About the songs on the album

The Holiday Song

"This song was written to conjure up memories of my Scottish seaside holidays when I was a kid. I've tried to make the music evocative of the weather you tend to get on the Scottish coast; fresh and breezy. The spanner in the works is that when I was young I suffered from bad Asthma - so I was never feeling that well."

My Weather Girl

"My wife Pat loves watching the weather reports on the TV. A long time ago I wrote a song called, 'I'm at one with the weather man' in reference to this. This particular song starts from the same idea - and is a partner for the original song. The music reflects the styles of the blues pickers I was in awe of when I was a teenager. It is also marked out by its short length; about 1 minute 30 seconds."

Come dance with me

"A romantic ballad about music dance, dreams and travel. Part of it seems to be about a city dweller romanticising the lifestyle of the traveler; the apparent freedom and lack of inhibitions. It is all played out in the imagination of the stay-at-homer - looking for a way ahead in their own life. The lyrics where written in collaboration with Pat. I'd been playing the music for the song for a long time (perhaps 15 years) before the song was written."

As we step up this stage

"This is a song about the points in your life when you decide to make major changes - when you decide to take a different path."

The Handle's broken on my cup

"A heart-felt song about love and reconciliation."

Sunday Morning

"A song about those times when everything is good within you - and between yourself and your partner; you are exactly where you want to be - and who you want to be with."

Daddy's car

"A simple country style song about young lovers - at the point where they are striking out on their own - breaking free from parents."

Tenderness

"A simple country song about love, friendship and sensuality."

On these dark nights

"I wrote this song after a trip to Orkney and specifically after meeting and playing with Hazel Wrigley of the fiddle and guitar duo The Wrigley Sisters. The music is inspired by Orkney and that meeting - the words are about love and commitment."

Events of note

In the early 90s Jim set up the Kazoo club in Glasgow with the aim of giving young bands an opportunity to play their first gigs - a back-line of drums and amps was provided; this was a time in Glasgow with very little opportunities for local bands.

The Kazoo club was a friendly and supportive environment - and a number of successful Glasgow bands got helped on their way by being given an opportunity to play live at the club.

Jim did not hang around long enough to see it reach the cult status that it late assumed; he handed the reins to Alex Kapranos (of the band Franz Ferdinand) - who by dint of their later success - bestowed the club with it's retrospective status as legendary Glasgow music club.

Apart from being the founder and setting the tone, i.e., friendly and with a community feel to it - his main claim to fame with the club is that he gave Alex his first gig.

Another activity of note that Jim was involved in was the '1000 guitars' arts event - which was a kind of orchestral piece for guitars performed live at the Kings Theatre in glasgow during Mayfest (some year in the distant past). It is of note as the guitar music had to be learned from a musical score - just like real music :-)