Latest news with #Speyfest
The National
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Musicians back folk legend's new bid to own his life's work
Dick Gaughan, born in Glasgow and raised in Leith, has been hailed as one of Scotland's leading folk singer-songwriters with a career that spanned more than four decades. Gaughan received a Lifetime Achievement Award from BBC Radio 2's Folk Awards ceremony in 2010 and was inducted into the Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame a year prior, before a stroke forced him into retirement in 2016. READ MORE: Canadian duo to bring twist on trad music to Speyfest Despite this long-standing success, Gaughan's music is largely unavailable for purchase or streaming as the rights are currently held by an entity called Celtic Music. As a result, a number of acclaimed Scottish folk musicians have backed a crowdfunding campaign to help the singer-songwriter with legal fees as he attempts to win back the rights to his music. A GoFundMe was set up last week by Colin Harper, a music historian and record label consultant on archive releases and box sets, and has already acquired more than £22,000 in donations at the time of writing. In a video discussing the campaign, Harper said: 'This is a crowdfunding appeal to raise legal fees to test Celtic Music's claims to the rights of seven Dick Gaughan albums, solo and collaborative, spanning 1972 to 1995. 'It's not a witch-hunt of personalities living or dead. It's simply a matter of applying the law and, we hope, bringing the music back home to the man who made it and then sharing it far and wide.' Earlier this year, Harper ran a successful crowdfunding campaign to create an eight-disk box set of a "lost" era of Gaughan's music, which is set to be released next January. The cover of the forthcoming box set, R/evolution (Image: Dave Peabody)Gaughan, who is now legally blind, collaborated with Harper on the project. Speaking to the Scotsman, Harper said: 'I found myself thinking about this late last year. "It felt alarming – upsetting, in fact – that such an incredible artist who had seemed to be a powerful, righteous, invincible performer when I saw him at concerts in the '80s and '90s had faded almost completely from view. I had to do something about it.' READ MORE: Fund set up in honour of young Scottish DJ reaches £15k in just two months Celtic Music, which does not exist on Companies House, was founded by Dave Bulmer and his brother-in-law, Nick Sharpley, and operated as a record label from 1972. Its last release was in 2007. Bulmer passed away in 2013, with Sharpley left in charge of Celtic Music and its related companies. Several Scottish folk musicians have backed the initiative, including Kathryn Tickell, Patsy Seddon of super-group Clan Alba and renowned fiddler Aly Bain. Speaking to The National, Bain – who has been friends with and worked alongside Gaughan since the early seventies – explained why he has backed the campaign. 'It's not even about my friendship with Dick – it's just wrong what has been done with these recordings', he said. 'These recordings should never be kept away. They should be out there, and Dick should be able to sell them. 'I just think it's one of these legal things that we have to get sorted out, because it's just not right that all these songs of his are just kept in mothballs. Nobody can hear them. 'If anything, Dick has become even more appreciated in his old age, so it's important that he's able to produce these things and put them on the market again because they're great songs.' Gaughan hopes the campaign will help other artists of his generation, who have "felt their own legacies to have been affected by a record label's claimed ownership of their works". READ MORE: 'I'll be busy washing my hair', Stephen Flynn said of upcoming Trump visit Tickell told The National: 'Dick Gaughan is one of the absolute greats of the folk music world. I grew up listening to his music and it's impossible to overstate just how influential and inspirational he is. 'This crowdfunder is for legal fees to enable him to fight to retrieve several iconic recordings. 'We hope that the end result will bring some much-needed income, since Dick is no longer able to perform due to disability, as well as making these recordings more accessible for people to enjoy.' Organisers say any extra funds left over from the campaign will be donated to charity Help Musicians, which aims to help artists at all levels during "times of crisis, but also at times of opportunity". The GoFundMe for Gaughan's legal fees is still active and those wishing to do so can donate here. Neil Sharpley was approached for comment.
The National
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Canadian duo bring twist on trad music to Scottish festival Speyfest
The East Pointers will bring their contemporary twist on Celtic music all the way from the east of Canada to the north-east of Scotland for Speyfest in Moray. Hailing from Prince Edward Island, Jake Charron and Tim Chaisson have built a reputation for their electrifying live performances, drawing on a blend of folk, pop, and Celtic traditions. 'We really can't wait to play at Speyfest,' said Charron. 'We love Scotland so much and always love the opportunity to come back and play somewhere new.' The East Pointers carry a deep sense of pride in representing Canadian traditional music on the global stage. For them, the ties between Scotland and Prince Edward Island run deep, stemming from the waves of Scottish settlers who arrived in the 18th and 19th centuries. Chaisson said: 'Boatloads of Scottish folks came to Prince Edward Island back in the late 1700s and early 1800s. 'A lot of them settled in pretty isolated communities, so the culture stayed really strong – music and stories were right at the heart of this and has definitely informed our style of playing and love for the tradition today.' This connection between east Canada and north-east Scotland is set to add an extra layer of resonance to their appearance at Speyfest. Chair Ashleigh MacGregor said: 'Both regions hold a deep appreciation for our cultural heritage, kept alive through music, storytelling, and community spirit. 'It will be incredibly special to have The East Pointers take to the Speyfest stage for the first time, blending their innovative sound with the traditional roots that bind Scotland and Canada together. 'We hope The East Pointers will feel right at home and reckon our shared traditions and the band's energy will really capture the hearts of the Speyfest audience.' The band's love for Scotland is strong, while their ability to meld various influences has propelled them to stages across the globe, from international festivals to intimate venues in Australia, Japan, Mexico, Europe and the US. With a viral dance to their latest release Misty Morning doing the rounds on TikTok, The East Pointers are known for their connection with their fans and producing high-energy sets that keep crowds dancing. 'We hope to see lots of dancing and singing from the Speyfest crowd and hopefully we can win over a few more fans in the process,' said Chaisson. Speyfest runs this year from July 25-27
