Blair Douglas

Composer and song-writer from the Isle of Skye.

A consummate musician with an international reputation, Blair is also considered to be one of this generation’s foremost tunesmiths and song-writers. His work’s enduring popularity with music aficionados is eloquent testimony to that, as is the face that many of his tunes have entered the repertoires of traditional musicians and pipers.

Blair was born and brought up in Skye. On his mother's side he has strong connections with North Uist while his father's people had moved to Skye from the Border country around 150 years ago. When he was 15 the family relocated to Glasgow but returned to their home in Braes after a number of years in the city.

Blair was inspired to buy an accordion after hearing the playing of the late, lamented Niall Cheòis of Lewis. In 1973, having quickly mastered the instrument he teamed up with Calum and Rory MacDonald, fellow Skyemen with North Uist connections. Together they formed the Run Rig Dance Band to play at the North Uist & Bernera Association concert in Glasgow. The band's background was in Gaelic/Highland music though somewhat tempered by exposure to rock so much so that part of their original repertoire allegedly included "gems" such as Whisky in the Jar and Snoopy vs the Red Baron, both classics for 70's cover bands.

During this time the band played mostly at the weekends allowing Blair to continue as a student at Glasgow University where he graduated with an economics degree. A short flirtation with a full time playing career in the late 70's proved unsuccessful and eventually led to Blair and Runrig (the 'Dance Band' tag having by this time been dumped) going their separate ways. However Blair did return to play on Run Rig's Recovery in 1981.

His first solo album, Celtology, came out in 1984 and featured songs rather than his better known instrumental style. It also included a few compositions which were not his own. Subsequent CDs are remarkable because the material is largely Blair's own. Beneath the Beret published in 1990 included Kate Martin's Waltz which became an instant hit with traditional musicians and remains a classic of the genre. A Summer in Skye, many of whose themes are based on Alexander Smith's celebrated book of the same name was launched in 1996. Highlights on this album are A' Bhean Ionmhainn, The Landlord's Walk, and Nelson Mandela's Welcome to the City of Glasgow. The latter, like so many Blair compositions, has been picked up by other performers.

It was always going to be a tall order for Blair to match the originality and class of A Summer in Skye but in 2004's Angels from the Ashes it has met its match. He has achieved this is, providing us with a beautifully crafted CD which, though being remarkable in its originality, is unmistakably the work of Blair Douglas.

2008 sees the release of Blair's new album, Stay Strong (Rester Fort/Bithibh Laidir). This album is more song-orientated, and features contributions from, amongst others, Eddi Reader, Kathleen MacInnes, Michael Marra, Rory MacDonald, Bruce Guthro, Cookie Rankin. Instrumentalists include Gordon Gunn, Malcolm Jones, Colin Tully, Mairi Rankin and Wendy MacIssac. The sentiment of the title is reflected throughout the album.

The 2012 release from Blair assembled an impressive array of musicians and singers for his new release Leanaidh Mi (I Will Follow). Recorded in Nashville and Scotland, the album contains 13 original tracks - 6 Gaelic songs and 7 instrumentals including a Bluegrass version of Blair's timeless classic, Kate Martin's Waltz.

Blair, firmly rooted in Skye, continues to compose and write.

Tags: Musician