Wednesday 12 August 2015

The Dirty Beggars at Stereo: Farewell Party For Now

 The Dirty Beggars entertained us with their exuberant Americana

With a ‘Hey Hey Mama Rock Me’ (the Wagon Wheel song) and the energy of bluegrass rockabilly, they sent us out into the balmy Glasgow streets. Dirty Beggars clearly have the best time on stage with their strumming banjo, strong bass lines, melodic fiddle

The band played Americana songs of the deep south with catchy refrains which brought images of sunny highways. The packed venue appeared to really enjoy their well chosen songs. The boys sweated in their suits and ties and eventually they looked more relaxed in their white shirts.


For a rousing finale song the support artists Ho-Ro and Wire Wool, joined the band on stage and the audience bopped and danced and sang along. 

The band’s sound was tight and well rehearsed, and with well matched harmonies. The band is led by the Begbee brothers, Kieran, Finn and Pete, which aids their blend of voices. I got a nice shot of the talented Pedro Cameron on fiddle. All top musicians and with Stuart Printie on double bass completing the line up.

I am always struck by how much American music has influenced Glasgow and also by how much Scottish and Celtic sounds impacted on America in those times past. 
Dirty Beggars played an up-tempo fun sound enjoyed by all ages!

The band are - Kieran Begbie Vocals, Guitar Finn Begbie Vocals, Harmonica, Mandolin, Guitar Pete Begbie Vocals, Banjo, Guitar Stuart Printie Double Bass, Dobro, Mandolin Pedro Cameron Fiddle

The Dirty Beggars released an album entitled Bite the Bullet in 2011 on independent label Dime Roc. They have toured with The Wilders in the UK and also toured in the US.   




The Footsteps of Burns

Walk in the Footsteps of Burns
On Saturday we drove down to Alloway in the rain and walked in Burns footsteps. The skies cleared as we neared the small town he lived in until he was seven. 
We walked over the Brig O Doon, past the Aulk Kirk, the cottage William Burnes built, the road from Ayr to Maypole and the flat beaches looking west. An impressive and picturesque part of Scotland's west coast. There is a Burns museum where you can see some of his letters, books and writing quills. Worth a visit.


Tuesday 11 August 2015

Edinburgh International book festival 2015

Next week EIBF 2015! Where do the years go!? Edinburgh International book festival: A Journey with Words & Stories across the world for over 17 days.
Another illustrious gathering of wonderful writers, thinkers, creatives and artists. I hope to be inspired and meet many incredible people and hopefully take some good photos.

This year the book festival will celebrate writers reaching out worldwide with many highly respected international authors giving talks.



The festival also gives a platform for writers who are unable to be heard and who are prevented from speaking with the Amnesty International Imprisoned Writers Conference.  

As well as the serious there are also many light -hearted, fun events and also the extensive children’s book festival.
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Selected events:

MUSIC writers EIBF – Tracy Thorn, Stuart David (Belle  and Sebastian), Edwyn Collins; ART – Martin Kemp: How art is connected to history; John Gray – Land of the Not-So-Free; Robert Crawford – TS Eliot; William McIlvanney – Poetry in Everyday Life; Ian MacWhirter – Scotland and the UK. What Future.

Other highlights will include Alan Cummings, Paul Merton, Philippa Gregory, Ian Rankin, Jesse Jackson and renowned authors from over 55 countries. From the Innu tribes Canada; storytellers and illustrators Iran; from Iceland, China, Slovakia, and more...


Sunday 9 August 2015

Edinburgh festival 2015!


The Edinburgh Fringe and the official Edinburgh International festival have started now in August and I look forward to going over for my yearly visit soon - to enjoy the fun buzz and entertainment of the high street, the shows, exhibitions and much much more…
I grew up in with Edinburgh festival and looked on it as a normal event – with no idea until I was older that it was such a massive festival attracting visitors worldwide.

The mix of shows, the arts festival and mostly the Edinburgh International book festival - which hosts the many respected writers; novelists, poets, journalists, comedians, musicians, illustrators and children’s authors and more. Edinburgh festival will be as big and bold as ever! Edinburgh is my hometown so I always enjoy visiting its cobbled streets and strong sense of its historic and cultural past. 
The festival is brilliant, sassy, innovative, creative, all encompassing, extreme, highly visual - from the highest quality choral evening, the silliest fringe show, the thrill of scary acrobatics, informed talks, the daftest comedy to the beauty of singing or dance. Check out reviews Scotsman.  

https://www.edfringe.com