STV’s Neil Drysdale has been posting a fair bit about yours truly lately, here’s a well written article he has done on myself and my upcoming album ‘The Never Ending Pageant’. Story can also be read here:
Colin’s back in Scotland with his never-ending pageant
By Neil Drysdale.
Colin Clyne has been straddling different continents for so long that he views the flight from Scotland to America as the rest of us do a shuttle trip to London.
When he isn’t recording and writing songs in San Francisco or San Diego, he is savouring the swirl and swell of the sea in his native Stonehaven.
He called his first album “Doricana”, as a means of highlighting the diverse strands which embody his music.
There were nods to his Scottish roots, pieces of folk and the occasional heady anthem in the mix, which testified to Clyne’s connection to his homeland.
But there were also fragments of Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Tom Waits and other great American icons, which reflected how the project came to fruition – and garnered rich praise – throughout the United States.
No wonder there is understandable expectation as Clyne prepares to release his new CD, “The Never Ending Pageant.”
It’s an eclectic offering with some high-octane figures in the background. None carry more weight than producer, Alan Sanderson, who has previously worked with a cast list of such leading luminaries as Michael Jackson, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, Elton John and Elvis Costello.
Indeed, Sanderson has a Grammy on his CV and doesn’t need any introductions when he walks into a recording studio in his adopted country.
And Clyne has clearly been inspired by his association with such an exalted individual.
He said: “There was something pretty special about working on this album. I think everybody sensed it, whether it was the musicians, the engineers, or anybody else.
“Alan and I have been friends for several years and he has been a mentor to me. We both like a lot of different types of music and I hope that comes across in what I do.
“We actually completed the sessions for the new record last summer, and I’ve been involved in moving back to Scotland since that time.
“But it has been mastered and mixed, I am very pleased with the final result, and now I just need to sort out one or two things and we will be ready to go.”
Clyne isn’t inclined to toot his own horn; he is one of those artists who prefer to be on stage, communing with an audience through songs, not snappy soundbites.
Other people might have harped on about the accident which nearly wrecked his chances of picking up a guitar again when he was a teenager.
Or they may have trumpeted the fact they were named “Best Acoustic Act” at the San Diego music awards in 2011 and 2012. Yet Clyne mentioned neither.
Instead, he told us: “I have always tried to create my own sound and do my own thing. Of course, I have influences, but you always have to do your best to be an original voice.
“There was something about this [“The Never Ending Pageant”] which captured people’s imaginations and I want to get that message across to people in Scotland.
“Basically, it is my swansong to California. I enjoyed being over there, but I have never forgotten my roots and it feels great to be back in the north-east.”
He will be performing at The Lemon Tree in Aberdeen on Saturday (22nd Feb), in the sort of intimate setting which suits him best.
And, although he has a family to look after, there is no danger of Clyne chasing a quick buck at the expense of his credibility.
As he concluded: “I hope the new album comes out in the spring, but if not, then it will be the summer. The main thing is to make sure we do it right.”
Some view music as a career, others regard it as a calling. There is no doubting which category suits Clyne.