? Those who are saying 'NO' - this isn't working and we want a better way.
The Debates (the Spoken Word). This year the EIBF started doing Debates each evening and I went to the one on 'Scottish Independence' The speakers were Ming Campbell, Mike Russell SNP, and articulate historian Neal Ascherson. The main issue became around one of a hope for Forward Optimism.(refer to another Blog later for this debate). Fun comes in many guises and I had a fun time at the Debate as I reflected on the power of words. And on how words and music together have the most powerful effective over our memories and emotions.
My best images often come when the shoot has a buzz about it and where the author is either up for having portraits taken or has outstanding depth of character.
Karin Altenberg
Candia McWilliam
A good portrait is about the character of the sitter and their stories. This year I took photos of Irish writer Edna O'Brien, eccentric character and artist John Byrne, Chinese writer and artist Gao Xingjian, presenter Joan Bakewell, 'Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh, footballer John Hartson, playwright and artist John Byrne, Scottish national poet Liz Lochhead, actor Simon Callow, writer Neil Gaiman, journalist John Valliant, The English Patient author Michael Ondaatje, comedy writer Rowland Rivron, feminist Badisha, writer Karin Altenberg, as well a Philosophers, politicians and other creative thinkers. MORE AUTHORS images on my Photographic Blog - http://musicfootnote.blogspot.com/ and website - http://pkimage.co.uk/
--> This vibrant colourful band had bare feet, warm hearts and large smiles. Their purpose was to have us all smiling and dancing! The Raghu Dixit Project brought colour and Indian dance to the Oran Mor Glasgow with strong musicianship and Dixit's striking vocals. I had heard Rahu Dixit's band first on the Jools Holland BBC tv show last year when he sang No man will ever love you like I do, and Raghu's voice could melt a thousand hearts... They hadn't managed over for Celtic Connections in January due to visa problems and Rahu said that they were happy to have made Glasgow this time.
They carried the audience with them and it was all great fun. The band were all accomplished musicians both guitar and violin players added strong energetic playing to the mix. Their set included songs from their album - I'm in Mombai waiting for a miracle, No man will ever love you like I do, Mysore se aayi, Hey Bhagwan, and Gudugudiya. Their songs covered themes that were true to the heart such as - we all have a second chance in life and how well all have more strength than we realise and that we should lead our lives in a simple way. Raghu said what a big deal playing Jools Holland had been yet he felt the song his manager requested him to sing did not so well represent the breadth of his music. He said how well their album had been selling on iTunes ever since. They have brought in modern western musical influences to their playing of their traditional Indian songs. While their sound is mostly upbeat with energetic dancing rhythms which work great at the gigs to get everyone bouncing along, I often feel that it is the haunting slower melodies that linger in the mind the longest afterwards. I wondered as the venue was not packed out that the tickets price was more than the usual price for a relatively unknown band at this venue. Raghu spoke of the hopes that we might one day all dance the same dance, well we certainly did tonight! They were well supported by Adam Stearns, a young Glasgow artist I recommend checking out. The Raghu Dixit Project was founded by Raghu Dixit is an open house for musicians and artistes from different genres to come together, collaborate and create a dynamic sound and expression. He is from MysoreIndia and he is the front man for his band The Raghu Dixit Project. His music is an amalgamation of Indian ethnic music and various world music influences. Dixit is also a Microbiologist and a proficient Indian classical dancer . He performed on the Jools Holland show in 2010.
1. Hey Bhagwan
2. Gudugudiya Sedi Nodo
3. No Man Will Ever Love You, Like I Do
4. Lokada Kalaji
5. Kodagana Koli Nungitha
6. Well I'm In Mumbai, Waiting for A Miracle
7. Khidki
8. Har Saans Mein
9. Mysore Se Aayi
