Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,kenny
Date: 11 Feb 20 - 10:53 AM

"second rate at best," - you mean like Jeannie Robertson, Lizzie Higgins, Jimmy Hutchison, Belle Stewart, Heather Heywood, Archie Fisher, Barbara Dickson, Jim Reid, Andy M. Stewart ...... ?
I doubt very much that "most of us" believe that at all. Who appointed you as the spokesperson for "us" ?

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,Alan Ross
Date: 11 Feb 20 - 12:35 PM

Hey people.. we are going into thread creep and sadly a bit of controversy. It wasn't the singing artists, it was to do with songs we were discussing, and the Rose tinted glasses that people wore when listening to or composing lyrics for songs like 'Lovely Stornoway', or some of the many similar town or place songs. Bob Halfin's song is a classic of its type, but probably bears little relevance to the reality of a place like Stornoway - though it was written in the late 1950's.   My late father was also guilty as charged of writing sentimental songs taking place names, or a theme, where everything was 'lovely' or 'bonnie'. Often written to order.. and not necessarily very true of a place. They still touch people, and sometimes have great tunes - but the home market for them is now limited, compared to the peak of Calum Kennedy's popularity.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 18 Feb 20 - 10:33 AM

Quote from the December 2019 edition of "Box and Fiddle" magazine, club news section, from Banff Accordion and Fiddle Club, "......all musicians took to the stage for a rousing stramash and sing-along to Lovely Stornoway". Thought you'd like to know!

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,Alan Ross
Date: 18 Feb 20 - 08:12 PM

Tattie Bogle, I've just found out that thrash Celtic merchants 'Peat and Diesel', (currently creating Peatlemania) have brought Lovely Stornoway to another generation. It's now seriously re-entered public consciousness though their performances.   Not my kind of rendition (don't let actual tuneful singing get in the way), but hey..to each their own.   It's funny how a song can be re-discovered, but I bet not many people realise it's not traditional, and was mainly written to order by an Englishman!

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,akenaton
Date: 19 Feb 20 - 02:30 AM

I quite like P&D....they are certainly entertainers in the old sense and witty in a way, but I don't think the fact that Lovely Stornoway was written by an Englishman diminishes the enjoyment many of us had from the song. Nationalism can be taken TOO far.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,Alan Ross
Date: 19 Feb 20 - 04:42 AM

Akenaton, I meant it tongue in cheek.. as many people think that Scottish songs will have been written by natives of their own culture.. getting all misty eyed about a place they lived in. In fact many songs were just written to order by writers with no connection to the area where the song was about. Its like Dark Island (Kennedy version), the original tune may have been written by a guy from South Uist, but when my father wrote the words - he only did it after seeing a TV show - and was Invernessian. Oh and the 'authentic' Scottish tune Highland Cathedral is German, but makes people all dewy eyed about Scottish culture. Bob Halfin was a London based hack 'Tin-Pan Alley' writer, who often had a case full of lyrics and songs - but in writing 'Lovely Stornoway' he came up with a classic of its genre.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,akenaton
Date: 19 Feb 20 - 12:07 PM

Nae problem Alan, I remember the TV show to which "The Dark Island" was the theme. Black and white telly tae.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 20 Feb 20 - 06:25 PM

Ha-ha re Peat and Diesel: have seen them on TV and various YouTube clips: not exactly my cup of decaff either, but keeping the auld sangs going in their own style.

As for Londoners writing "Scottish" songs, what about Sir Harold Boulton? Spiffing job, what? (Skye Boat Song, Loch Tay Boat song - he had a thing about boats?)
And The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen was written by an English lady.
Who could blame them for liking Scotland?

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST
Date: 20 Feb 20 - 10:56 PM

Well observed Tattie Bogle. By the way Bob Halfin obviously had a thing for alliteration in some of his titles.. he co-wrote one called 'Chip Chopper Charlie' for Max Bygraves, and he had my father write 'You'll never get used to Uist'. His name is associated with 400 odd songs, though many he never actually wrote, but had shares in. Other works you will know are Silver Darlings (he had nothing to do with the actual writing of it), 'They found Donald's Troosers on the Top of Ben Nevis', 'The Scottish Working Man' etc. He wrote about any novelty subject and numerous countries. As I said, he once wrote a song about Tomnahurich cemetery! Pete and Diesel confusingly call 'Lovely Stornoway' just 'Stornoway,   Go

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,Alan Ross
Date: 20 Feb 20 - 11:08 PM

Sorry my fingers slipped and I sent that before I was finished! I meant to say I meant to say "God forbid" that P and D ever cover any of my father's songs, as they have the subtlety of a sledgehammer in their approach to music, and the vocalist has the singing ability of a drunk coming home from a night out. 'Lovely Stornoway' is murdered. But it does bring the song to the next generation, when that period Tartan music had been lost from TV and radio.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Tune Req: Lovely Stornoway (Kennedy/Halfin)
From: GUEST,kenny
Date: 21 Feb 20 - 04:09 AM

"they have the subtlety of a sledgehammer in their approach to music, and the vocalist has the singing ability of a drunk coming home from a night out".
Exactly, and therein lies the secret of their popularity.