Musings on the byways of popular culture
I’m delighted to say that ‘Rolling Stone UK’ has now made Sophie Porter’s fabulous piece (in the current issue) on retired/disabled Scottish icon Dick Gaughan and many of his 70s folk revival peers versus the three people who identify as ‘Celtic Music’ available freely online. Featuring interviews with Martin Simpson, Allan Taylor, Andrew Cronshaw, Barbara Dickson, and modern-era cheerleaders the Mary Wallopers – plus some vintage photos.
Music was made to be heard.
URL in the comments.
A public service (broadcasting) announcement… Link in the comments.
True and Bold: A Night for Dick Gaughan Travelling Folk
Recorded at Celtic Connections 2026, we have highlights of the True and Bold: A Night for Dick Gaughan concert, put together to celebrate one of Scotland’s most significant folk singers and songwriters.
Featuring an incredible host of musicians, including Siobhan Miller, Billy Bragg, Ricky Ross & Lorraine McIntosh, Lisa O’Neill and Paul McKenna, the concert celebrates Dick’s amazing back catalogue and even features an appearance from the man himself.
RTÉ Radio 1’s ‘The Rolling Wave’ last night – a terrific extended interview with Dick Gaughan (in Edinburgh) by Aoife Nic Cormaic (in Dublin), interspersed with music from ‘Live at the BBC: 1972-79’, out now on CD and out soon (this side of Christmas) on vinyl.
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So, I mentioned in the ‘Vote for Colin’* post that I would be posing a question which would, most likely, be resolved by @Colin-H I mentioned the 7 CD Gaughan R/Evolution set to my good friend, Mick who is a big DG fan. This prompted him to get back to me asking if I knew how to get hold of the early 80’s album, Parallel Lines by DG & Andy Irvine. He has searched online etc. without success. Anybody got any thoughts? *My vote has now been cast.
Dick Gaughan’s first two albums (‘No More Forever’ and ‘Kist O’ Gold’, both for Bill Leader’s Trailer label) and his fourth (‘Songs of Ewan MacColl’, shared with two other singers, for Geoff Heslop’s ‘Rubber Records) are unlikely to be reissued in the digital era. They are owned by the heirs of a controversial businessman who seemed – to the casual observer – to buy defunct/troubled labels and then do nothing with them. Decades would pass and beloved artefacts of cultural history would lie in his warehouse, presumably decaying like all else to the ravages of time.
I asked the mighty Eroc – aside from the work he will do on the forthcoming Gaughan box set’s DVD content – to master from near-mint vinyl those first two albums and some associated tracks, using his extremely high-end vinyl gear and his unique ears, and I’m freely sharing the results.
Here’s ‘Kist O’ Gold’ (recorded 1975, released 1977) and the four Gaughan-sung tracks from ‘Songs of Ewan MacColl’ (1978), his joint album with Dave Burland and Tony Capstick for Rubber.
(link in the comments)
Dick Gaughan, a colossus of Scottish folk music, slipped away into unexpected retirement in Edinburgh in 2016 after a stroke. I’m working on a project that may, if all goes to plan, find a route to market and remind the world what an extraordinary singer, guitarist and artists he was. The film below, possibly from Belgian station RTBF, appeared on YouTube a couple of months ago – a reminder of his brilliance at the end of what I’d regard as phase one of his career (almost entirely focused on traditional music) and the beginning of phase two (incorporating more songwriting and politics of the present day).
