In the past we have brought you along to experience some fabulous Scottish music- like Skipinnish at Edinburgh Castle or Tide Lines at Usher Hall. Therefore, we thought that the best way to bring in the New Year was to give it a rocking start in the Scottish Borders! So, just “Take My Hand…And We’ll Go Dancing” with Skerryvore in Hawick!
For this experience we will head out to one of the friendliest and most picturesque towns in Scotland – Hawick. Now, we have visited there often, and we have written about the Heart of Hawick before, but we have yet to write about the fabulous Hawick Museum and many other great stories and people from Hawick. However, that is why we recommend that you subscribe to our fun and history-filled Scotland travel blog, so that you don’t miss our future articles.
But let’s get a move on and head out to Hawick’s Town Hall! Situated in the centre of Hawick, the Town Hall itself is an absolutely striking building done in the Scottish Baronial style and dates to 1886. Although some of the municipal functions have since moved on from the building, it continues to be the beating heart of the community as an event venue for weddings, conferences, etc. And, of course, for fantastic gigs like the one we are about to witness.
Technically, the evening in question took place on December 21st, 2024, on Winter Solstice. And, let me tell you, there is no brighter way to light up the shortest day of the year than partying in the Scottish Borders with Skerryvore! However, we want you to feel like you are joining in on the fun with us, regardless of when or where you are reading this. Therefore, we will sing and dance as if we were in the present.
As we make our way to the Town Hall, we’ll take another quick look at this stunning building, and I will resist the urge to break into a long history lecture about it and the town of Hawick in general. That’s not what you came here for, right?! However, did you know that even Arthur Conan Doyle gave a speech here in 1906? Sorry, us storytellers, we can’t help ourselves. Anyway, let’s go inside!
Hawick Town Hall as an event venue is managed by Live Borders, who also manage numerous other great and historic venues. Therefore, if you are ever planning an event in the Scottish Borders – check out their website.
Speaking of checking out, we found our way to the room called Lesser Hall. It adjoins the Main Hall – the hall for tonight’s concert. But Lesser Hall is where they have the merchandise tables set up (I tried to restrain myself from going overboard, but I still managed to get a tote bag, and I may have filled it with shirts, stickers and posters).
Now that we’ve got the shopping out of the way, it’s time to go find our seats. The Main Hall is set up as a standing room only for this concert, so we will head up the stairs to the balcony. The horseshoe-shaped balcony was renovated about a decade ago. It has fantastic seating that is comfortable with plenty of leg room, and the view of the stage is great!
As the hall and the balcony start to fill up, the excitement of the crowd starts to build up as well. It is finally time to cheer on the opening act – Western End! As the duo Graeme Tinlin and Euan Robson, and their supporting band, take the stage – they get a raucous welcome. You see, they are both local lads from Hawick, and naturally have many fans among the sold-out crowd of around 600.
The crowd is hooked from the first note – singing and dancing to both their own songs and to some cover songs as well. A couple of lovely, friendly ladies sitting right next to us enthusiastically sing along with the lads on the stage. In fact, the band’s great rendition of a Scottish classic – ‘MacPherson’s Rant’- really gets them singing. But to be fair, all of us in the crowd are doing the same.
As the song ends, the two ladies turn to us and say, “We hope that you don’t mind partying with us Grannies tonight!” To which I reply, “Of course not!” But then, to my surprise, they tell us that they are the actual grandmothers of Graeme and Euan! They also point out some other members of the family dancing below us on the Main Hall floor.
Before we continue on with the concert, and returning to the present for just a minute, I have to say that their company made the evening that much more memorable – so thank you to the Western End grannies! As it was, we were excited to see Western End live for the first time, but to experience it with the family – that was just magic! We want you to experience that magic too with the following video of their song – ‘Home’. It was also the last song of their great set, but for now enjoy this great song, and a great video!
As the techs on stage get everything set up for Skerryvore, we have a brief intermission. Therefore, I encourage you to go and show some love for Western End on social media and streaming services so that these guys will get more fans and opportunities – because they deserve it. Hey – their grannies deserve it too! 😉
Alright, the main show is about to start, so if I may, here’s a bit about Skerryvore. This eight-member Scottish Celtic rock band has grown steadily into one of the most popular bands in Scotland…and far beyond! Their now twenty-year long journey has taken them across Europe, North America, the Middle East, Australia, and China. Therefore, it is safe to assume that pretty soon they will conquer the rest of the world as well!
However, they got their start from humble and small beginnings. The two founding members are brothers, Daniel and Martin Gillespie, from island of Tiree in the Inner Hebrides. There, the brothers honed their skills on various traditional Scottish instruments like the bagpipes and accordions, whilst performing in small events and cèilidhs. Once the brothers moved to the mainland (the band is now based out of Glasgow), they teamed up with Fraser West and Alec Dalglish from Livingston to form the quartet – ‘The Gillespie Brothers’- around the year 2000.
In 2004 they changed their name to Skerryvore, after the small remote island located about a dozen miles southwest of Tiree. The island of Skerryvore is most well-known for its lighthouse – Skerryvore Lighthouse. It is the tallest lighthouse in Scotland, standing at 48 meters, or roughly 156 feet, and was designed and built by Alan Stevenson – who was the uncle of Robert Louis Stevenson. I know, I know! Sorry - let’s get to the music.
Since it has been about a year since we last saw Skerryvore perform live, here’s a fitting song to start the show – ‘Together Again’.
Now that we’ve got this show started, here is a brief explanation of how we will proceed. We will share links to some of the great songs that Skerryvore performed live, but we will not cover the entire setlist. For example, they performed several instrumental songs, like ‘Legends of the Sun’, ‘Vancouver Island’, ‘The Rise’, etc. However, for all those and the rest of their entire catalog of music, we will trust you to explore on your own after our virtual concert. Just remember that a great place to start is their own website.
As we dance and sing through this concert, we will still interject some more information about the band, but next we are – ‘Happy to Be Home’.
Alright, after the name change, Skerryvore started working on their first album “West Coast Life”, which was released in the summer of 2005. That is why they are now going to be celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, culminating in the massive “XX” concert that will take place at Floors Castle in the Scottish Borders on the 31st of May 2025! Hurry- the tickets are going fast! You really need to get to Scotland – pronto!
But, if you can’t just now, the next song, and its video, will virtually transport you here for a moment. More specifically to Argyll. Please enjoy ‘Live Forever’ from their 2018 “Evo” album.
From their early days of covering traditional and classic Scottish folk tunes, albeit with their own twists and flare, Skerryvore’s songs and consequent albums have matured along with the band. They also found success in doing some more contemporary covers, like Runrig’s ‘Rocket to the Moon’. However, they have now blazed a trail to become one of the greatest live acts to come out of Scotland. They no longer need to stand on the shoulders of giants, as they can proudly stand tall on their own- just like the lighthouse in the Hebrides!
Their music has also taken influences and inspiration from other genres and locations beyond the Scottish shores. Yet, they never lose their connection to our bonnie land and its people. That is why this evening doesn’t feel like a concert, but rather like a gathering of family and friends celebrating the season’s holidays together.
Which is why we all break into singing ‘Angel of Christmas’ -
As the band grew in popularity, the number of band members also increased. Starting with the quartet – Martin with bagpipes, Daniel on accordion, Fraser on drums, and Alec on guitar and vocals – was joined by Craig Espie on fiddle and Barry Caulfield on bass guitar in 2006. Barry, however, left the band in 2012, and since 2014, the bassist has been Jodie Bremaneson. In 2010, the band added keyboardist Alan Scobie. Finally, Scott Wood joined in 2017 to play additional pipes and whistles, rounding up the band to eight members. They are also often joined by other musicians on stage and in the studio. Regardless of the number of artists and instruments, together they create brilliant music and atmosphere whenever they perform. So let’s get on with the show with one of their greatest hits - ‘You & I’, from their 2023 Tempus album.
Like I mentioned earlier, this evening’s setlist includes many songs that we will leave for you to discover later; songs like ‘Path to Home’ from their 2010 “Skerryvore” album or ‘Hold On’ from the “Evo” album.
Next up we will need to hold on to something - because we are heading right into the ‘Eye of the Storm’
Now that we have survived the storm, it is time to take one last breather before the night’s grand finale. As you have now been introduced to the band and the magic that is Skerryvore, the history geek in me wants to go on and share with you lists of accolades that they have garnered as a band, or even many of the various awards that some of them have won individually. However, you didn’t make it this far into our concert to hear me compose an induction speech for some ‘hall of fame’ – you came here to dance! So, we will wrap this up with the great video of ‘Take My Hand’, but we will also include our own recording of ‘Take My Hand’ from this magical Winter’s Solstice evening in Hawick. Please enjoy them both, and then go and “explore & discover” Skerryvore!
