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James Grant (musician)

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James Grant is a Scottish musician, singer and songwriter. He grew up in Glasgow's Castlemilk district and still resides in the city.

Friends Again

James Grant's music career began in 1982 as songwriter and guitarist in the new wave band Friends Again, alongside Chris Thomson, later of The Bathers. The group had minor hit singles with "State of Art", "Sunkissed" and "Honey at the Core". They released a self-titled EP in 1983 and then recorded their debut album, Trapped & Unwrapped, in 1984. On 5 June 2015, as part of the BBC Music Day at the broadcaster's Pacific Quay HQ in Glasgow, Grant and Thomson reunited to play two Friends Again songs - "State of Art" and "Honey at the Core" - for a live studio audience. Their performance was broadcast live on the Music Through Midnight show presented by Billy Sloan, though it was also filmed, perhaps for online content or a future broadcast.[1]

Love and Money

When Friends Again split in 1985, Grant went on to form Love and Money along with drummer Stuart Kerr and keyboardist Paul McGeechan. In their nine years together, they recorded four moderately successful albums, All You Need Is, Strange Kind of Love, Dogs in the Traffic and Littledeath, and had six chart hits in the United Kingdom.[2]

Solo career

Grant's first solo album, Sawdust in My Veins, was released on Survival Records in 1998. It featured long term collaborator Donald Shaw, Karen Matheson, harmonica player Fraser Speirs, drummer James MacKintosh and the BT Scottish Ensemble. After a label change to Vertical, the same lineup was retained for My Thrawn Glory in 2000. I Shot the Albatross, a collection of poetry set to music, was released in 2002. It included interpretations of works by Edwin Morgan, EE Cummings, and William Blake. The gentle, introspective Holy Love followed in 2004, featuring contributions by dobro player Jerry Douglas and ex-Thrum vocalist Monica Queen. Strange Flowers, a more upbeat collection, was released in February 2009.

Grant also scored the film The Near Room and has collaborated with Capercaillie's Karen Matheson, performing live and writing songs for her solo records The Dreaming Sea, Downriver, and Time to Fall.

In conversation with radio presenter Billy Sloan on BBC Scotland's Music Through Midnight show on 5 June 2015, Grant revealed he was writing material and suggested it was more likely to be for a solo album than another Love and Money project.[1]

Love and Money reformation and new album

Love and Money reformed for a show at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall as part of Celtic Connections 2011; this was intended to be a one-off but was very successful and the band subsequently decided to tour the UK. Following this, the band released their fifth studio album The Devil's Debt in 2012. A limited edition live album of their Royal Concert Hall show, Strange Kind of Love was also released.

Discography

Albums

  • Sawdust in My Veins (Survival, 1998)
  • My Thrawn Glory (Vertical, 2000)
  • I Shot the Albatross (Vertical, 2002)
  • Holy Love (Vertical, 2004)
  • Strange Flowers (Vertical, 2009)
  • James Grant & the Hallelujah Strings (Vertical, 2016)

Singles

  • "Halleluiah Man" (Strange Kind of Love, 1988)
  • "Pray the Dawn" (Survival, 1998)
  • "Hey Renee" (Vertical, 2001)

References

  1. ^ a b http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05x26lm
  2. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 331. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
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