Whatever happened to Matt McGinn? (1928-1977)

Subject: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Celtic-End Singer
Date: 27 Aug 99 - 06:16 PM

Does anyone know what Glasweigan comedian and singer Matt McGinn is up to these days? Is he retired? Is he dead? I just don't know. I'll never forget "The Red Yo-Yo" or "The Effen Bee".

I miss him.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: bigJ
Date: 27 Aug 99 - 06:44 PM

Matt died - at a guess - 20+ years ago. Master McVicar, over to you.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: John Nolan
Date: 27 Aug 99 - 09:15 PM

Matt died in 1977. A 200-page gem is "McGinn of the Calton", published by Glasgow City Libraries. It includes an autobiography, photographs, songs, a foreward by Jimmy McGregor and a very moving introduction by Janette McGinn. ISBN 0 906169 15 1

Subject: Matt McGinn?
From: kendall morse (don't use)
Date: 28 Aug 99 - 09:38 AM

I heard that Matt died in a car crash. Does anyone have the words to I DONT REMEMBER LOVING YOu ?"

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Ewan McVicar
Date: 29 Aug 99 - 03:34 AM

Matt, like Arthur Argo, died as I understand in one of those weird living room fires involving too much alcohol and a small electric fire, while separated from his wife. To some minds will immediately occur the idea of spontaneous combustion death, but I've no information on that. Check out also the tribute recording by the Stramash song grouping which was issued by Greentrax Records - lots of good stuff on it.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Gio
Date: 07 Jul 03 - 05:46 PM

His wife Janette put the record straight in McGinn of The Calton. He died of smoke inhalation after falling asleep with a lighted cigarette in his hand.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Sarah F
Date: 07 Jul 03 - 06:11 PM

This message just jogged my memory so I have had a look about and here's what's online about the late Great Matt McGinn.

Checkout    www.theballadeers.com      and   www.roots2thefuture.com

Matt McGinn was born in 1928 in one of the poorest areas of Glasgow, into a family of 9 kids. They lived near the Barras, Glasgow's famous market. After having gone to an approved school during the war he became interested in politics. He was a left-wing activist and won a scholarship to Ruskin College, Oxford. That was quite something for a poor Glaswegian !

While studying to become a teacher he won a competition for "Best Folk Song" and when he returned to Glasgow he taught for a while before becoming a full time folk singer / songwriter / actor / writer / poet. He is most famous for his songs which such as; the Red Yo-yo, The Wee Kirkcudrbright Centipede, Magic Shadow Show, Janetta, The Ballad of the Q4, the Ballad of John McLean, The Depth of My Ego and Troubled Waters. He wrote childrens' songs, love songs, funny songs, etc., but first and foremost he was a political animal and he wrote some great political songs, usually with a bit of humour thrown in.

As the previous message said, he died of smoke inhalation after falling asleep with a lighted cigarette in his hand. Glasgow and the world lost a lot in the shape of a down to earth talented man, often referred to as the Scottish Woody Guthrie.   

There is a bit of a Matt McGinn revival going on at present, including awards ceremonies and concerts in Glasgow and New York. Some of his work has been re-released as the "Best of Matt McGinn" and "The Return of The Two Heided Man". The book "McGinn of the Calton" tells of his life and has song lyrics. It's a gem of a book; and he was a gem of a person ! www.theballadeers.com has a bit of info on him.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Nick
Date: 07 Jul 03 - 07:13 PM

Thanks for all of the plugs for my site (www.theballadeers.com). Matt's youngest daughter Shonagh is very active in keeping the memory of Matt alive. You can actually get copies of "McGinn of Calton" through her. [e-mail]

Shonagh also informs me that they're in the process of making a Matt McGinn tribute album...the only name I can remember is Shane McGowan.

Nick

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Beardy
Date: 07 Jul 03 - 07:32 PM

I have just returned from the RMT Annual Conference held in a very sunny Glasgow. Every evening there were numerous delegates populating McGinn's Bar, Central Station. The bar is run by Matt's nephew, Paul. The conference was made so welcome Paul became the first pub landlord to receive a presentation for services to the union.

A friendly welcome will be extended to any visitors and there is also frequently folk music until late. There are pictures and extracts of Matts poetry/songs around the walls.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Charley Noble
Date: 07 Jul 03 - 09:39 PM

Nice to hear that Matt is still appreciated.

Charley Noble

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Kevin Sheils
Date: 08 Jul 03 - 01:04 PM

Before leaving my job at BT 3 years back one of the people I knew via the internal newsgroup there was, IIRC, a nephew of Matt and he was putting together a web site at www.btinternet.com/~sarsen/matt/index.html

It doesnt appear to have been updated recently but there are some nice piccies in the biography pages that are there

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,leo
Date: 09 Jul 03 - 10:00 AM

hey beardy, ive often travelled past that pub and wondered what the connection was, nice to know it's his own family and not just someone using the name to drag in folkies!

incidentally, as an SSP member, congratulations on giving tony's tories a kick up the aerse.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Beardy
Date: 09 Jul 03 - 04:49 PM

Well leo go in!!

Tommy Sheridan addressed our conference and came to our dinner/dance so keep the faith.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,mac
Date: 10 Jul 03 - 04:01 PM

There was a Matt McGinn concert in the RSAMD in Glasgow on May 31st and what a night that was ! I was lucky enough to get a ticket at the last minute. It is to be an annual event, with awards going to newcomers / old faves ! On the bill were; Horse, Phamie Gow, St. Francis of Assis School Choir, Mary Khiani Gospel Chior, Partick Beat, Shane McGoan, The McCluskey Brothers, Des McLean, Pat Rolink, Gary Lewis, David Hayman, the Duncan McCrone band, dave Anderson, Andy Duncan, Samantha Seth, etc..



The organisers want to hold a concert in New York next year.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Josh
Date: 11 Jul 03 - 04:24 AM

I heard Pete Seeger was to be on at the New York gig. I suppose that's to be expected, but what an honour !

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,theballadeer
Date: 11 Jul 03 - 07:52 AM

A bit of trivia...Pete was a very close friend of Matt's and his youngest daughter Shonagh's middle name is Seeger.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Big Tim
Date: 11 Jul 03 - 10:33 AM

I got in touch with Shonagh, by email, and she's going to check out this thread.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Agnes
Date: 11 Jul 03 - 12:25 PM

Tommy Sheridan has been known to quote Matt McGinn songs, so I suppose he's yet another fan. His favourite is " he was right side of the people, wrong side of the law ", from the ballad of John Mclean about a Glasgow School teacher who stood up against the establishment.

( Tommy Sheridan is the leader of the Scottish Socialist Party. )

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 01:22 AM

I once heard that Matt was very pleased with the lovely "Rolling Hills of the Border" as his first "serious" song, and then was mildly chagrined when it was quickly parodied by John Roberts and Tony Barrand as "The Rolling Mills of New Jersey." As a former New Jersey resident, and a sometime writer of parodies and humorous songs, as well as serious ones, this story struck a chord with me. Can anyone attest to its veracity?

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,John T
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 08:58 AM

I knew Matt well and I have heard this story before. I think it's nonsense. I am sure he would have loved to have had any of his songs carry on in any parodied form.

Matt had a whole LP of parodies. To me it wasn't his finest Lp, ( to others it may be though!) but I have no doubt he wouldn't have taken offence to a parody of one of his.

Talking of his finest Lps; most people don't realise how many Lps he released. There was Matt McGinn, Matt McGinn Again, Honesty is out of the Fashion, Sampler, Tinny Can on my Tail, and Take me Back to the Jungle which were all full of his songs. He then released The Two Heided Man, the Two Heided Man Strikes Again and Screwtops are Falling on my Head, which had songs, stories and jokes. The songs on The Two Heided Man and the Two Heided Man Strikes Again include classics such as Depth of my Ego. Apart from the above he also had parts on other Lps ( such as the folk song revival lps ) and singles icluding The Wee Kirkcudbright Centipede.... all too much to mention here.

The book McGinn of the Calton is excellent, and the more I hear and read his work the more I realise that there is still a great amount to be re-discovered.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Felipa
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 09:03 AM

Mark, shouldn't that read "the Petroleum Mills of New Jersey" (or New Joisey)?

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,pepsi
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 03:11 PM

hey, how does the parody go anyway ?

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 06:42 PM

Here is The Rolling Mills of New Jersey in the DT, with a copyright notice so there's a reasonable chance it's accurate. I seem to remember hearing another verse that went:

If at times you feel heartbroken
Just go down the stairs and put in a token
And pretty soon you'll be in Hoboken
The heart and soul of New Jersey

I may have learned that from Janet Stecher and Susan Lewis, who used to be 2/3 of "The Belles of Hoboken", then were 1/2 of "Shays' Rebellion," and are now 2/2 of "Rebel Voices." But maybe I learned it from somebody else.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 12 Jul 03 - 06:44 PM

PS, Thanks, John T. I'm happy to lay that to rest.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,Pepsi
Date: 13 Jul 03 - 05:57 PM

The parody is pretty much McGinn style, I'd say !

I just received a copy of the "Best of Matt McGinn"........ what a joy to hear all those classics on an unscratched CD ! Apparently they are the "Best of" only some of his LPs so there must be lots of other classics that I haven't heard yet.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,mac
Date: 13 Jul 03 - 07:40 PM

I forgot to mention the Cameron Brothers sang at the concert at the RSAMD. I don't know why I forgot them; they were excellent and really got the audience going by doing a set of Matt's best "CHORUS" songs.

The Cameron Brothers are from Glasgow and they usually sing some of Matt's songs in their show.

Also, as Beardy pointed out above, McGinn's Bar has been up and running for about a year now, with folk nights being held upstairs. It's in Hope Street, in the same building as the Central Train Station in Glasgow. Paul McGinn, Matt's nephew, is a great host.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Big Tim
Date: 19 Jul 03 - 12:21 PM

I've just finished reading "McGinn of the Calton": fascinating, humourous, and sad, in the light of Matt's premature death. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Glasgow, the human spirit and who enjoys a good laugh.                     

MMG joke: he is teaching, the Inspector calls, asks a wee boy "who pulled down the pillars of the Temple"? Wee boy: "well it wisnae me". To MMG: "what have you to say about that?". "Well, if the boy says it wisnae him...". To Head: "what have you to say about that?". Head: "Well MMG knows the boy well, and if he says it wisnae him..." To Education Committee: "what have you to say about that?". "We're sorry, it's a shame, shouldn't have happened, we'll send a couple of joiners round in the morning to fix it up again"!

Also listening to some of Matt's old records: it's like being back inside a 60s folk club.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,theballadeer
Date: 21 Jul 03 - 02:24 PM

Matt's latest press...Dylan meets McGinn

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Big Tim
Date: 21 Jul 03 - 04:07 PM

In "Calton" Matt relates how he was paid 200 dollars to Dylan's 60 at Carnegie Hall in '62! Full circle or what.

I was planning to be in NYC for St Patrick's Day next year but if there's a McGinn tribute in April, I'd rather hold off and try and get a ticket for that.

Balladeer, could you keep us posted?

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST
Date: 22 Jul 03 - 12:35 PM

Phil Ferns is the man responsible for organising the Matt McGinn Tribute Concerts and Awards Ceremonies and his website is www.roots2thefuture.com

Of course, the balladers website is    www.theballadeers.com and it is a source of info about numerous Irish and Scottish singers.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,jimboy
Date: 22 Jul 03 - 12:50 PM

The guy that wrote the aricle in the Scotsman couldn't have been at the concert in May because that was much more than a small concert; that was a splendid example of the talent, not only of Matt McGinn, but the talent that a city like Glasgow can offer to the world.

The range of material which just one man had written was astounding and the way it was interpreted through gospel style, drums, pop rythms, people reading poerty, and just good old folk music made for EXCELLENT entertainment. It was a very memorable night and I, like Big Tim, will be looking out to see when the concert is in New York; it sounds like great excuse to re-visit the place.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: GUEST,david parker
Date: 18 Jan 24 - 03:49 AM

why no mention here of matts autobiographical book about his time in the approved school.fry the little fishes.surely i cant be the only one to have a copy.i have written a song about matt quite simply titled wee matt mcginn and hope to upload ot on you tube soon.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 18 Jan 24 - 12:27 PM

Billy Connolly knew Matt, and may have played guitar for him at times. Anyway I met Billy briefly at a launch party for a video he had released and I mentioned Matt's passing and said what a sad way to go, Billy's response was, "Ach he always liked Burns", another immortal memory.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn?
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 18 Jan 24 - 03:51 PM

Linlithgow Folk Festival Association have been holding an annual Matt McGinn Tribute night for a good many years, the last one being in March 2023. Over the years we have covered many of Matt's best-known songs as well as some of his lesser-known ones. There should be a few on YouTube. We don't just sing them, we get appropriately costumed and act them out too. Local musicians formed the backing band. On several occasions performances have been attended by Matt's daughters, Eleanor and Shonagh, who gave us their seal of approval and friendship, as did Matt's wife Janette. Always a full house of people who have their own memories of Matt.
And there are others still continuing to hold tribute nights - as his friend Pete Seeger said, "Keep Matt McGinn singing"!

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn? (1928-1977)
From: GUEST,david parker
Date: 22 Jan 24 - 08:53 AM

we were at the matt mcginn hootenany in glasgow on saturday where many of the great mans songs were to be heard.i got up and sang wee matt mcginn and it went down well with a very enthuiastic audience.i wrote the song over twenty years ago and this was the first time it has ever been sang in public.must get to linlithgow this year.please let us know the date tattie bogle.keep matt singing.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn? (1928-1977)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 26 Jan 24 - 08:18 PM

Hi David, very sad and sorry to say that there will not be a Linlithgow Matt McGinn night this year, or in the foreseeable future. Unfortunately the Linlithgow Folk Festival Association has run out of people willing to keep the whole thing going, including that and the annual festival in September. They had their AGM, followed by an EGM just last week at which the existing committee all stood down, but there were no nominees or volunteers to take the association forward, so all activities have been suspended. Having spent a good few years on the committee myself, several of those as festival coordinator, I am bereft: sadly it’s the fate of many organisations, not just within folk music, that people are very happy to join in what’s put before them, but not so keen to help organise things…. But LFFA has not yet been formally dissolved, so if there’s anyone out there who feels up to taking it on…..?

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn? (1928-1977)
From: GUEST,david parker
Date: 27 Jan 24 - 02:36 AM

so sorry to hear that tattie bogle.a sign of the times these days.you have done your bit and it is a shame no one has picked up the baton and ran with it.i will pass this on to someone else who was a regular at this night and was intending to be there again this year.yours in folk,david.keep matt singing.

Subject: RE: Whatever happened to Matt McGinn? (1928-1977)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 27 Jan 24 - 08:14 PM

Thanks David, and for your support.