THE CONTACTS which he had made in that period continued to pay off, and he began to get calls from artists who had been through the major touring mill, and were looking for something different.
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“A lot of the bands I had worked with began to lose enthusiasm for hauling big, expensive equipment around. They started calling me and asking if I could put together wee acoustic tours for them. I ended up doing things with the true troubadours like Billy Bragg and Martin Stephenson, who is a good friend and now lives in the Highlands, and even Midge Ure. I had always been interested in roots music, and Acoustic Buzz grew from that.”
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Rob’s initial promotions under that banner were at the Invernairne Hotel in Nairn, but he has developed a network of venues in the Highlands, with the Maple Court in Inverness as its anchor.
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“It’s basically a wee network of family run hotels that we use, and the venues have become friends. They are supportive of what we are doing. We are also involved in things like the Songwriter’s Trail and the Catalyst festivals in Portmahomack.”
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Acoustic Buzz’s promotions are primarily song-based, and also reflect a belief in the idea of communal involvement.
“Ann and I believe that music is medicine for the human spirit, which is why we called ourselves Medicine Music. I think music is our best hope of any sensible communication in these times. Through music you can talk about everyday realities and about high ideals, and connect with people on a deeper level. |
“Music brings people together. I see the Songwriter’s Trail as being very much in that spirit, taking on the idea of the storyteller carrying the lore from one community to the next. That sense of community involvement is very important to me, both with our audience and with the musicians.”
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To help foster that even further, they launched Friends of Medicine Music last year, a scheme in which supporters are invited to make a contribution to a fund which Rob hopes will allow them to move forward in more ambitious fashion.
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“We rely on our mailing list to a huge extent. We have several hundred people on that list, plus a Highland music forum. From that kind of community spirit I felt there was an opportunity for growth, and this was one way to get people involved.”
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© Kenny Mathieson, 2003
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