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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZGAUGHAN, Dick(b 17 May '48, Glasgow) Singer, guitarist and songwriter. Grew up in a family with a history of working-class folk song stretching back many generations, to which had been added Fenian and trade union songs. After guesting on other people's sessions, debuted with No More Forever on Trailer '72. Worked with traditional folk band Boys of the Lough and folk-rock band Five Hand Reel in '70s, concurrently recording solo LPs. Kist O' Gold on Trailer '77 proved highly influential and confirmed his status as a singular interpreter of Scots and British folk music. Coppers And Brass '77, a collection of Scots and Irish dance music played on guitar, and Gaughan '78 (both on Topic) further enhanced his reputation. A stalwart of the Scots folk scene, particularly associated with Edinburgh, hence contribution to Sandy Bell's Ceilidh '79, Sandy Bell's being one of the city's foremost folk venues; other contributors included the McCalmans, Aly Bain and Bell's Big Ceilidh Band. Gaughan's Handful Of Earth on Topic '81 remains a pinnacle of contemporary British folk music, fully displaying his command of British and Scots idioms; its renditions of Leon Rosselson's 'World Turned Upside Down', Burns's 'Now Westlin Winds' and the traditional 'Erin-Go-Bragh' epitomize his skills. Parallel Lines on FolkFreak '82, a collaboration with Andy Irvine, although significant, did not match its predecessor. A Different Kind Of Love Song on FolkFreak '83, however, confirmed him as one of Britain's leading performers and interpreters of political song, cf. his potent 'Think Again' (later covered by Billy Bragg) and the title track. A concert is captured on Live In Edinburgh on Celtic Music '85; one track 'Jaime Foyers' was also contributed to The Tree And The Bird And The Fish And The Bell on CBS '91, an anthology incl. performances by Blue Nile, Deacon Blue and John Martyn, and subtitled 'Glasgow songs by Glasgow artists' for the Oscar Marzaroli Trust. During the '84--5 miners' strike in Britain, and in its aftermath, he campaigned extensively for miners' rights, culminating in True And Bold on STUC '86, a magnificent collection of songs of the Scottish miners. In the political climate it was overlooked that he had consistently sung mining and industrial songs and, along with Harry Boardman, had contributed to the High Level Ranters' pioneering anthology, The Bonnie Pit Laddie on Topic '75, subtitled 'A Miner's Life In Music And Song'. He argued the case for 'a consistent and workable aesthetic based on a class view of folk music' when reviewing Ian Watson's Song And Democratic Culture In Britain '84. With Ken Hyder he made Fanfare For Tomorrow on Impetus '85, a notable error of judgement in a largely unblemished career with its avant-garde pretensions; track titles such as 'Political Prisoners', 'Sharpeville '85', the title track and 'Liberation' revealed its political roots. Contributed to the Woody Guthrie tribute anthology Woody Lives on Black Crow '87. The debut of the occasional Scots folk supergroup Clan Alba at the Edinburgh Folk Festival '92 was a triumph, but Gaughan had nothing new to say on record until eleven new songs on Sail On '96 on Greentrax. |