Tag Archives: glasgow

The Orchids / The Chesterfields / The Suncharms – Preston, The Continental

In these uncertain times, I’m all for reaffirmations that things ain’t so bad after all, and three treasured indie bands put plenty of smiles on faces at a Lancashire riverside pub venue on Friday night, serving up a feast of … Continue reading

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By any other name – beyond Strawberry Switchblade with Rose McDowall

While Rose McDowall is best known for her work with early ’80s crossover indie pop act Strawberry Switchblade, she’s made many cult solo recordings over the years. Starting out as a stand-up drummer in Glasgow proto-avant-garde punk trio The Poems … Continue reading

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Here’s where the story continues – tracking down Teenage Fanclub’s Norman Blake

From the moment I first heard those searing guitars on debut single Everything Flows, I was sold on Teenage Fanclub. And although I find it difficult to comprehend this, it’s now been a quarter of a century since their first … Continue reading

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Back to The Icicle Works – the Ian McNabb interview

  I don’t pretend to be the greatest aficionado on the life and times of Ian McNabb, the esteemed Liverpudlian singer-songwriter and leader of The Icicle Works. But I know a fair bit about the Merseybeast’s story, not least his considerable … Continue reading

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Time to Breathe Again, in the company of Midge Ure

If you were to condense the history of popular music from the mid-’70s to the turn of the ’90s into a few pages, Midge Ure would still get a pretty impressive showing. Not just in the footnotes either, despite being … Continue reading

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Beyond Talent with the Classical Dark Angel – the Lucy Kay interview

What’s this? Talk of talent show contestants on the writewyattuk blog? Surely not. Well, yes actually, because there’s much more to the story of Lucy Kay than all that, as your humble scribe found out. Forget for a minute – … Continue reading

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Desperately Seeking the Mad Cat Lady – the Susan Calman interview

Barely half-way into a mammoth 100-date tour – from a month of Edinburgh Fringe summer dates right through until May – you’d think Susan Calman would be getting a little jaded by now. But this lawyer-turned-comic remains her characteristic bubbly … Continue reading

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Martha inspires 53 Degrees in a December Heat Wave

I’ve just re-read the chapter dedicated to Martha Reeves in Gerri Hirschey’s excellent 1984 biography Nowhere to Run – The Story of Soul Music. It includes a description of the Alabama-born, Detroit-raised chanteuse warming up for a post-Vandellas era show … Continue reading

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Frat’s entertainment

FOR someone who gives so much during a live performance and on record for his band, Jon Fratelli is one laid-back dude in conversation. You’d think The Fratellis’ lead vocalist and guitarist – born plain John Lawler – would be … Continue reading

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Dignity still key for Ricky’s Raintown collective

WHEN I finally moved in with my better half in 1994, there were very few LPs we had doubles of, but one was Deacon Blue’s Raintown. It was quietly acknowledged as part of our personal soundtrack by then – five … Continue reading

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