Thinking back to Doc Rowe recording Sheila Stewart, I am reminded of something that I wrote (in the last century!) at the end of a review that I wrote for Musical Traditions of the Lomax/Jeannie Robeertson album (read it by clicking here.) I wrote:-

I'll finish with a little story. Earlier this year, we had Sheila Stewart staying with us. She was telling us about the album that she had just recorded for release by Topic and she showed me the order of the track listing that had been settled on. In my turn, I showed her the CD re-release of her mother, Belle's album, Queen Among the Heather on the Greentrax label. (I was surprised to hear her say that she knew nothing of the arrangement for the Topic album to be licensed and re-released). I then showed her this album, The Queen Among the Heather, released around the same time and asked her to consider what two of Scotland's great traveller singers would have said if they had been alive when these albums had come out. This greatly amused Sheila as she laughingly speculated on the comments that might have been made on both sides. I then asked her what the title of her forthcoming album was to be and she told me that this was yet to be decided. I said that it was quite common to call the album by the opening track. She looked again at the track listing and saw that the first song was called ... "Queen Among the Heather". She fixed me with a stare with her penetrating black eyes and called me something that I don't care to repeat here.

Vic Smith - 30.10.99