Emeli Sande Clyde Auditorium Glasgow 6th November 2012

As her Our Version of Events has gone double platinum and the top selling album of the year in 2012, Emeli (once known as Adele) took to the Auditorium stage as if wrapped in a golden glow from her massive debut year and as if she cant’ quite believe it!  In July she sang the haunting Welsh song Abide With Me at the Olympic ceremonies London which must have been a truly daunting experience for a new singer.. as she walked out to that solo mic.  

Sande has a big smile and golden hairstyle to match her big voice and songs. Exuberant and effortless, Emeli sang of Hope, My kind of Love and Next To Me – her positive feel good messages. Emeli now has a bigger band (with three guitarists, two drummers, and backing vocalists) and started with a very good arrangement of her quality song Daddy. She sang a Nina Simone song of her biggest musical influences, How It feels to be Free

During her set she spoke of her support here in Glasgow and of those who first saw her perform at the Oran Mor, five years ago. And yes I was lucky enough to have been there!  It has been wonderful to follow her success story and to see how she has developed as an artist.  

Her Set – Daddy, Tiger, This is Where I Sleep, Breaking the Law, two new songs, My Kind of Love, Nina Simone’s How It feels to be Free, Read all About It, Wonder, Climb Mountains, Heaven, Next to Me,

Sande says ‘I love the buzz performing in front of a live audience. There really isn’t anything quite like it.’

Emeli has responded to my requests with personal messages and she comes across as genuine. She also has depth of character and integrity which comes over in her music.

Proceeds of the concert went to Nordoff Robbins music therapy.

Columbia Record's 125 Year History

Quote from Times 18.11.12

The gunshot snare drum at the start of Bob Dylan's Like A Rolling Stone; the distinctive two-note dance that underscores Miles Davis's So What; the unearthly howl and hum of Blind Willie Johnson on Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground; the electrifying saxophone solo that lights up the middle section of Bruce Spingsteen's Born To Run....The thing that binds these varies sounds together is that they were all- for better or worse captured for posterity by Colombia Records. 

It was Dylan's success that made John Hammond a rock star of A & R. Without Hammond's discoveries, it's hard to envisage Colombia being anything like the beacon of American artistry it has become.

Today the label is mighty mix of heritage artists and unit shifting pop behemoths such as Adele and Beyonce. It has also expanded cannily into television, bringing music from programmes such as Britain's Got Talent and Glee to the listening public. 

'There's so much music out there, labels sort it out for you - they're the gatekeepers - and Colombia is still on of the biggest. They're not the only ones who do that any more, but they bring you into contact with people you should be listening to. You need that - we all need that.'  

360 Sound: The Colombia Record Story By Sean Wilentz 

Benny Gallagher Milngavie Folk Club 17th Nov 2012

Stay young with your rock n rolling, Stay young keep you wheels in motion because the best things in life are free.'

Benny Gallagher was part of the successful 70s partnership of Scottish singer songwriters

Gallagher and Lyle (Graham Lyle). They had hit songs with Heart On My Sleeve, I Wanna Stay With You and When I’m Dead and Gone, and they went on to write chart songs for other artists.

Gallagher had relaxed friendly banter and as he sang he also made his guitar sing for us.  Many of us at this concert were old enough to remember Gallagher and Lyle on Tops of the Pops singing their hit song Heart on my Sleeve. He enjoyed having the audience as his backing singers and encouraged us to sing along.  He spoke about the work for the ‘Great Tapestry of Scotland’ which will be the biggest in the world when it is done. 

Benny spoke of Gallagher and Lyle’s hit song Stay Young. He said that he was over in Nashville he had heard that a country singer Don Williams had made their song Stay Young no 1  US Country charts and with over a million radio airplays. The song had sat on the shelf for over eight years. He spoke of dunniing song writing workshops where he has told young writers that songs are like birds you release and you can never know where they might land. He said that songs come out of the air. 

Set: How Come, Stay Young, When I’m Dead and Gone, Take A Chance, blues Talking, The Last One, What You Meant To Me, Break Away, Run Away, Heart On My Sleeve, Stay With You, That’s All Right Mamma, When I’m Dead and Gone, I Believe in You.

Gallagher has a soothing tenor vocal as he sang songs from his back catalogue. They are songs full of optimistic words and blues-toned melodies. What I admire in the Scots is our ability to never take ourselves too seriously and Gallagher was a good example of this.

Glasgow singer songwriter and bluesman Jim Byrne supported with his character deep vocal and stunning songs. They were introduced as Jim and Dinny – Dinny sang with her moving country voice and played several instruments. Jim’s latest cd is called The Innocent and is worth checking out. I particularly enjoyed  his song, The Handles Broken on my Cup.

http://www.bennygallagher.com/

http://www.songsbyjimbyrne.com/index.php

 

Gallagher and Lyle was the Scottish duo singer songwriters Benny Gallagher and Graham Lyle. Their first recognition came in 1968, when they were signed by The Beatles to write for Apple Records’ artists. By 1970, they formed the band McGuinness Flint and wrote UK chart hit ‘When I’m Dead and Gone’. They formed the duo Gallagher and Lyle in 1972 and their fifth album, Breakaway charted and included the hit songs "Heart on My Sleeve" and "I Wanna Stay with You." Don Williams took their song‘Stay Young’ No. 1 on US Country charts. The duo split in 1979.  Gallagher and Lyle have worked, jointly and individually, on records with among others - Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, Ronnie Lane, Ronnie Wood, Joan Armatrading, Ralph McTell, Sandy Denny, Fairport Convention and Jim Diamond. Artists who have released Gallagher and Lyle songs include: Bryan Ferry, Elkie Brooks, Fairport Convention, Joe Brown, and more.

Wasted Love

Award winning Fringe musical for Best Lyrics – Wasted Love was written by the Kielty brothers John and Gerry. The show was performed at the Actors church Covent garden on November 25^th 2012.

http://www.iristheatre.com/

The Kieltys were previously known as The Martians, and they used to busk on Edinburgh High street during the festival and perform their comedy routines with Gerry distinctive high voice.  They then won the Cameron Mackintosh prize for best new musical in 2006 for the musical The Sundowe which was performed at Eden Court theatre in Inverness..

John Kielty is an actor and writer and he has performed in shows at the Lyceum theatre Edinburgh.

John Kielty

Martians Edinburgh high street

Ticket Touts

I’ve been purchasing gig tickets online for some years now and it is only recently that I have discovered what a minefield it has all become!

It is ultra confusing online with so many Ticket outlets. If you google for the artist’s gigs the links that come top of the page are not necessarily the best outlets, in fact the reverse is true!

Tips; Safest way is to purchase primary tickets via the venue or artist’s website (the advice from the Albert hall box office). Or through the main ticket sellers, which are – Ticket Master, SeeTickets, Eventim, Ticketline, Gigantic. You can’t always judge by the google ratings.

The secondary Market – Is basically those who re-sell tickets. These sites buy up a number of concet tickets at the basic price and then re-sell these tickets at inflated prices - which isn't particularly good news for the public.

Some secondary websites can be fine, but it’s very hit or miss, so be wary and read the small print. The best re-sellers are Seatwave and GetMeIn, Check how tickets will be delivered. Make sure the company behind the website provides a full address, not just a post office or mail box number. And try its UK landline number.

Some outlets online won’t be responsible for lost tickets, so store them in a safe place – and one you can remember! 

Thanks to (legitimate) websites such as Seatwave and Get Me In!, it is now simple to buy  tickets for events abroad and has led to the growing popularity of festivals such as Spain's Benicassim and others. But be aware that there are foreign illegitimate sites also that are selling sometimes non existent tickets.

Ticket re-selling probably can’t be stopped, after all true fans might buy tickets for an event only to find they are unable to attend. The best protection is that the public are kept informed over what goes on. 

Ticket reviews link – Ticket website rip off

http://www.guardian.co.ticket-website-rip-off

Kris Drever and Lau on Jools Holland

Kris Drever, Aidan O'Rourke and Lau on Jools Holland this week - it is good to see folk and indie music is alive and well! Folk/Blues Chart  - Mumford No 1. - plus Kate Rusby, Bellowhead, Paul Simon, Laura Marling, Chieftains, Neil Young. Good chart! : ))   http://www.bbc.co.uk/lau/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/joolsholland

Lau - http://pkimage.co.uk/Lau
Kris Drever PHOTOS - http://pkimage.co.uk/krisdrever 

Frank Sinatra Royal Albert Hall

 Frank Sinatra by David Redfern Royal Albert Hall 1980. Wow.
http://www.royalalberthall.com/david-redfern/ 

Are There Real Artists on the X Factor 2012?

What’s happened to the X Factor 2012? We now have real artists as judges - Gary Barlow successful songwriter from Take That, American singer Nicole Scherzinger, singer Talisha - apart from Louis Walsh (Westlife) who is beginning to look and sound like a musical dinosaur – rather than the A & R Label executives as it once was.

The show now even has some ‘credible’ artists on who have clearly been singing and doing music for years.  

Looking back at sixties reality tv show Opportunity Knocks the talent show was very amateurish then. What really is the difference between a manager developing new talent in London and one of these shows?

X Factor 2012.

Ella and Jehmene are both very good singers. James has true grit though and I always look for quality in a voice, and his voice has that X-tra factor! He also has character and musical intelligence about him and even a bit of attitude, always a good thing. 

One drawback these days is everything new in music simply feels too pre-ordained, perfectly synchronized, planned and worked on where nothing is left to chance.... Well yes as always its good to work hard and make careful preparations but sometimes it just feels too clinical like there are no new roads to take, no new challenges for our ears! Sometimes being an artist is about finding your own path, in the hard knocks path of life rather than being taken by the hand in the classroom. Everyone is trying so hard to make 'pleasing' tunes. But that's really not the point.

I do dislike the way these shows manipulate and then discard young people.

Art should question and offer something new, new challenges. I'm supporting James Arthur on X Factor. The trouble with the X Factor tv show is, it makes music now 'all about the voice' and the musicianship gets lost.

Celtic Connections 2013

Celtic Connections 2013 line-up was announced last week, with some of the biggest names in folk, blues, jazz and traditional music landing in Glasgow to celebrate it's 20th year. Across two weeks, 2,100 artists from across the world will play at 300 events. Celtic is one of the world's biggest folk festivals with many sell out events.

The festival will host some big names in the folk world - Kate Rusby, Cara Dillon, Salif Keita, The Mavericks, Jerry Douglas, Aly Bain and Dougie McLean. Its well renowned Transatlantic Sessions; Gaelic concerts; Showcase Scotland; World Music; Americana; Blues and Jazz; ceilidh nights at the Fruitmarket venue and much more!
Plus younger folk and Indie artists - Bellowhead, Aimee Mann, Roddy Hart will perform.  
The festival is also a stomping ground for new talent with open mic sessions at the concert hall with The Danny Kyle Open Stage which is well worth checking out. The Glasgow concert hall is the central venue for the three week festival. The festival includes many dynamic and unusual collaborations, so watch out for those.  

Artistic Director Donald Shaw -  At no other festival do musicians embrace the opportunity to collaborate with acts from different countries and musical genres quite like they do at Celtic Connections. As ever in our 20^th year trad and folk will be at the heart of the festival but other musical genres such as world, jazz, blues, electro, Americana and Country will also be showcased.”  Celtic is promoted by Glasgow Life. 

TICKETS ARE NOW ON SALE -  http://www.celticconnections.com/

Celtic Connections gallery - http://pkimage.co.uk/celticconnections
Salif Keïta. Salif is famous for taking his West African roots and infusing them with pop, jazz, Latin and Islamic influences, for a truly unique performance. 

Photography Inspirations

I first got inspired by photography through the amazing images in Life magazine, Vogue and later in Vanity Fair. I can’t remember exactly when, but I don’t remember a time that I wasn’t drawing either fashion, ballet or portraits - http://musicfootnote.blogspot.co.uk/2012/photographyinspirations

Scottish legend Michael Marra

Michael Marra. A quiet unassuming Scottish legend has passed today. He looked at the humour, tragedy and absurd side of life. I'm very grateful to have seen him live several times at Celtic - and in the perfect intimate setting of Mugdock theatre and Milngavie Folk club(where I even got a signed print) His encore was Burns 'Green Grow the Rashes O'...Such a sad loss.

http://www.youtube.com/michaelmarra

He paints with Words' - I have heard Marra twice at the Mugdock theatre, which with the grand piano off to the left is simply the perfect venue for him, and I list his concerts there as some of my favourite small venue gigs. The first thing that I noticed at his gigs there was how frail he looked, but then when he performed he surprised me with this deep gravelly voice. With endearing heart and ironic dry wit, Marra sang his medley of songs which are brim full of unforgettable characters and crafted images of place and time. 

Kelly's Visit to Dundee,' 'Muggie Shaw', 'Freda Kohl's Visit to the Tay Bridge Bar', and 'Lonesome Death of Francis Clarke'.  In 'Schenectady Calling', Marra paid tribute to Peerie Willie Johnson, a noted folk musician from Shetland.  He finished his set with a Burns song ' Green Grow the Rashes O' and an encore song 'Mary Skeffington' by the late Gerry Rafferty of Paisley.  

Marra's songs often mix Scottish places with a fantasy of American celebrity. He writes songs about such diverse topics as football, ladies choirs, and American idols!   At times his stories and songs are highly amusing, while other songs are thoughtful and touching. 

He derives his musical influences from the likes of Tom Waits, Randy Newman and Bob Dylan.  His music has grown out of both his Dundee Scottish roots and his American musical tastes and he calls his sound 'groovy traditional music.'

Although predominantly known as a songwriter, Marra has worked extensively in theatre, radio and television.  Marra's children, Alice Marra Clark and Matthew Marra, are are members of The Hazy Janes. Marra was in a band called Skeets Boliver in the late seventies.
 

'There's Love in this world for everyone, Every precious smile you make, Be sure love is out there looking for you.'   Michael Marra

http://www.musical1.com/Michael_Marra/

Karine Polwart Oran Mor 19th Sept 2012

Polwart is one of Scotland’s best loved songstress with her beautiful voice and relevant moving songs. 

Many folk artists fill the folk clubs but not so many can fill halls the size of the Oran Mor church auditorium. Her pure softly soothing voice captivated the full house in the clear acoustic church setting with its ornate stained glass windows and with Scottish artist Alastair Gray's colourful mural ceiling.

. 

Karine sang the flowing harmonies and melodies of her story-telling and honest songs. She had her usual two backing musicians, her brother Steven on guitar and Inge Thomson on accordion, plus for this larger event - percussionist Iain Sandilands who added depth and energy to the new songs along with a wind section that included flute and clarinet.

She performed songs from her well received third album Traces - Strange News, We’re all Leaving, Tears For Lots Wife, Salters Road and Sticks and Stones.

One highlight was a lovely duet of the song Solstice with the guitarist Craig from the Scottish band Unwinding Hand. Another set highlight was a haunting solo song from Inge Thomson. 

The set included songs from Polwart's new album Traces. The song Tinsel Show was written about the lights of Grangemouth which shone in the night sky near to where Karine grew up in East Lothian. Karine also included a few of her classic well loved songs from previous albums - Daisy, Rivers Run.

She spoke of her fascination with birds and how many of her songs reflected this. One stand out song from Traces was the song King of Birds. For an encore she sang Follow The Heron. Her new album has her classy songs and a more intricate depth to it.  

Karine said that as she wasn’t an Indie artist she wouldn’t simply come on and play the album songs and leave and that as she had come up through the folk circuit she would play two full sets with an interval and a raffle! 

I’ve heard Karine at several of those smaller folk venues, as well as her leading a Celtic Connections concert on Scottish songs at the Glasgow concert hall. This was another perfect setting for her intimate songs. 

I have met Karine a couple of times and just a week later at the Lake of Monteith Hotel Bar the night before my son's wedding!  She recognised me by name which made me feel just that little bit famous!. She is such a genuine person and this reflects in her music. 

I recommend checking out Karine Polwart's fourth studio album 'Traces' - http://www.facebook.com/karinepolwart/

Black and White Music Photography

Broken Records

Head and Heart

I try to mix the old with the new and capture moods such as quiet moments of inner reflection. One of my interests is images of new artists and several of those I've photographed are now signed to major labels -  Emeli Sande, Hurts, Mumford, Metronomy, Broken Records,The Low Anthem, King Creoste... My favourite photographers are Mario Testino, Eve Arnold, David Bailey.  http://pkimage.co.uk/

Creative Scotland slammed by leading Scottish artists

A hundred leading artists have launched an attack on the management of arts body Creative Scotland. In an open letter, they condemn decision making, disregard for Scottish culture and say the organisation is in an "ongoing crisis". Among those signing the letter are John Byrne, Alasdair Gray, James Kelman, AL Kennedy, Liz Lochhead and Ian Rankin. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-19880871

Edinburgh International Book festival 2012

Russell Kane

NooSara-Wiwa

Elaine Proctor

Karl Miller

Tom Benn

Will Brooker

Elif Şafak

The Big names at the festival this year were – Michael Palin (new novel The Truth), Seamus Heaney, Roy Hattersley, Alex Salmon, Ian McEwan, Ruth Rendall, Irvine Welsh, Ian Banks, Nile Rodgers (writer/producer), Russell Kane (comedian) and many more.

Debate, Poetry, Novels, Autobiography, Stage, theatre, sport, film, more..

What is so refreshing in our shallow world of celebrity at this thought provoking event, is the fact that the EBF is a melting pot of ideas, creativity and energy and is all about substance, character and stories. In a culture dominated by tweeting sound bites and facebook ‘likes’ – an opportunity for writers and readers to participate in the passionate and serious discussion that good writing still generates.

One of the main events this year was the Writers Conference organised by the British Council. John Calder and Jim Haynes discussed their memories of the first Writers Conference held in 1962 in the McEwan Hall Edinburgh and writers worldwide attended.

The festivals popular Debates were on Europe, democracy, Scottish Independence and growth. Should writing be political? – perhaps unavoidable?  Is change always a good thing?  Change is neither for better or worse it is simply about the inevitability of change itself.

I walked past great minds such as - Seamus Heaney, Irvine Welsh, Tony Benn, Ian McEwan, Lazlo Krasznahorkai and more, Fireworks end each night over the castle ramparts to mark the finale of the Edinburgh Tattoo.