<\/p>\n
James Grant brought his guitar, his humour and his incredible array of songs to the highland capital this month.<\/p>\n
This Scottish singer songwriter\u2019s career has been long and varied; from Friends Again to Love and Money to his solo career; from Castlemilk to New York and countless places in between. As his nonagenarian father puts it, without a hint of irony \u201cHe\u2019s been at this gemme since he was fifteen \u2013 never had a proper job.\u201d Just as well for us, or we wouldn\u2019t have the extensive back catalogue of sublime poetry and perfectly crafted music that he brings to Hootenanny\u2019s in Inverness.<\/p>\n
With searingly bright and beautiful songs from his solo albums alongside well-beloved Love and Money tracks there is something for everyone; whether you have experienced heartbreak and identify with \u2018Winter\u2019 or are feeling \u201csuper mellow\u201d to \u2018The Shape of Things to Come\u2019. You may even be a foot fetishist tapping your toes to \u2018Jaqueline\u2019s Shoes\u2019. \u201cWhatever floats your boat\u2026 \u201cas Grant himself succinctly puts it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wrote this song in my bedroom in Castlemilk. It turned out to be prophetic.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
A highlight for many was \u201cUp Escalator\u201d, the ode to societal notions of success.\u00a0 \u201cI wrote this song in my bedroom in Castlemilk. It turned out to be prophetic.\u201d says Grant<\/p>\n
\u201cI only recently started playing this acoustically\u201d he explains. And for good reason. The original is an eighties juggernaut; a big, brash rock giant that was given life by a band in the midst of eighties excesses.<\/p>\n
To play it acoustically requires a new arrangement both musically and philosophically, reflecting the irony of overconsumption in today\u2019s climate of austerity. Grant meets the challenge to translate the song into an acoustic version while maintaining its power. It is streamlined, pared back and really, really works.<\/p>\n
Many of his songs have had incredible new arrangements for his recordings with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, and more recently The Hallelujah Strings. The Strings are a \u201cbespoke 14-piece orchestra\u201d, bringing a lushly layered new sound to vintage songs. Following the outstanding success of the sell-out Celtic Connections shows a new date has been set for the Glasgow City Halls 23rd<\/sup> September. This promises to be an unforgettable experience.<\/p>\n
Back in Inverness, the acoustic set is uncharacteristically upbeat; the crowd taking his dark humour and running with it. They don\u2019t hold back – heckling, singing, clamouring for their favourite song and generally having epic fun.<\/p>\n
James Grant has a poet\u2019s ability to crystallise the chaos of human emotion into bright, sharp, insightful lyrics. He may also be the greatest living songwriter in Scotland, but he will squirm, swear and generally self -deprecate if you suggest it. It seems you can take the boy out of Castlemilk, and you know how the saying goes, but boy, do those roots run deep.<\/p>\n
See Jamesgrantsongbook.com<\/a> for further dates.<\/p>\n
Image: \u00a9 Malcolm McCurrach | New Wave Images UK<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"