Music review: Northern Star '“ Scotland Sings Canada
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall ****
A cast of gifted Scottish singers, including Karine Polwart, Emma Pollock, Rab Noakes, James Grant and former Average White Band frontman Hamish Stuart, reconvened under the curation of ace guitar-for-hire Stuart Nisbet and his wonderful band who supplied warm, luxurious country-soul textures as well as sublime backing vocals.
Across the evening, there were nods to cult Canuck artists from Bruce Cockburn to Ron Sexsmith, Gordon Lightfoot to Arcade Fire, a beautiful Polwart/Pollock duet on Kate McGarrigle’s Talk To Me Of Mendocino and the cleansing rock’n’roll of Paul Anka’s It Doesn’t Matter Anymore.
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Hide AdBut inevitably much of the programme centred on the holy trinity of Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen and Neil Young, with Noakes leading the sultry waltz of Dance Me to the End of Love, and Stuart delivering a lovely mellow jazz version of The Circle Game and a sumptuous Only Love Can Break Your Heart.
There was welcome tonal diversity from Nova Scotian soul force Cyndi Cain, who brought the stormy sonic weather of Young’s Ohio and beseeching smooch of The Vancouvers’ Does Your Mama Know About Me? before an affectionate massed finale of The Band’s The Weight and Cohen’s Hallelujah.
FIONA SHEPHERD