Shelagh McDonald,The Lady Who Vanished.

A friend phones me up occasionally and we have chats about music. One evening I mentioned to him about Annie Briggs and Vashti Bunyan and he said ,"There's another great singer who disappeared as well, Shelagh McDonald,she used to live in Bristol and she was good, check her out". I looked on eBay to see if there were any Shelagh McDonald albums available and there were three, The Shelagh McDonald Album, Stargazer and  Let No Man Steal Your Thyme which was a double album comprising of her first two albums and other earlier recordings, demo's and out-takes, and that is the one I opted for. A few days later the CD arrived

 The first thing I noticed on opening the package was how nice looking she was, the elfin mystical looking long haired hippy chick of the early 70's. Opening the accompanying booklet I was amazed to see the list of great musicians who played on her albums, it was the glitterati of the British folk/rock scene of the time. Richard Thompson, Keith Christmas, Gerry Conway, Andy Roberts, Keith Tippet, Gordon Huntley, Pat Donaldson, Dave Mattacks, Danny Thompson and even Katie Kissoon on backing vocals plus lots of others. The notes told the  story of Shelagh up to 2005 when this compilation was released. Not a lot is known about her early life except that she came from the Edinburgh area of Scotland. She discovered a talent for singing and playing the guitar and when she left school in the late 60's she left home and headed for Bristol where she soon made a name for herself playing in the clubs of Bristol's thriving folk scene and she began an on off relationship with singer Keith Christmas. Soon her talent was spotted and she headed for the bright lights of London and a record contract. Her first album received lukewarm reviews but her second one Stargazer was a hit with critics and a growing following of fans. Karl Dallas one of the leading music journalists hailed her as the new Sandy Denny and she was compared to Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell. Just when she seemed set for fame and fortune, her world began to fall apart. One fateful night she took a tab of acid and the experience left her a psychological mess. Even weeks later she was still suffering from horrible hallucinations. In desperation Shelagh headed back to Scotland and did not contact any of her old friends. For 33 years up to the release of this compilation cd and the sleeve notes being written nothing was heard of her. She had completely vanished.

The opening couple of tracks were not that impressive to me. They were early recordings from a radio series called Dungeon Folk. However, when the third track called Mirage played then I was really impressed. She had made the transition from folk singer to folk-rock singer. That whole side was good, but CD 2 went from good to quite stunning. It is a mini-masterpiece, As good as Fairport Convention, Pentangle, Nick Drake or any of the luminaries of the folk rock scene of the time. The production by Sandy Robertson is quite superb as well. Every track on the Stargazer album is brilliant. The lyrics of Liz's Song almost suggest she was planning to disappear but that could be just a coincidence. Some tracks like Odyssey and The Road To Paradise are like progressive rock. I would have loved to have seen her with this band in concert, that would have been really something. Sweet Sunlight is a beautiful song and her voice is exquisite. Stargazer, the title track speaks for itself . I particularly enjoyed Canadian Man which has a Joni Mitchell influence. Good Times has some great funky saxophone, Dowie Dens Of Yarrow would have graced any Sandy Denny album. Spin, and City's Cry are also great. The latter with the unmistakeable sound of Richard Thompson's guitar reminding me of Fairport's album What We Did On Our Holidays.

There is one final twist in the tale. When this album was released in 2005 it prompted an article about Shelagh in The Independent by Charles Donovan. This led to similar copycat articles in other papers including the Scottish Daily Mail. In November 2005 Shelagh read the article and turned up at the newspaper office to tell her story. She revealed that after her bad acid experience she had totally lost the ability to sing and she had worked in a department store till 1981. Then she met a hippy bookseller called George Farquhar and they adopted an itinerant lifestyle travelling around the Scottish Islands and abroad and eventually lived in a tent, camping wherever they could. She told the newspaper that her voice had returned and she had started writing songs again. Since that visit to the newspaper 5 years ago though nothing else has been heard from Shelagh and she has disappeared back into the mists of obscurity from which she had so briefly emerged.

 I'm not expected Shelagh McDonald to rekindle her career now but it would be great if more people discovered her music and realised what a great talent she was. I urge you to listen to the song 'Stargazer', the choral ending is quite brilliant. 


Postscript.
                There is a very happy ending to this story. I received a message yesterday from a fan of Shelagh's to say that she is playing her first official gig in 40 years next week in Camden Town. I wish her every success with that. I hope it leads to more dates. The gig is sold out apparently and I found out too late or I would have loved to have seen her live.

Shelagh McDonald

Otway The Movie, Review.

It was a windy and rainy day yesterday and I was trapped indoors and starting to get depressed. "How can I make today interesting?", I asked myself. Then  John Otway posted on Facebook that there was to be a screening of  'Otway, The Movie' at the Little Theatre Cinema in Bath that very evening followed by a question and answer session with the man himself. I knew I had to go, so I phoned up my friend Dave and he wanted to go as well I  booked two tickets. I spent the afternoon kicking my heels because Otway has been part of my life for nearly forty years ( See previous stories below). I met Dave in the pub and we caught the 6.38 train to Bath.                                          We had time on our hands so we went for a drink in the Grapes pub in Westgate Street until it was show time. In all the years I have lived in this area I have never been to the Little Cinema before and I must say it is a wonderful little venue, hidden away up an alley way off  Westgate Street and the seats are really comfortable.

While we were waiting for the doors to open Otway himself arrived and I took the opportunity to take a couple of photos with me and Dave. He also signed an album for me and we had a little chat. He seems genuinely interested in what people have to say and takes the time to speak to them. I think that is why he has built up such a devoted fan base over the years. I told him about previous times I had seen him. The first time was right here at Bath Pavilion in 1978 and he remembered it which surprised me because he must have played thousands of gigs since. I also told him about the time Kim and I went to his 50th birthday party at the London Palladium. Kim used to love Otway and it made her night when he gave her a kiss on the cheek at a gig in Frome a few years ago.

Then it was time for the film which Otway introduced. He said that we had to listen out for the one word that was the reason that when the film got its certificate it can't be seen by unaccompanied children under twelve. The film begins with Otway returning to his old school in Aylesbury to talk to the kids about how to make a career in the music business. It then chronicles his whole career which is portrayed as one disaster after another. There is a lot of footage of his legendary concert in Aylesbury market square in 1978. I was there on that memorable day. There is also the London Palladium concert where the fans conspired to give him a hit record as a birthday present. I'll never forget that night sitting in the pub listening to the chart being announced and 'Bunsen Burner' going straight in the charts at number 9. Then Otway coming over to the pub and standing on a table to the cheers of the fans.

 I won't tell you all of the film but it was really enjoyable and I know the rest of the audience enjoyed it because there was a lot of spontaneous laughter and applause throughout the screening. There is one thing that slightly niggles me though is because the film has the sub-title of  'Rock And Roll's Greatest Failure'. I disagree with that because John Otway has had a long and successful career and brought a lot of pleasure to many people. The other thing that is overlooked is that he has written some great songs and has a body of work to be proud of. I think his first  album with Wild Willy Barrett and the follow-up 'Deep And Meaningless' are great albums by any standard. I would put them in my favourite 50 albums of all time. Songs like Geneva, Gypsy,Josephine,Place Farm Way and many more are songs to be proud of and show that he is a great singer-songwriter.

After the screening there were questions and answers and I asked John if he was doing Glastonbury this year and he is. I can reveal that he is on in the Cabaret Stage on the Saturday and also the film will be shown in the Cinema Tent. Dave and I left before the end because we wanted a quick drink before catching the train. John did ask though if anyone noticed the one word that barred unaccompanied children from seeing it. I thought it might be Willy but actually it was Twat. Now that Otway has made a film I wonder what the future holds for him. I think he should definitely be given the freedom of the city of Aylesbury because through his songs he has put his home town on the map. Also if his fans can get together and give him a hit single why can't they start a campaign to get him in the Queens New Years Honours list for services to music. He deserves it more than most of them. Anyway, thank you very much John Otway for a great night out in Bath.

Review: Steve Earle, Colston Hall Bristol May 24th 2013.

I went to a great concert last night at the Colston Hall in Bristol. It was Steve Earle And The Dukes. I first heard of Steve about ten years ago because a lot of my internet friends were always going on about how great he was. A friend in Toronto sent me a double CD compilation of Steve's songs and a friend of mine from the pub Colin who is a Steve Earle fanatic burned me off two of Steve's recent albums, Washington Square Serenade and I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive. I was hooked, I liked Steve's voice, the great songs, Steve's socio-political left wing views, his campaigns against the death penalty in America, and other issues. I saw his wife of the time Alison Moorer in 2005 when she played the Acoustic Stage at Glastonbury and she introduced her soon to be husband Steve Earle. He sang one song with her but I can't remember what it was now.

When I heard that Steve was playing in Bristol I knew we had to go and see him, so  bought a bunch of tickets for my friends and seven of us met up last night in The Crown. There was Colin & Sharon, Chris and Chrissie, Sharon's son Kevin, Dave and me. A quick pint in the pub and we piled into two taxis and caught the 5.38 train to Bristol. It was a cold and windy evening but two carrier bags of booze kept our spirits high. At Bradford On Avon my sister Margaret and her partner Wayne joined us on the train so that made a merry gang of nine of us. We soon arrived in the great seafaring city of Bristol and two more taxis zipped us to the Colston Hall. The building is named after Edward Colston a rich merchant who was pockets a jingle in the olden days through slave money which is an unfortunate part of Bristol's history. In recent years it has been been modernised with a brand new foyer and bar area which is where we hurried to. They have local bands playing in the bar area most nights which is a nice touch and we got chatting to an old guy called Clarence who had just come in to listen to the bar music. I had some spare tickets so I gave one to Clarence which was my good deed of the day. We went outside for a ciggie and  took some photos of our gang and Steve's bus which was parked outside.

Then it was time for the support band The Mastersons who were introduced by Steve. They are a married duo Eleanor Whitmore and Chris Masterson who have a brand new album out now called Birds Fly South and are also part of Steve's band The Dukes. I particularly like Eleanor's violin playing and Chris's guitar sound. I must admit though that before the end of their set I returned to the bar for another drink before the interval rush. Then it was time for the main man and his band. As well as the Mastersons other band members include Will Rigby and Kelly Linney if I remember correctly. There was a huge battery of instruments at the side of the stage for the band. The roadies certainly had their work cut out for the instrument changes. The first song they performed was the eponymous title track of Steve's new album Low Highway. I  regretted that I hadn't bought the album and familiarised myself with the songs because I had to concentrate really hard to make out the lyrics. 

This was followed by another song from the new album, the more upbeat Calico County. Another great song off Low Highway was called Invisible, a portrait of somebody living on the margins of society. I started trying to write a set list, but gave up because i soon realised there are vast gaps in my knowledge of Steve Earle songs. Songs I  remember include the crowd pleaser Copperhead Road, 21st Century Blues, Hear That Train a Comin', My Old Friend The Blues. The Revolution Starts Now, Warren Hellman's Banjo, and Remember Me. Steve talked a bit between the songs and he said some words about autism. I think he and Alison have an autistic son. Steve sang a song from a show called Treme, but I can't remember what it was called. The encore was the Stones song Mothers Little Helper , and as it was Bob Dylan's birthday he finished by singing Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues. During this song I left my seat and walked right down the front. Just as Steve was leaving the stage he was picking up his stuff right in front of me and I snapped the best picture I could.

After the show Steve came to the foyer to sign merchandise and I would have loved to have bought a signed copy of the new album but the queue was too long and we had a train to catch. The gang caught the 11.20 train and we got home tired but happy after a great night so thank you very much Steve Earle and The Dukes.

Review:Duke Special,The Louisiana Bristol 12.4.2013

The Louisiana prides itself on booking bands before they are famous.The walls are covered in pictures of people who have played there previously such as.Amy Whitehouse, Fleet Foxes, White Stripes, Corrine Bailey-Rae, Muse, Mogwai and Snow Patrol who were once a support band here.Whoever books the bands obviously knows their stuff.

We traipsed upstairs to see the show. I think it must be the smallest venue I have ever been in. The show was sold out so it was jam packed upstairs. The first act on was Nadine Shah and she was really good. I was watching her this afternoon on youtube and I think we will hear a lot more of Nadine in the future. The second act was Sadpaw and I think he must be a friend of Duke's because he played on a couple of Duke's songs later in the evening.

Finally at 9.30 Duke came on stage and by now the place was so packed you could hardly move your arms.The first thing Duke did was to invite twenty people to come and sit around him on the stage. That relieved the pressure at the front a bit and helped create a nice atmosphere. All evening Duke played the piano, sang and told funny stories.I think the first song Duke did was 'Slip Of A Girl' which is a really catchy song that I can't get out of my head since. Duke then told a really funny story that was inspired by a photograph he had seen of 'Rita De Costa' who made a career out of marrying wealthy men who died shortly after the wedding. Duke also handed out songsheets of some of the songs so the audience could sing along if they wanted which was a nice touch. Creaky Boat Blues is a great song for singing along to. I can't possibly remember all the songs.One song though i really liked though was Duke's version of 'I've Worn My Elbows Down To The Bone'by Ivor Cutler because I love Ivor Cutler's music. He is great and i'm really pleased Duke Special is into him.

Duke also sang a song I liked by My Bloody Valentine but i can't remember the name of it now. Another great cover version Duke did was 'Heart Like A Wheel' by Kate And Anna McGarrigle which was stunning. Duke has a great taste in other peoples music and I must say I like the way he sings in his Northern Irish accent which is great. A lot of singers from these isles put on a fake American accent, but Duke doesn't. Of Dukes own songs I am really impressed with'Last Night I Nearly Died, But I Woke Up Just In Time'. I can't get that song out of my head either. The song I liked the best of all though was the last song of the night called 'Condition'.The dark lyrics are brilliant. 'Sometimes its hard to make yourself think, its like the words are crawling back into the ink'.

Afterwards Duke kindly signed a CD for me. It is his new album called 'Oh Pioneer'.The title is obviously inspired by the book 'Oh Pioneers' by Willa Cather. I like it when people name drop books and things.Van the man is always doing that. I have been listening to the album while writing this and I urge you to check out Duke Special because he is a superstar. Its just that the world hasn't realised it yet. So thank you very much Duke Special, Nadine Shah, Sadpaw, and The Louisiana for a brilliant night out in Bristol.

Rory Gallagher. His Life and Times' by Marcus Connaughton

My niece Katherine sent me this wonderful book a few weeks ago . 'Rory Gallagher,His Life And Times' by Marcus Connaughton. Katherine had attended the book launch in Cork because she is married to the writer Laurence Fenton who did a fine job of editing the book for Marcus. When Gary Moore died a couple of years ago I remember Bob Geldof in his tribute saying that Gary was one of a trinity of great Irish blues men which were Van Morrison,Gary Moore and Rory Gallagher and I couldn't agree more, but Van has dipped into all sorts of music genres such as jazz, country, folk, and soul. Gary could never seem to decide if he was a rock star or a blues guitarist, but  Rory was uncompromising in dedicating his life to the blues which was the music he loved. He didn't care about fashion and carried on regardless through the changing fads of music wearing the same check shirts and playing the same beloved Fender Stratocaster guitar throughout his whole career. He bought it secondhand in Cork in 1963 for £100 which was a lot for a young kid back then and he paid it off in installments.

I first heard of Rory in 1971 when I lived in North Wales. My pal Robin had the first two albums by Rory's band Taste. The eponymous Taste and On The Boards. I really liked those albums. It was about the time I discovered Gary Moore as well and his band Skid Row. Another favourite album a few years later was 'Rory Gallagher Live In Europe'. Nearly everyone i knew seemed to have a copy of that album. I only saw Rory perform live once though. That was at the first Festival I ever went to which was the Great Western Festival near Lincoln in 1972. Rory was on stage when we arrived and it was absolutely pouring with rain. Rory said,"I'm sorry about the rain, but we'll pretend it doesn't exist at all". Then he proceeded to playing such a blisteringly brilliant set that nobody cared that they were soaked to the skin. He did actually play two sets at Lincoln because Helen Reddy didn't turn up. He was great and not only super musically but he came over as a really nice person. No hint of ego whatsoever which you get with most famous musicians.

Anyway, this review is supposed to be about Marcus's book and not my music memories. When I opened the book I was really pleased to see that Marcus had signed it. Marcus (See picture) is a veteran of the Irish record industry and for over twenty years he has produced a whole range of music programmes for RTE and is a well known presenter as well. He delivered the first Rory Gallagher memorial lecture in Cork in 1995 and has spoken at many tributes to Rory all over Europe. This book is obviously a labour of love and a fine job he has done. My copy was also signed by Louis De Paor (See photo at base of story) who is one of the foremost Irish poets and there is a poem by Louis simply called 'Rory' at the beginning of the book. Louis has often worked with another great Irish singer called John Spillane who recorded a song called 'A Song For Rory Gallagher' which incorporated Louis's words into the song lyrics and you can enjoy that song below this page as well.You can also find out more about Louis and John here-
http://shadowplays.com/blog/?p=1469

Reading the opening chapters I was struck by the similarities between Rory's early influences and those of Van Morrison.The same names come up over and over, Leadbelly, Big Bill Broonzy, Muddy Waters, Lonnie Donegan. I think Rory was about three years younger than Van but they both discovered the blues through the AFN radio and Radio Luxembourg. Like Van, Rory also got to play with Lonnie Donegan later in his career. He also played with Muddy Waters which must have been a thrill for him. The book follows Rory's journey from playing in showbands, to forming Taste then his solo career right up to Rory's tragic death in 1995 at the age of only 47.
I must say Marcus has unearthed some great photos for this book. They are quite stunning and many previously unseen. In conclusion I think this is a great book that fans of Rory will love. 

Postscript.

I have had some great feedback to this review. One music fan who lives in Canada called Dave Cooper has given me permission to show these photos of Rory that he took backstage and at a Rory concert in 1974.Thanks Dave.

Blair Whyte from Northern Ireland sent me this comment and some photos he took of Rory in the early days of his career. Thanks Blair.

Many thanks for the review Pat. I am actually currently reading this book. I am a long time admirer of Rory both as a musician and a person. I saw Rory the first time he played in Belfast and developed a good friendship with him during his early days in Belfast. Many memorable times. One in particular is when he was playing support for John Mayall. I had to drive JM to Portstewart in my Mini (you can imagine how comfortable how he was stretched out in the back seat!). That gig became infamous due to JM being told he had to play 'The Queen' at the end, 'cause that's the way it was here in N Ireland in those days. It features on one of his (JMs) bootlegs if you Google JM and Portstewart there is a clip.

"Bullfrog Blues" by Rory Gallagher Live from Irish Tour '74