The other day I had an order from a Bandcamp customer for a couple of albums including Roadblock. Just getting an order of any kind is a morale booster, but this was special as it was the last CD copy of the Roadblock album, which I put out in 2008. I don’t know how many … Read more
Last weekend was without doubt one of the most enjoyable musical experiences of my life. David Fee of Homesongs had arranged a series of four gigs for myself and Rosie Nimmo in the Kintyre peninsula. For him, this was a way of getting back to his first love – house concerts – after a long … Read more
There’s space, and everything shining in itLike the light of Carravagio And the young man’s voiceHas things to say about the situationAnd the old man’s voiceSlaps him down The camera zooms in to their squabbleAnd the light is forgotten Until it isn’tAnd the contestants’ raft disappears downstream In that moment …In that moment … But … Read more
I don’t know where this came from – it was an improvised, spontaneous writing session. I had been thinking about how the humorous stuff I do is the most popular and maybe the somewhat ‘darker’ stuff I’ve been writing recently (most of which you haven’t heard yet) may not please people. But don’t worry, I’m … Read more
Dave Christopher was one of the finest songwriters to come out of Edinburgh. But you won’t find him on YouTube or Spotify. Until recently you wouldn’t find him anywhere online. Only a few cassettes and singles in the hands of friends. His life negotiated personal tragedy and challenges that few have faced, but towards the … Read more
Recently I’ve been going through a lifetime of photos. I came across this one from my first stint as an English teacher in Cairo in the 1970s, and looked up the diary I kept then to find the story. This is pretty much word for word what it says: From ‘Here be Dragons’ a Readers … Read more