A Caledonian Collection

Introduction

I have just finished watching the excellent BBC series "Guilt" with Mark Bonnar which is mostly set in Edinburgh (where I passed through yesterday and have shared a few stories about), but the last three episodes played out with instrumental sequences from some classics by Scottish bands and singers.

These days if you mention Scottish music the artists that most people think of are The Proclaimers and Lewis Capaldi and maybe The Simple Minds. I am not going to include anything by them, although they are all fine artists, but will include two from "Guilt" and a few of my own for your enjoyment, though the final episode played out with "Where Were You?" by The Mekons, they are not Scottish so won't fit into this playlist but it is a great minimalist song worth checking out.

Glasvegas - "Geraldine" from their eponymous debut

I loved this from the minute I heard it. They remind me a little of the Jesus and Mary Chain and loved that, as well as the playout from "Guilt". This was used in a trailer for the excellent "The Damned United" the story of Brian Clough's forty-day tenure at Leeds United but that seems to have disappeared.

The overall sound of this is just gorgeous.

Five Hand Reel - "A Man's a Man for a' That" from their debut album

I think it was Dick Gaughan's amazing voice that drew me into Five Hand Reel when John Peel played them. I saw them at the Charter Theatre in Preston's Guildhall in the early seventies, though the next time I saw Dick Gaughan was at the North Shields Fish Quay Festival in the first decade of this Millenium.

Dick Gaughan - "World Turned Upside Down" from "Handful of Earth"

I first heard this covered by Billy Bragg but this, for me is the definitive version. A situation that still exists today.

The Jesus and Mary Chain - "Just Like Honey" from "Psychocandy"

The band was formed in East Kilbride in 1983 and revolves around the songwriting partnership of brothers Jim and William Reid. "Just Like Honey" is a perfect encapsulation of their sound and you can see how "Glasvegas" were influenced by them.

Nazareth - "This Flight Tonight" from "Loud'n'Proud"

I never expected Joni Mitchell's wonderful song from "Blue" to be remodeled and metalized like this. Dan McCafferty's voice is perfect and Manny Charlton's guitars are to die for.

Frankie Miller - "Caledonia" from "Scotland My Home"

I could have chosen any number of Frankie Miller songs but this is an absolute beauty. A perfect Caledonian musical piece.

Red Hot Chilli Pipers - "Thunderstruck"

So AC/DC, Deep Purple, and more on bagpipes to create bagrock!! What is there not to like?

Ivor Cutler - "Shoplifters" from Ludo

Ivor Cutler was a brilliantly eccentric artist who I first heard on John Peel's radio program. Ivor died in 2006, and below is a piece that I wrote on him if you would like to discover a little more about this wonderful man.

The reception room of his home contained a number of pieces of ivory cutlery, intended as a pun on his name.

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band - "The Faith Healer" from "Next"

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band is one of my most-seen live bands for good reason and this relentless seven minutes is a fitting finale to this playlist. The sound is punctuated by an almost monstrous choral intro to "Can I Put My Hands On You?". This is the band's signature song although people may know them from their amusing cover of Tom Jones's "Delilah" causing Tony Blackburn to say "How Dare They Call Themselves Sensational" , which was quite funny.