SANDI THOM FRONTRUNNER FOR SCOTLAND WORLD CUP

Photo from Sandi Thom Insta 

Scots singer Sandi Thom looks like a front runner to record the official Scotland team football anthem after she played her new track at a secret gathering in the First Minister’s official residence.
The Banff-born star, 44, was invited to Bute House in Edinburgh by John Swinney for an intimate evening celebrating the charity efforts of mental health campaigner Craig Ferguson, who is walking from Los Angeles to Boston for SAMH.
As well as key figures from the Scottish Government, the guest list included senior officials and representatives from the world of Scottish football, giving Sandi the perfect chance to pitch her song as the nation’s next big terrace tune.
Sandi, who shot to fame in 2006 when her debut single I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker (With Flowers In My Hair) knocked Gnarls Barkley’s Crazy off the top of the charts and went to number one in seven countries, performed a new track called ‘Oh I’m Proud To Be From Scotland’.
The tune is a love letter to the beautiful game north of the Border.
It traces Scottish football history from the Seventies right up to today and namechecks some of the biggest legends ever to pull on the dark blue jersey.
One guest at Bute House told the Daily Record: “Sandi played her song to the party after being invited as one of the special guests. It’s a chronology of Scottish football history, name dropping all the key players from the 1970s to present day and it's called ‘Oh I’m Proud To Be From Scotland’.
“It went down really well. Everyone in the room could picture it being sung by Scotland fans. It’s got a rousing chorus that the Tartan Army will love.”
Another insider added: “Scottish football is part of who we are. To have a song that celebrates that history and to hear people singing it back is a winning formula.” 
Sandi also played the track on her phone privately for Scottish FA chief executive Ian Maxwell in a bid to secure official approval for the song to become Scotland’s team anthem for the 2026 World Cup campaign.
If it gets the green light, it will join a proud tradition of Scottish footie anthems including 1998’s Don’t Come Home Too Soon by Del Amitri, 1986’s Big Trip To Mexico by the Scotland World Cup Squad and 1978’s Ally’s Tartan Army by Andy Cameron.
This time, competition for the coveted slot is fierce. 
Other contenders include We Are Scotland… World Cup 2026 by Martin Considine, Calum MacPhail’s as-yet-unnamed 2026 song and a new Scotland track being lined up by Scottish boyband Just The Brave.
For Sandi, the chance to represent her country on the world stage comes at a pivotal moment in her life and career.
The singer became one of the UK’s first viral music stars when she livestreamed a series of gigs from her basement flat and built a global fanbase online.
That surprise success led to major label backing and a worldwide distribution deal despite the fact she had no traditional sales history before Punk Rocker exploded.
In 2016, after the birth of her son Logan Cali with former husband Matt Benson, Sandi made the decision to step back from the spotlight to focus on motherhood and her passion for animal welfare.
She has since devoted herself to volunteer work and has helped rehome hundreds of street dogs.
Sandi describes herself as ‘somewhat of a rebel with a cause’ and has never lost her connection with her audience. Her music has now wracked up over 70 million streams on Spotify alone, and she regularly hears from fans who discovered Punk Rocker as teenagers and are now returning to her songs as adults.
With Logan now ten, Sandi says she feels ready to return to her first love performing and writing with a fresh sense of purpose.
Landing the Scotland anthem would be the perfect way to mark that comeback.
This year is already shaping up to be one of the most important of her career.
Sandi is celebrating the 20th anniversary of I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker with a packed schedule of live dates.
She is set to appear on the main stage at both Heartland and Party At The Palace festivals and will hit the road for a 25-date UK tour, revisiting the song that changed her life.

KYLIE MINOGUE PARTIES AT GLASGOW HYDRO

Beverley Lyons 

High heels and good lighting are what Kylie Minogue once thanked for her famously pert bottom, and at the age of 56, the tiny antipodean star proved her rear was as buoyant as the rest of her performance as she took to the stage at Glasgow’s Ovo Hydro. 

Clad in an electric blue PVC bodysuit as she descended the stage in an inverted diamond cage made of lasers, Kylie’s talents were all there on the first date of her Tension UK tour. 

Once everyone’s favourite dungareed girl next door, Kylie’s skills as a performer have matured beyond the realms of Charlene on Ramsay Street. 

 Her vocals, her dance moves and sparkling costumes shone like the big disco ball she later brought on stage. 

Intro track Lights, Camera, Action made way for a medley of classics including In Your Eyes, Get Out Of My Way, and What Do I Have To Do before Spinning Around and the moment when Kylie showed off her cheeky side - pointing to and rubbing her famed derrière which even had its own workout video in 1987 . 

Deafening cheers met a genuinely thrilled Melbourne lass who oozed: “Good evening Glasgow! It’s been a little while. I’m so happy to be with you. It’s a loud one tonight. You're amazing, you know that.”

Split into seven acts, Kylie’s show took us through the decades starting with her Stock Aitken and Waterman hits The Locomotion, On A Night and Better The Devil You Know. 

Red lipsticked Kylie, whose wardrobe is already a museum piece at the V and A, switched to glitzy red via a sequined jumpsuit that later became a floaty sparking dress and robe during an on stage change, hidden by her agile dancers. 

Chattier than ever, she seemed more at ease with herself than on previous tours. 

Kylie confessed her mind was blown and remarked: “We are to the rafters. When we knew this date was in the calendar we did not expect this kind of sunshine to exist. Cmon. Let’s just talk about today. I know we’re good at escaping the real world but but I’ve just got to mention it. What a beauty! It’s started to really heat up in here.”

Proving she was human as she fluffed a line in newly added Dancing, she asked the dancer beside her to sing lyrics so she could catch up on herself. 

And she moved from the big stage at the front to a smaller one at the back, being carried through her adoring crowd for more audience interaction where she asked for a capella song suggestions including Never Too Late before singing Wild Rose to a lucky fan.

Kylie said she’d dreamt about ‘this moment’ during Covid when finishing her album in a kitchen.

As she teased her Disco album she made her way back to the big stage amidst a confetti drop and performed Magic before another costume change. 

This time she got cloaked up for Confide In Me before revealing - an Abba-esque short purple kimono paired with thigh high boots. 

Strobe lighting flickered for dance versions of Slow, Time Bomb and Edge of Saturday Night.  

Fans screamed ‘Kylie we love you’ and Kylie told one she looked cute. 

Kylie’s hits are numerous but she saved some of her best till last with another outfit change to black sequins, and boots for Can’t Get You Out Of my Head and Tension before a rousing encore with a fluorescent yellow and orange outfit and the recently contagious Padam. 

The party would have gone on after Love At First Sight if there had not been an 11pm curfew. 

Kylie, singular may have been usurped by a Kardashian of the same name on social media but there is still only one Kylie Minogue and she is a legend. 

SHEENA EASTON FEELS WELCOME IN SCOTLAND

SHEENA Easton had revealed she feels welcome in Scotland despite being booed at a Glasgow festival three decades ago.
The Morning Train (9to 5) singer vowed to never perform in Scotland again after being pelted with bottles, some containing urine when she sang at Glasgow’s Big Day in 1990.
However, Sheena, who was spotted on a chocolate shop in Durness with two female friends just this week now appears to be more comfortable with her homeland. 
She explained: “Well, I haven't performed back in Scotland for a long time, but I was just back in the West End in London doing 42nd Street for the entirety of 2017. That wasn't that long ago. And I had tons of people coming from all over and lots of people from Scotland coming down on the train to London to see the show.
So I felt like I was welcomed back home to work. People were very kind to me and that meant a lot to me.”
The singer, who still remains sprightly at the age of 65, admitted the run of shows in London’s West end was exhausting and that it took her a while to recover. 
She said: “ The first role that I did on Broadway was Man of La Mancha with Ralph Julia. And then I did Greece. And then actually for all of 2017, I was over in London and I was in the West End doing 42nd Street.
She admitted: “I have to say, doing eight shows a week and the rigor of that is probably the hardest thing that I've ever done. And I have a great deal of admiration for people that go out there and do that year after year after year, because I don't know how they have the energy to do it.
A year of that at a time and I was wasted. I was tired. I had to take like a few months off after every time I did that, just because it absorbs your entire life and your entire being.” 
Sheena who has had success with a whole host of songs over the years including 
She Says she is now very much at one with herself and said: “My life is well balanced with having a good home life and then still out there working all the time, seeing the fans, doing the shows. And we get to go all over. I mean, we've been, this year we were in Switzerland doing a show, we were out in the Caribbean doing a show, we were up in Canada, we've been to different states all over.
So yeah, we get to see fans from all across the globe and it's wonderful because, you know, I haven't recorded in a long time, so the fans coming to see the shows, they know they're coming to see those legacy hits and they keep supporting me and they keep giving me a reason to go out and do gigs and I'm forever grateful for that.”
Looking. back Sheena says she owes it all to the documentary she starred in when she was at drama school. 
She said: “ I'll be honest, I didn't have to struggle. I mean, I was lucky that when I was at drama school, I get the chance to do this documentary.I guess nowadays they call it a reality show. But back then, reality shows didn't exist. And reality shows now are kind of scripted and set up.
There's not a lot of real about reality. This was real. This was six different documentaries.
And when I did that and it was shown on British television, my music got attention because I had television exposure and I was lucky that I had hits early on. So I won't claim that I had a long struggle. But I will say that yes, my dreams have come true.
I got to do everything that I wanted to do and again and again. So I have no complaints. I have had a great life and music has brought so much to me and so many wonderful people into my world.So yeah, I really feel blessed.”
These days she’s keen to have other artists cover her songs and laughs: “ Lover on me
You know, I think that would translate as a country song. I think it's something that, you know, some of these young artists out there should check out this old lady's portfolio and gassy them up. Well, gassy them up, give them a new treatment and get them out there
She also says she knew pretty early on that not everyone in her audience would be appreciative of her talents. 
She said: a”I decided that pretty soon I would audition for my first gig and went on from there. I think I didn't let it faze me because I knew that I would get a lot of people telling me, yeah, you've got no talent, you can't sing. You just know it's gonna happen.
Not everyone's gonna like you. I don't like everyone that I hear. I don't care how successful they are.”
Sheena who also has worn a variety of sparkling and revealing stage outfits in her time also admits that not everyone was appreciative of her style. 
Now a self confessed ‘Fao girl’ who is not a dresser upper,l and no binder gets fancy. she recalls the Royal verity performance  “.I felt like I was a sort of dress up doll. And I think that when you step up on stage, you have to be a slightly different character anyway. And so when you dress up in all these crazy outfits and all the crazy hairstyles, it's like a little kid again. So it was fun then. It was fun for the young me, but the old tired me, I'm like, uh-uh.
“I got in trouble, though, doing that. Did you hear about that?
I got in trouble because I was wearing a sassy little outfit with long black leather gloves. And apparently, that was not the thing to wear when you were meeting the royal family. And back then, that kind of thing counted.
So I got told off by some people in the media that I wasn't appropriately dressed. So there you go.
She still has a mountain of stories form her times with Prince. Jenny Rodger’s and bring a bond Girl singing the theme for your eyes only, but says she has no interest in writing a memoir. She added: “Not at all.No, I'm private. You know, that's why I don't do social media and document every thought that I have on a daily basis. No, no, I really, really value my privacy.”

SUSAN BOYLE NEW YEAR SURPRISE IN DUNFERMLINE

SUSAN Boyle surprised revellers celebrating the turn of the year when she turned up for an unplanned duet with the Red Hot Chilli Pipers.
The Celtic rockers were playing their regular end of year show at the Alhambra when 
Susan arrived to watch her friend and vocal coach Chris Judge perform.  
The 62 year old who recently told that she had suffered a minor stroke last April was just there to watch the show but after speaking with Chris and the band backstage, she was asked if she might like to join them. 
Chris was about to sing his last song of the first half of the show with the pipers but paused to tell the large crowd they had a star in their midst. 
Chris teased: “The singer that we wanted was not available because our favourite singer comes from Blackburn in West Lothian. 
But tonight she’s not in Blackburn West Lothian. Dunfermline please welcome to the stage our friend Susan Boyle.”
Susan then duetted on the Leonard Cohen song Hallelujah as the audience went wild. 
And after hitting the high notes with Chris she told the crowd to have a happy new year. 
Chris said of the magical moment: “Susan and I had never properly duetted on stage before and it was such a buzz, the smiles say it all. 
She surprised the audience and earned a worthy standing ovation and it was a moment I will cherish forever.”

The rest of the band added on their social media: “What an honour!!! Last night wasn’t only an incredible night with it being the last show of another amazing year for the band, it was also capped off by an extra special moment when the world famous and Scottish national treasure, Susan Boyle joined us on stage to sing a song with her good friend and our singer, Chris Judge. 
“Susan had came along to the gig, and we couldn’t believe that she was willing to give us the honour and privilege of allowing us to share the stage with her. It’s safe to say that the crowd gave her the reception she deserves, and what a memory it was for every single person in the auditorium last night.”
Happy New Year to all of you out there, much love from all of us wherever you are in the word.”
Susan’s impromptu appearance came after she was filmed stealing the show as she appeared on-stage for a singalong with Donny Osmond in Glasgow at the start of December.
The world talent who shot to fame with her rendition of the Les Mis smash hit I Dreamed A Dream on Britain's Got Talent in 2009, appeared alongside the American singer to preform 'This is the moment.' 

SHIRLEY MANSON LEFT UNABLE TO WALK AFTER GARBAGE HIP

Pic : Shirley Manson Instagram 

SHIRLEY Manson was left unable to walk after her hip gave out following an on tour injury - and now she says she is grateful to be alive following a life changing hip replacement last month. 
The 56 year old Garbage singer and actress  from Edinburgh had been struggling with her movement on and off over the last seven years after she fell off the rotating stage at a gig in LA whilst singing her band’s song Special. 
And after touring with Alanis Morrisette two years ago the Stupid Girl singer realised things were becoming worrying.
Reliving the moment she fell at KROQ Weenie Fest in the US Shirley told Curious Creatures podcast: “I knew what was happening as it was happening.
”I went into slow motion and I was like, I'm gonna f***ing fall off the front of this f***ing stage. 
“I f***ing can't believe it. Oh my god. Here I go yep, tumbling forward and then all of a sudden I've landed on my feet. Thank God. Unbeknownst to me at the time I really jacked my right hip on the barrier. I landed on the barrier. And then for six years, I've had some problems. 
“And then the last I was on tour with Atlantis Morissette two years ago and I couldn't walk on days off. I said: ‘What the hell's going on?’”
Following a medical consultation Shirley's doctor told her she needed a hip replacement which she had in March - and she claims it has been a humbling experience.  
She explained: “My doctor was like, ‘Yeah, you need a hip replacement’. So I had that a month ago and it was so humbling.
Like I've never had any physical problems my whole life, like nothing. I've never broken a leg or a finger or anything. And then all of a sudden, I find myself using a bedpan p***ing in a bedpan, you know, and having some nurse come and clean me up, I was like, This cannot be happening to me. This cannot be happening. It was happening to me.”
Shirley recalled having to use a zimmer to walk around LA and says it was a great ego check. 
She added: “And then I couldn't walk for two whole weeks. 
“And then I was with a walker, like shuffling around Beverly Hills, outside my doctor's office because I do not live in Beverly Hills, I hasten to add, and it was just such a great ego check of like, yeah, you are just you and you are going to die and you better enjoy your life that you've got left.”
Shirley who is working on Garbage’s eighth studio album is currently touring North America with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.  
And, as she joked that she was looking forward to bleeping at every security check, she said: “Now, you know, just really seize the day. It was really both a cool experience and an awful one. But here I am, with my amazing bionic hip, which looks so beautiful on the X ray, and I'm grateful to be alive. So there you go. It's a triumphant story in the end.“

LEWIS CAPALDI GETS HIS FOURTH NUMBER ONE SINGLE

LEWIS Capaldi has done it again as the Scots born global superstar  today scores his fourth UK number 1 single with ‘Pointless’, equalling the likes of Whitney Houston, Cher, Jay-Z, One Direction, Pharrell, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Busted, B*Witched & Pet Shop Boys.

Theshowbizlion.com has followed Lewis since the early days of his singing life and ‘Pointless’ follows his previous three number 1’s inSomeone You Loved (2019), Before You Go (2020), and Forget Me (2022), and is the second single from his upcoming second studio album Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent - out May 19th on EMI Records.

"Thank you so much if you have streamed, downloaded or listened to ‘Pointless’ in any way, it really means a lot.” says Lewis. “This is my fourth UK Number 1, I now have the same amount of Number 1s as B*Witched, so pretty f*cking good if you ask me! I know there's a cost of living crisis, so thank you for spending your money on my music."

Lewis recently performed the new ballad at this year's Strictly Come Dancing semi-finals show HERE, and on The Graham Norton Show.

‘Pointless’ arrives as one of his earliest compositions for the new album, written on the first day with Steve Mac. With Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid also on the session, the trio were working on one song (“which hasn’t made the cut”) when Lewis’ collaborators mentioned a verse they’d previously begun writing with Ed Sheeran. 

Recently, Capaldi was announced as one of the headliners for Reading & Leeds Festival 2023, as well as unveiling his biggest outdoor headline summer shows to date in Manchester, Edinburgh & Belfast . The announcements came after he sold out his upcoming 2023 UK arena tour in seconds, which kicks off this Saturday in Leeds. The overwhelming demand for him doesn’t stop there, recently being crowned the ‘King Of Streaming’ with his global hit single ‘Someone You Loved’ becoming the UK’s most streamed song of ALL TIME.

If his first album made him an international star, with his second it’s nothing less than superstardom that beckons. His return has shown that the insatiable appetite for Capaldi burns as bright as ever.

JANUARY
Sat 14th                                     Leeds, First Direct ArenaSOLD OUT

Mon 16th                                  Sheffield, Utilita ArenaSOLD OUT

Wed 18th                                  Manchester, AO ArenaSOLD OUT

Thu 19th                                    Liverpool, M&S Bank ArenaSOLD OUT

Sat 21st                                      Newcastle, Utilita ArenaSOLD OUT

Mon 23                                       Aberdeen, P&J LiveSOLD OUT

Tue 24th                                    Glasgow, OVO HydroSOLD OUT

Thu 26th                                    Birmingham, Utilita ArenaSOLD OUT

Fri 27th                                       Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena                          SOLD OUT

Sun 29th                                    Belfast, SSE ArenaSOLD OUT

Mon 30th                                  Dublin, 3ArenaSOLD OUT

FEBRUARY 

Wed 1st                                     Cardiff, International ArenaSOLD OUT

Thu 2nd                                      Exeter, Westpoint ArenaSOLD OUT

AUGUST
Fri 25th                                       Manchester, Wythenshawe Park                        ON-SALE FRI 20^TH JAN

SEPTEMBER
Fri 1st                                          Edinburgh, Royal Highland Centre                      ON-SALE FRI 20^TH JAN

Sun 3rd                                       Belfast, Vital FestivalON-SALE FRI 20^TH JAN

Pre-Order Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent HERE. More info at https://shop.lewiscapaldi.com

x5 Top 10 Singles & x4 Number 1’s
‘Someone You Loved’ The UK’s Biggest Streamed Song Of ALL TIME

Biggest Selling UK Album Of Both 2019 & 2020
Longest Running Consecutive Weeks In Top 10 UK Album Chart For Solo Artist Album (77 Weeks)
‘Someone You Loved’ More Weeks In Top 10 Than Any Song EVER By British Act
Biggest Selling Single Of 2019 
Biggest Streamed Week 1 Debut Album Of All Time
x2 BRIT Award Winner & GRAMMY™️ Nominee
x5 UK Official Top 10 Singles including 2 x UK Official Number 1 Singles
x5 Billboard Top 10 Singles including Number 1 Single 'Someone You Loved'
x5 Consecutive No 1 US Radio Airplay Singles ('Someone You Loved' & 'Before You Go')
Over 25 Billion Worldwide Streams

ROD STEWART CHEERS WITH DELIGHT AT CELTIC BABY NEWS

ROD Stewart cheered with delight as he announced his daughter Ruby was expecting a baby boy and even made up a jingle on the spot to welcome the new addition to the family.
Maggie May rocker Sir Rod was given the honours of revealing the gender as Ruby told her followers on social media of the good news she and her other half Jake Kalick had for 2023.

As the family gathered round, Sir Rod could be seen reading from a piece of paper after opening the envelope from the hospital and he was delighted as he fist pumped the air and referenced his favourite football team as he said: “Its a boy. Mon the Celtic.”
Beaming from ear to ear, he then showed off the announcement on paper and sang a new naughty tune entitled: “Another winkle in the Stewart family.”
Ruby who is the daughter of Sir Rod and his ex girlfriend, the model Kelly Emberg, and Jake moved in together six weeks after they met during the beginning of the lockdown period.

Jake is co founder of cookware company Made- In.
The good news came following the recent death of Ruby’s uncles Donny and Bob.
Ruby urged her followers: “Hire Sir Rod Stewart for your gender reveal! He’ll even write a custom jungle for your unborn child!”
As she posted up a video of her black and white scan, she wrote: “Out of all of the things that happened in 2022 you were by far the most beautiful...We can't wait to meet you..Baby boy Kalick coming in April…”

Amongst those to congratulate her were her half sister Kimberley who wrote: “Def has the Stewart nose.”
Rod’s current wife Penny Lancaster added: “Can't wait to meet him.”
And his second wife Rachel Hunter added: “You are going to be an incredible Mum.”
Rod’s first wife Alana Stewart added: “How wonderful! So happy for you.”

CALLUM BEATTIE WILL PUT ON INTIMATE GLASGOW HOTEL PERFORMANCES

CALLUM Beattie is celebrating the release of his album Vandals with two intimate full-band performances in a Scots hotel. 

 

The RED Sky Bar, perched on top of Radisson RED Glasgow and with the most unique view in the country, will provide the perfect setting for these very special shows on Tuesday, November 1.

 

Callum – who is normally found on the main stage at TRNSMT, supporting the likes of Amy MacDonald at the Hydro or on tour or at Montreux Jazz Festival – will perform to just 150 lucky fans at each show.

 

Callum said: “I love the venue – it’s really something special – and we have had some great times at Radisson RED.

 

“So when we wanted to put on something really cool for fans, it was the first place we thought of – and luckily they jumped at the idea.

 

“The whole idea was to keep it small, intimate, so the RED Sky Bar is perfect – and we are doing two performances so 300 fans will get to be part of it overall.

 

“I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the album release – hanging out with fans, playing old favourites and new stuff from the album and just having a party in this beautiful room overlooking Glasgow.”

 

Radisson RED has been building an impressive pedigree of big names playing there, from Tom Walker to Arielle Free, George Bowie and Baby Strange as well as massive club nights with international DJs

 

Curator Graham Chalmers said: “We are thrilled Callum is marking his album release with these very intimate shows in our RED Sky Bar.

 

“He’s dropped by for an impromptu song or two a few times in the past but we are really pleased he wants to celebrate such a huge occasion with us.

 

“It will be an incredible evening, seeing him not on a massive stage miles away, but just a few feet from the audience. 

 

“Callum is one of the most exciting talents to come out of Scotland in years and he will be headlining arenas soon, so this is not to be missed.”

 

The performances will be at 7.30pm and 9.30pm, with each lasting around an hour. Tickets are on sale now priced £30 for each show. 

 

Tickets are available now from these links, one for each show – so follow the link to the one you’d like to attend - 

 

7.30 show - https://buy.stripe.com/4gweYGcSo9FX3VS004

 

9.30 show - https://buy.stripe.com/bIY6sa7y4bO5fEA005

 

Strictly over 18’s only.

EXAMPLE KICKSTARTS 2022 WITH TOUR

We love hearing from our friend Example and we can’t wait to have a wild time with him in January 2022 when he Kickstarts his new tour. 

 The ever exciting singer and platinum selling chart-topper who we meet up with regularly when he’s in Scotland has today announced a highly anticipated UK wide tour after a hiatus, hitting major UK cities including Leeds, London and Manchester as well as Bristol and Glasgow in January 2022. 

On the brink of releasing his 8^th studio album, the homegrown legend in the scene and triple-threat singer, rapper and producer Example is back to re-live both his old and new hits with fans on a 14 date tour in February, available here! www.trythisforexample.com, 
 
A UK festival favourite, Example’s career is soaked in accolades, in 2011 his 3^rd studio album “Playing in the Shadows” peaked at #1 in the UK charts and two of the singles off that album ‘Stay Awake’ & ‘Changed the Way You Kissed Me’ also went to #1. Armed with his brand new single ‘Every Single Time’ ft What So Not and Lucy Lucy and having just hosted his own stage at Creamfields, his trademark vocal over blissful production is to be embodied live next year, hitting UK stages again. His earlier discography reminiscent of the nostalgia from the EDM uprising in the 2010’s, the tour represents Example’s evolution through his sonic journey bridging the gap between pop, rap and electro, as he now revisits major UK cities post pandemic. Example’s inescapable anthems have seen him collaborate with fellow global stars Calvin Harris, Professor Green, Wretch 32, Giggs, Pet Shop Boys, Skream and many more.
 
The forthcoming tour is available for general sale on 10^th September @ 9.00am BST via Gigs and Tours here: www.trythisforexample.com, 

Tour Dates:

Wed 26 Jan 2022         De la War Pavilion, Bexhill
Fri 28 Jan 2022            The Great Hall, Exeter
Sat 29 Jan 2022           Bournemouth O2 Academy
Sun 30 Jan 2022          The Great Hall, Cardiff
Mon 31 Jan 2022          Corn Exchange, Cambridge       
Wed 2 Feb 2022           Glasgow O2 Academy
Thu 03 Feb 2022          Leeds O2 Academy
Fri 04 Feb 2022            Nottingham Rock City
Sat 05 Feb 2022           Manchester Academy
Fri 07 Feb 2022            O2 Academy Newcastle
Tue 8 Feb 2022                    UEA, Norwich
Thu 10 Feb 2022          O2 Academy Bristol
Fri 11 Feb 2022            Birmingham O2 Academy
Sat 12 Feb 2022           O2 Academy Brixton

CALEDONIA WRITER DOUGIE MACLEAN WANTS ROD STEART TO SING ANTHEM

CALEDONIA writer Dougie Maclean says he would love Rod Stewart to sing his famous anthem as he gets ready to pick up a Special Recognition award at this years Specsavers Scottish Music Awards. 
Caledonia, which Dougie wrote in 1977 as a ‘wee homesick song’ in his twenties, has been covered around the world and is seen as an unofficial anthem for Scotland, played regularly at football and rugby matches, weddings and funerals.
But despite being covered by everyone from Dolores Keane to Amy Macdonald, Dougie says he’d love Rod to do his own take on it. 
He said: “It’s a fantastic thing as a songwriter to have a song that has become a part of common culture. I always thought Rod Stewart would sing a great version of it. I don’t think he has ever done it.”
Caledonia is just one of hundreds of songs written by Dougie over a careers spanning forty six years. 
He said: “As I grow older my music becomes more personal. Music is quite magical.  My daughter was at school what her daddy did and she said ‘my daddy is a magician’. Music brings a lot of pleasure whatever story is behind it.”
Dougie’s songs including The Gael have soundtracked films like Last Of The Mohicans as well as having actors like Sean Connery quote them.
He said: “I did an advert for Visit Scotland and I got to meet Sean Connery who had to read a line from Caledonia in it. It was done in a film studio. You’re standing there and thinking ‘There’s James Bond and he’s saying the words of my song and it’s nice’.”
Yet despite his success he says he is not rolling in riches. 
He said: “I’m not minted and have not treated myself to anything other than guitars by Jimmy Moon, my pride and joy. I have three of them and they are the tools of my trade.”
For Nordoff Robbins fundraiser Scottish Music Awards on Saturday, Dougie plans to play a special song which he wrote after meeting a very sick girl in Rachel House years ago.
He said: “I was very lucky to sit in the music therapy for terminally ill kids and wrote a song called The Gift which came from watching a wee girl who got music therapy. I often thought I’d love to give the song to the mother.”

Five Caledonia Covers 
Frankie Miller (advert for Tennents Lager)

Paolo Nutini (T In The Park)

Amy Macdonald (on album This Is The Life) 

Ronan Keating (on album Winter Songs)

Sir Sean Connery, Lulu, Amy Macdonald, Sandi Thom, Eddi Reader, Brian Cox, golfer Sam Torrance, multi Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy and Scottish international rugby players Thom Evans and Kelly Brown(Homecoming Scotland ad 2009)

ANNIE LENNOX GETS SET FOR NOVEMBER RELEASE

WHEN it comes to Scottish icons they don’t get much bigger than Annie Lennox who, with over 83 million albums sold, plans to return this November.

 

Annie  is releasing a digitally remastered version of her sixth solo album, A Christmas Cornucopia - a collection of inspired interpretations of traditional festive songs, rounded out by a Lennox composition, “Universal Child” on November 20.

 

The 2020 re-issue of A Christmas Cornucopia will be released via Island Records to mark its 10 year anniversary just in time for Christmas. It will feature a brand new, previously unreleased track, “Dido’s Lament”, a new tracklisting, and new artwork (across all formats – vinyl, CD and digital). 

 

The showbizlion.com is particularly pleased to hear of Annie’s return as we have had the pleasure of hosting and supporting at The Circle charity events in Glasgow. The Circle is Annie Lennox’s Charity to help women in need and it does great things around the globe.

Annie said of the album:  “I’m absolutely delighted to be releasing the 10th Anniversary of A Christmas Cornucopia. 2020 has been an unprecedented year around the world… The carols on this album represent continuum -  harking back to a time before modern technology, climate emergency, global pandemics, pollution, forest destruction, species extinction and all the challenges our world must urgently deal with in terms of crisis in sustainability. I hope this recording will at least offer some comfort and nostalgia, but also an awareness that political leaders, religious leaders and everyone around the world must face up to the question of how many more Christmases we have left to spend on this blighted earth.” Min ;

 

“Dido’s Lament” - written by Henry Purcell in the 17th century and arranged by Annie Lennox and Mike Stevens -  references the tragic love story of Dido and Aeneas as documented in Virgil’s legendary epic poem, The Aeneid, from the 1st century BC. It will be released as the lead single from the album on 10th November and will be accompanied by a music video (out 12th November). 

 

All proceeds earned from Annie’s original composition on the album, “Universal Child”,will be paid to The Annie Lennox Foundation.The Annie Lennox Foundation raises money for various charitable projects, primarily those supporting and educating women and children in Africa and people with HIV/Hepatitis C in Scotland.

 

The music on A Christmas Cornucopia was mostly played by Lennox, in collaboration with co producer Mike Stevens, and originally recorded in his southwest London studio – at the bottom of his garden in 2010. But to achieve the resonance and vibrancy that were integral to Lennox’s ideas for these re-energized reboots, the pair also worked with a 30-piece orchestra at Pinewood Studios. And they travelled further afield too: to South Africa, to record with the African Children’s Choir, a remarkable organization with which impassioned campaigner and activist Lennox has long had a relationship.

 

A Christmas Cornucopia is far from a saccharine packaged selection box. As befits its title, it offers an abundant track listing drawn from British, French and German traditions covering the well-known alongside more untrodden ground. It’s broad spectrum encompasses a wide range of narratives and emotions – from joyful and celebratory thorough melancholic and haunting to poignant and timely. On “Lullay Lullay”, for example, Lennox draws direct links between the Nativity and the plight of Africa’s child soldiers. 

 

Vibrant but vintage, classic and contemporary, glorious but with a polemical edge, Annie Lennox’s A Christmas Cornucopia is no ordinary collection of seasonal songs. 

 

 

A Christmas Cornucopia 2020 re-issue - tracklisting

 

Vinyl:

A-Side

1. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

2. The First Noel

3. Il Est Ne Le Divin Enfant

4. See Amid the Winters Snow

5. Silent Night

6. Universal Child

B-Side

1. Angels From the Realms of Glory

2. The Holly and the Ivy

3. As Joseph Was a Walking

4. Oh Little Town of Bethlehem

5. Lullay Lullay

6. In the Bleak Midwinter 

7. Dido’s Lament

 

CD:

1. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

2. The First Noel

3. Il Est Ne Le Divin Enfant

4. See Amid the Winters Snow

5. Silent Night

6. Universal Child

7. Dido’s Lament

8. Angels From the Realms of Glory

9. The Holly and the Ivy

10. As Joseph Was a Walking

11. Oh Little Town of Bethlehem

12. In the Bleak Midwinter

13. Lullay Lullay

 

Streaming:

1. Universal Child

2. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

3. Silent Night

4. Angels From The Realms of Glory

5. The First Noel

6. Il Est Ne Le Divin Enfant

7. Dido’s Lament

8. The Holly and the Ivy

9. Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem

10. In The Bleak Midwinter

11. See Amid The Winter's Snow

12. Lullay Lullay

13. As Joseph Was A Walking

 

 

PRE-ORDER THE 10^th ANNIVERSARY RE-ISSUE OF A CHRISTMAS CORNUCOPIA HERE: 

https://AnnieLennox.lnk.to/ChristmasCornucopia