Move over Motown: Dufftown distillery inspires rock star Richard Hawley

IT'S not usually noted for inspiring the country's coolest musicians, but the North-east village of Dufftown has become the muse of acclaimed singer-songwriter Richard Hawley.

• Richard Hawley spent the summer at Glenfiddich Distillery

The former guitarist with Britpop band Pulp has penned three tracks inspired by whisky-making after spending the summer at Dufftown's Glenfiddich Distillery.

Hawley, 43, whose latest album Truelove's Gutter recently won the 2010 Mojo Best Album Award, spent the time observing the whisky-making process as he prepared to write music inspired by the time-honoured art.

The tracks will be released later this year and Sheffield-based Hawley said: "I'm passionate about this country's traditional, authentic history, and the time spent in Scotland learning about Glenfiddich's pioneering approach to whisky-making and talking to people who have worked there for years and years has given me some wonderful ideas for some new songs."

The distillery is little changed since 1886, when founder William Grant and his nine children rolled up their sleeves to build it with their bare hands.

Glenfiddich is Britain's most-awarded single malt Scotch.

Jamie Milne, Glenfiddich's UK brand ambassador, said: "This partnership is a true first - an innovative fusion of whisky and music - and a unique musical exploration of Glenfiddich's history, the way our whisky is made, its taste and impact on the senses, and its cultural relevance.

"Richard writes beautiful lyrics: wry, human observations of amazing places and passionate people. The breathtaking scenery around Dufftown and amazing characters who work at the distillery should provide plenty of inspiration."

After his first band Treebound Story - formed while he was still at school - broke up, Hawley found success as a member of Britpop band Longpigs in the 1990s. He later joined the band Pulp, led by his friend Jarvis Cocker.

As a solo musician, Hawley has released six studio albums.

The new tracks will be performed by him at a one-off concert later this year and released exclusively, with a limited number available to download from the Glenfiddich website.

His whisky-inspired songs have been causing a stir on the internet, where whisky and music blog Cask Strength has been predicting great things for the new collection of songs.

Website blogger Neil said: "I got to chat to Richard recently about his experiences and it was amazing to hear just how influential the visit was - from observing the journey whisky takes from the still to full maturity in a cask, as well as the experiences and stories of the distillery staff, some of whom have been working there for upwards of 40 years.

"Rock stars and whisky are infinitely brilliant bedfellows.From the iconic imagery of Zeppelin's Jimmy Page necking Jack Daniels from the bottle, to the raw emotion laid bare in Robert Johnson's seminal recordings of the late 1930s, whisky, of some kind, seeps with abundance from virtually every pore of a rock star's body."

Musical links:

The North-east of Scotland may not be world-renowned for its rock and roll links - but maybe it should be.

One of the world's most famous female pop stars, Annie Lennox, hails from Aberdeen.

Rockers The Who famously played Elgin during their first UK tour in 1965, while Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page bought occultist Aleister Crowley's old house in Boleskine, Invernesshire.