2010
29th November 2010
The
snow is about 2 foot deep outside and I have some enforced downtime. This year seems to have been marked by Mother Nature
or the Good Lord reminding me who is boss!!!
Happy to say that my voice recovered gradually over 10 weeks.
Gig dates for Duchally and The Lade for next year are in my gig list. I will be in Applecross and Ullapool in
June, and hope to add a few more Highland dates for August.
17th August
My
apologies to those of you who have tried to hear me sing recently. I have been hit by a bad case of laryngitis, so have
had to cancel about two weeks of gigs. I expect to be fighting fit for 25th August.
6th July
Lorna and I had a great time at The Applecross Inn, Plockton Hotel and Myrtle Inn. Many thanks to the owners
and staff of these establishments for their hospitality. It is good to see locals and holidaymakers out and about after
a long winter.
Last night saw the first performance of my Americana set at Duchally. Some folk music
did creep in due to audience requests and I was delighted to be joined by 11 year old Kirsty who ensured 100% participation
in actions for "Sam the Skull"
26th April.
Apologies to Frank at The
Lade and any of you who had come along to hear me there last Friday. The Icelandic volcano resulted in an enforced stay
in Cyprus.
2009
5th August
I'm just back from touring with Tarneybackle.
It was great to meet up with friends old and new up in the north west highlands.
15th July
Very
busy with lots of gigging. I had a lovely time at Applecross and Loch Ness Inn last week.
Applecross had a
very lively but attentive audience. I'll be back there with Tarneybackle at the end of the month.
The
Waterfront gig was busy and was more like a concert than a bar/restaurant gig. I'm delighted to be returning there
for a Sunday BBQ in August.
28th June
It has been a pretty busy month. The
first BBQ at Duchally was lovely - a big crowd and superb weather.
The folks at The Myrtle were in fine form and
good voice as usual. I'll bring my whistle in August so that the bodhran players can join me in a couple of sets
of tunes.
I played at The Munro Inn for the first time last night. I thoroughly enjoyed performing in what
was closer to an intimate folk club rather than a pub gig. I'm looking forward to be back there next month.
On
Monday I was at Stirling Folk Club opening for Andy Irvine.
9th June
Many thanks
to Laura Wilson of the Dundee Courier for the lovely article she wrote featuring my new CD.
I am pleased to say
that "A Little Closer" is getting radio plays on local stations - Tay Am, Isles FM and Two Lochs Radio.
The
CD is being distributed by Highlander Records.
I performed at O'Neill's on Saturday which was a lively,
fun night. Other new venues this month are The Burgh Arms, Inverkeithing and The Munro Inn, Strathyre.
4th
May
Many thanks to everyone who came to see me at Duchally and The Bridgend during the weekend.
28th
April
My solo CD "A little Closer" is now available for purchase. Many thanks to Redbarn
Studios, Stuart and Gary Duncan for their professionalism and support in its design, recording and production.
I
had a good gig at The Ancaster Arms last Friday and look forward to returning there in July with Tarneybackle. I will
be returning to perform there as a solo in the latter part of this year.
Sandy and I did one of our rare duo performances
at The Myrtle on Saturday night. As always, it was a lively event. I'm back there to do a solo in June.
19th April
Had a lovely break in Applecross, culminating in a wee unplugged performance
on Thursday evening. It was great to meet so many of the locals and tourists who kept the bar very busy. I'll
be back there on 4th June for a plugged but informal performance.
13th April
It has been
a busy weekend with solos at McKays, Pitlochry and Falls of Dochart with a Tarneybackle gig at Duchally, Auchterarder on Saturday.
All gigs were very busy and its great to meet so many people from around the world who are visiting Scotland.
The
Lismore, Partick on 5th April was a lovely afternoon. Great to see some of the regulars returning for an afternoon of
song.
My solo CD "A Little Closer" is now in production and I expect to have copies available in the first
half of May.
23rd March
St Patrick's night at Glenmor at Gleneagles was a fun night
and I really enjoyed performing for a very attentive audience. I'll be returning to Glenmor in June.
The
Falls of Dochart gig was a little quieter than usual and the audience made up for smaller numbers. Particular mention
to Irene and Peter from Monkseaton who spent the whole afternoon with me before heading off for some more folk music at Dunblane
folk club. I'm back on 29th March and 12th April.
11th March
I had a lovely
return gig to The Lismore Bar, Partick at the weekend. It was good to see some of the regulars and others who had
braved their way through the snow. It really is a special place with very friendly staff and a great selection of whiskies.
27th
February
I'm delighted to have agreed further dates at The Myrtle Inn and Bridgend House Hotel for
this year. I'll be at McKays in Pitlochry on 10th April which is a new venue for me.
I enjoyed doing support
for Ian Bruce last night at "Live at The Star" at St Andrews in the Square, Glasgow. Ian is a great performer
and the venue is stunning.
23rd February
Saturday night at the Myrtle Inn's Burns
Supper was one to remember. Great speeches, packed restaurant and bar with a great crowd. Thanks to Danny
for booking me and Ian for his great fiddle playing.
16th February
I had another great
afternoon at Falls of Dochart yesterday. Many thanks to all who came and stayed to listen and join in. A particular
mention goes to the families from Soham who really got into the spirit of the afternoon.
28th January 2009
I
have started to record my solo CD at Red barn studios. The album will be a collection of the songs that I play regularly
at my solo performances. As soon as I have the finalised track listing then I shall post it on the website.
Target
release is May 2009.
I had a great weekend performing at Duchally and The Lismore., Partick. It was great
to see the regulars at The Lismore out in force on Sunday. I will put my return date on this site as soon as Ewan and
I agree it.
Quotes from my audiences
- "I was at John's gig at the Falls
of Dochart Inn on New Year's Day and
it was brilliant! I've been on both the Tarneybackle and John's websites
and the next time our paths cross I'll be at the gig!
Thank you for a fantastic afternoon's music - we
only went in for a
drink and ended up staying until the end.
Sarah from the Isle of Wight"
.
- "I (we) hope it goes really well for you again as a solo gig. The one we saw you
do earlier this year was superb with many renditions still sticking in my mind to this day. It was just one of those
being in the right place at the right time situations. Wish you played a bit nearer to London or we lived nearer
to Scotland.
Ian from London"
