Dougie McLean Milngavie Folk Club June 30 2012

Dougie was magic. He was on good form and like a choir master he really got everyone singing in full voice.  

This event took place to an expectant and warmly enthusiastic Milngavie Town Hall audience. Some were clearly die-hard McLean fans and some had travelled long journeys for the gig.
Premier Scottish songwriter is best known for his song Caledonia which has become part of Scottish culture and is often performed at weddings and played by pipebands. He also wrote the theme The Gael for the The Last of the Mohicans (1992).

McLean performed songs from his 2012 album Resolution, as well as some of his large back catalogue. He gave us a full two entertaining sets of his warm thoughtful songs.

He began with the song Holding Back - 'a wee song about contentment' he said. (there may well have been a few more songs I didn't manage to get the title of).

First Set: Holding Back/ Don’t Look Down/ Another Time/ Loving One (She Loves me when I'm gone, She thinks about me when I'm gone)/ Some Hearts/
Second Set: Resolution/ Not Look Down/ Scythe Song/ In Darkness/ Broken Wings/ Caledonia/ For his encore he sang the song You Sing Loud (Shine on, oh shine on over me) 
 
He encouraged us to sing and he said that people were never passive in Scottish music - he explained that they joined in and that is why the old folk songs had so many refrains. For the song Some Hearts he conducted our singing and he suggested we sang with more harmonies.

He also spoke about how music can heal and the inspirational work of Nordoff Robbins Music therapy for terminally ill children. 

He said - I travel with my little songs. McLean has a touching compassionate voice in his songs.

His song themes appear subtle and soothing sitting alongside calming melodies but actually they carry powerful messages and emotions. McLean is something of a philosopher in his songs which offer thoughtful insights on life with a strong sincerity. He fully recognises and accepts the emotional draw of the 'song'. His songs are personal but also intimate and universal, as if speaking directly to you.

His songs have lines such as - You may fall but you must not lie down/‘Some hearts will fill with wonder/ Some hearts will break in two/ Some hearts will wait for summer/ Time will turn.
Price we have to pay/ Place we started from to resolution’ 

Lost in the fiddle’s sweet sound….For a moment free from one more endless day.

He said that we must make loads of mistakes in order to really ‘live’ life. He said that music wasn't always kind and it can sometimes be a heart breaking kind of thing

McLean has been a professional musician for 38 years since a chance encounter with the Tannahill Weavers.

Try Dougie McLean songs - She Will Find Me, Another Time (about his father), Broken Wings, Holding Back,

Sometimes subtle messages in song can be even more powerful.  http://www.dougiemaclean.com/

The Best Male Voices

The Falsetto

Some of the best loved falsetto voices were The Beach Boys surfing California sound. There is something inspirational and heaven ward in the beauty of the high male voice – much more so than the female soprano voice.
The best known church choirs are the young male choristers. The falsetto was also often heard in the soul and Motown songs coming out of America. Are these voices taking us closer to heaven? They can be sweet and tender and they appeal greatly to women who melt and swoon over it.  For women they offer empathy and show the sensitive side of men.
Other examples of wonderful falsettos are the singers from Earth Wind and Fire; Freddy Mercury of Queen; The Bee Gees.

One of the greatest male singers ever was Jeff Buckley who blended his love of Nina Simone and Led Zeppelin to weave his wild vocal expressions that have influenced a new generation of male singers. Hybrid masculine and feminine sensibilities.
Hyden Thorpe of the Wild Beasts feels the falsetto expresses the vulnerable hurting side of yourself and pulls him out of the everyday experiences with a freer way of singing.

While I also enjoy the more rough edged male vocals given the choice I prefer the soaring high male voice.
My favourite soul singer was Otis Redding, along with pop singers John Lennon and the Bee Gees.  
some quotes from the  BBC 'Imagine' Just One Falsetto'- http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/

  

Warpaint

Warpaint impressed the audience and they played an ethereal sound and the band describe themselves as experimental art rock. First girl band I've photographed. They were in soft-blue stage lighting which wasn't so easy to photograph! 
http://www.warpaintwarpaint.com/

Warpaint is an American art rock group from Los Angeles, formed in 2004. The band's members are Emily Kokal (vocals, guitar), Theresa Wayman (guitar, vocals), Jenny Lee Lindberg (bass, vocals), and Stella Mozgawa (drums, vocals). Warpaint released their debut EP, Exquisite Corpse, in 2009, followed by their full length album, The Fool, released in 2010. "Shadows" was the first single release from their debut and was playlisted by BBC Radio 1 as part of the In New Music We Trust. Warpaint toured in the United States and Europe in 2011 to promote the album. They played at Bonnaroo, Glastonbury Festival, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Rock Werchter and Electric Picnic.

Rachel Sermanni, Katie Sutherland and Laura Marling

Laura Marling

Rachel Sermanni

Katie Sutherland

 

Folk vs Pop? – the different routes into the business.

I first saw Rachel Sermanni at a Celtic Connections Open Mic at the Concert hall a couple of years back and noticed then her lovely voice and songs. That year she won the open mic at the festival.http://www.rachelsermanni.net/

Also here in Glasgow I went to gigs by Katie Sutherland in 2009, another 22 year old Scottish singer with a lovely vocals and catchy songs who also looked good. Katie, who was then calling herself ‘Pearl and the Puppets’, had put her songs up on myspace where they drew the attention of record labels. Katie has a mesmerising honey toned voice live. http://www.katiesutherland.co.uk/

I know of several other young people given major record label deals a few years back – the thing is they are little more than an advance and young people should be warned of the pitfalls here.

This year Katie has been recording an album and using Pledge Music to fund this and Rachel is playing several UK festivals this summer. I can’t help wondering comparing the two that going via the folk route can bring more ‘respect’ generally in the industry but can also mean less attention sometimes. It’s a very strange thing music. At the end of the day it should be all about the talent.  

Then there is also the very young Laura Marling – who sings slightly folk influenced songs. She has a distinctive image and sound which is also key and her father runs a studio. She is also Neil Young influenced and her voice has edge and depth in it. She has managed that valued cross over between being respected and also having commercial successes. Laura is from Hampshire and drew attention on the London folk circuit and it seems to be easier for younger artists in London to get the right label deals into the industry. Marling is playing at the London Albert Hall this weekend. http://www.lauramarling.com/

Even more worrying is the lack of many young male singer songwriters with much depth or much to say- where are they? Marling became prominent with the London folk scene, she has also toured with a number of well-known indie artists in the UK. Her debut album Alas, I Cannot Swim and her second album I Speak Because I Can were nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2008 and 2010 respectively. She won Best Female Solo Artist at the 2011 Brit Awards.