So my good pal Mick said to me a few weeks/months ago, “ Any chance of sending me that recording of In The Pines we did a few years back?” Sure…I lied.

The thing is, if it’s not on my laptop somewhere it could be anywhere. The first digital search was illuminating. I remembered where we’d stolen the version we cut all these years back. It was Gene Clark (who I’d discovered fairly late on) who recorded the song on his, then latest, album “Two Sides To Every Story.” There was no sign of either my version or gene’s there. So I started to look around for the song. I remember that the Loretta Lynn
biopic “Coal Miner’s Daughter” had a moment when Cissy Spacek went wandering out to the back yard and sang the song quietly to herself. So based on that I realised this song had been a big part of the country/blues catalogue. It didn’t take long to find Leadbelly, Dolly Parton, Bill Munroe, Doc Watson and many other versions. Frustrated by not finding the digital Gene Clark version I finally found a version which made the song sing as plaintively and lonely as I’d remembered it all these years ago. The version – The Louvin Brothers – truly beautiful. You can hear it on Tuesday night.

We’re also celebrating The Beatles. You can buy the entire catalogue (re mastered in glorious mono!) again…again. If you’ve been as dismayed by the poor CD quality of the existing catalogue as I have then this will come as great news to you…start that Santa list now. The impact of The Beatles was so huge in the USA that there have been many great covers and collaborations. We’ve picked some great Beatles songs covered by Country/Americana artists. You’ll no doubt add some suggestions of your own but look out for Steve Earle, Alison Krauss, Rosanne and….yes, Johnny Cash. Just to show that we have some credibility in all this I can now reveal that Richard Murdoch, my producer, has some previous on this issue.

Lastly but certainly most importantly we have three songs by the highly talented Andrew Bird which he recorded for us when he was here in Scotland recently. I will have a chat with Andrew on the show and we’ll try to get to the bottom of his love of the whistling his way through an instrumental…….has Brian B done a show on whistling yet……..all on Tuesday at 8. Don’t forget you can listen to the show on Sunday nights too when the repeat goes on air at 10.

What is it about Country Music? I was with some very old friends the other night and (towards the end of the evening) my good pal Eddie did his Glasgow version of On The Bayou…..it’s a Mickey take of us middle class types leading to the refrain, “In Milngavie -oh.” (readers in non Glasgow places need to note that the above suburb is pronounced Milguy) On reflection I realise that everyone in these parts assumes everyone else has a fair to middling knowledge of the genre. There’s very few households in these parts that couldn’t furnish you with a Hank Williams compilation if they had to find it in a hurry.

This week The Guardian ran a fascinating piece about Route 66 which carried John Steinbeck’s fictional Joad family from Oklahoma from the dust bowl to The Promised Land of California. In the article, Chris McGreal discovers how, even now, the route is lined with disappointment and visceral signs of the current recession: foreclosed banks, repossessed houses and failed enterprises form a backdrop to America’s most famous road. It’s in this environment that County Music finds its true context by allowing the stories of every day folk to be told. John Rich’s song, “Shutting Detroit Down” has become this year’s big country song by telling the story of corporate bonus culture coupled to industry’s affection for mass-redundancy. None of that would surprise fans of Merle Haggard.

So county music still lives in the hearts of ordinary people and perhaps that’s why, here in Scotland, it’s still very popular. Starting on September 1st we will celebrate that popularity by showcasing music from many different decades as well as playing new releases which have taken that music as an inspiration. 

This Tuesday look out for our exclusive session from Grizzly Bear and new album tracks from The Felice Brothers, The Low Anthem, Nanci Griffith and George Strait. If that isn’t enough we have some great Country duets which will may well inspire you to send in some suggestions of your own.

This Sunday will be my last show (in this present run) for the Sunday Morning show. On the last show I
have not managed to speak to any Jesuits a promised but will manage to talk to members of the staff at Glasgow’s Lodging house Mission,some parents trying to pass on faith or lack of faith to their children,
a very articulate 13 year old called Suzannah who enjoys her church life and lastly Naim Ateek an
Arab,Israeli, Christian Palestinian who runs the Sabeel centre for Liberation Theology in Jerusalem. All at 8.

Next Tuesday (1st September) I’l be back at 8 in the evening for a new series of Another Country. This really will be our most ambitious series so far. The good Richard has been lassoing the cream of new American bands and Americana artists and corralling them into the studio to perform session tracks from us.

Band of the year for a lot of people so far this year has been Grizzly Bear. I’m pleased to announce that they will
be our guests next Tuesday. Don’t miss a thing. Tune in at 8 and, as ever, send in emails and texts on artists to whom you are enjoying listening.

here’s a couple of links.

Lodging House Mission – http://www.lhmglasgow.org.uk

Sabeel Centre – www.sabeel.org.

My apologies for not blogging earlier but events caught up with me. As you will know, if you heard the programme yesterday,
my guest was Lord Joel Joffe on Sunday. I spent an hour in conversation with Joel – as he reminded me to call him – and a great pleasure it was. If you don’t know anything about him – as I didn’t a few weeks ago – please listen to the show on the i player. He is a remarkable man with a remarkable story. Now in his late 70’s he was the main defence lawyer for the Rivonia Trial of ANC members (including Nelson Mandela) in the the sixties. His account of the the trial which changed South Africa is also a fascinating read. I recommend both to you.

I will make one last Sunday morning appearance this final Sunday of August then I return to Another Country for a run of shows in September and October. On this last Sunday we will look at the work of The Lodging House Mission in Glasgow which is 100 years old this year. It’s a wonderful place with an on-going record of feeding and looking after homeless people in Glasgow. We also hope to have news of another anniversary – the Jesuits – who have been in the city for the last 150 years. There will also be some great music. All on Sunday at 8.

On Sunday’s show we discuss the influence of faith with four artists. From Amsterdam we hear from Mohammed Ali (yes..but not that one) who has been putting messages of peace, love and brotherhood from the Quran into his Graffiti. Paul Martin lets me share a coffee in his garden studio and talks about how his painting tries to echo God’s creation as it ‘becomes’ something. What, you can find out at his forthcoming exhibition at the Henderson Gallery.

We’re joined in the studio by David Martin whose visits to Egypt, Syria and Ethiopia transformed his painting and his spiritual outlook. Jane Frere has also travelled extensively and she will talk about her long journey that started in Poland and ended sharing space in a refugee camp in East Jerusalem.

Music : The Big Dish – Christina’s World
Neil Young – The Painter
Simon and Garfunkel – So Long, Frnk Lloyd Wright
Michael Marra – Frida Kahlo’s Visit to The Taybridge Bar

You can find out more about Mohammed Ali here: www.aerosolarabic.com
Paul Martin’s forthcoming exhibition – ‘Through A Glass Darkly’ is at The Henderson Gallery, Edinburgh from21st August – right through September.
Some of David Martin’s work can be seen here:www.davemartist.com
Return of The Soul, The Nakbeh project is described in great detail here: http://www.thisweekinpalestine.com/details.php?id=2461&ed=153&edid=153

The link I mentioned is www.alnakbah.net

There is also an amazing video of the installation in Palestine here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRY4RzMSpmg&feature=player_embedded

Here’s the music we played yesterday, Sunday 9th August:

The Pearlfishers – Eco Schools
Marvin Gaye – Mercy, mercy me
Neil Young – Mother Earth
Joni Mitchell- Big Yellow Taxi

I’m reading Waste- Uncovering The Global Food Scandal by Tristram Stuart and I’m enjoying it very much.

Tristram will be coming in on Sunday and will be joined by Carol Ann Alcorn from The Cyrenians FareShare Project as well as Alison Hilliard from ARC.
They will be discussing the environmental implications of throwing away vast amounts of food from our own kitchens as well as from supermarkets
and food wholesalers.

We also have a contribution from Mark Dowd from Operation Noah. If tou get a chance look at Mark’s Channel 4 programme called God is Green on the Operation Noah website. http://www.operationnoah.org/highlighted/newwebsite/god-green-channel-4-documentary-presented-mark-dowd

I think you will find Mark’s encounters with various clerics very interesting and (like them) fairly challenging.

We will also have Aeshan Akhtar joining us. Zeshan is a Zooligist with Scottish Natural Heritage whose Muslim faith has led her to believe that Muslims here in Scotland should be caring more for their planet.

I will probably mention some of these sites in the course of the show, so if you’d like to learn more about what we’re discussing you can see Alison’s organisation here: www.arcworld.org, Mark Dowd’s organisation here www.operationnoah.org.

We also mention a future Eco Congregation Conference in Edinburgh and you can find out about that here: www.ecocongregation.org/scotland .

Lastly the work of Fareshare and Edinburgh Cyrenians is highlighted here: www.cyrenians.org.uk/Edinburghcyreniansourservices/foodandhealth.html

Once you’ve listened to all of this Sunday Brunch will never quite be the same again. Tune in at 8.

Thanks folks…it’s lovely to get feedback. It makes broadcasting feel more focussed. A couple of updates:

On the asylum seekers the story we told of Helen Bih has a fairly typical follow on. Her case review – due to be held on 29th of July – was postponed. As I write this there is no further news but I will pass on any when I hear.

This coming Sunday we’re talking food, waste and how different faiths are learning to love God’s planet a little more. It looks as if we’ll have some very interesting conversations regarding what we throw away and what we keep.

Last week we played some music connected to our discussions on painting and spirituality. Along the way we talked too with Midge Ure about Band/Live Aid. if you’re not sure about any particular song then this list might help.

When I Paint My Masterpiece – Bob Dylan

A Case of You – K.D. Lang

Bad – U2

Closer to the Light – Bruce Cockburn

Some good stuff coming up this week-end. It all starts at 8 o’clock on Sunday Morning.

Just to let you know we’re playing some lovely music on Sunday mornings. In case you missed it here’s what’s been played so far….

week 1

Sunday Morning Coming Down – Kris Kristofferson
Oh No – Andrew Bird  
Higher Ground – Stevie Wonder

week 2

Sunday Morning – Matthew sweet and Susanna Hoffs
God Bless The Child  – Billie Holiday
God Loves Everyone – Ron Sexsmith
I’ve Got that Old Time Religion in My Heart  – Iris Dement

week 3

Sunday Morning (Up and Down Our Street) – Gretchen Peters
People Get Ready – The Impressions
Many Rivers To Cross – Jimmy Cliff
Across The Border – Bruce Springsteen

Happy Summer Everyone

I decided to start the blog a little earlier than I meant to as I’m currently in the middle of a new Radio Scotland show called……erm…Ricky Ross.

The show goes out on Sunday mornings as part of Radio Scotland’s religious/moral/ethical output. Normally Sally Magnusson would be on the wireless at that time on a Sunday morning but she will be back in September.

if you go to BBC iplayer and type in my name you can hear last Sunday’s programme. The last show featured the personal stories of Scottish Asylum seekers. Listening to Helen’s story is incredibly moving and I have to say it still shocks me to learn how cruelly these people can be treated by our government in our name.

Along the way I’ve had some amazing opportunities to speak to some great people. The links below are connected to the Arran conservation trip and the other link is for the Scottish Refugee Council. Alison Phipps (another guest on the show) was prompted to carry out some fantastic voluntary work after she heard an appeal on the radio. I do hope this broadcast might encourage people to do something similar.

there’s lots of other things happening with music in my life too at the moment but I’ll deal with more of that soon. Next sunday I will be speaking to Midge Ure and it is great to hear how much his Band Aid experience made such a difference to his own outlook on the world. it’s all on Radio Scotland @ 8 a.m. Sunday.

http://www.scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk/

http://www2.btcv.org.uk/display/btcv_scotland

If you are interested in some of the items we have looked at already you might find this one quite good fun on fundamentalism:

http://www.ajjacobs.com/content/home.asp

Over the next wee while I will also let you know more about the music we are playing too. Keep dropping by.