Hold On by Tam White

Tam White and Film Director Norman Stone approached me to record and produce tracks for the movie Mandancin' back in 2002. Tam starred in the movie and two songs were chosen for inclusion in it, Mandancin' as the title track for the opening credits of the film, and  Hold On for the end credits. After some discussion Tam and I decided there was an opportunity to create an album around the release of the movie. I agreed to produce it and release it on my Offbeat Scotland label.
Tam was fundamentally a live performer so I decided to record him playing Acoustic Guitar and singing at the same time along with click tracks so that we could invite guests after the takes were completed.

It didn't take too long to record the initial stages of the live backing tracks as Tam was already gigging the songs. There was a great blend of ballads and rock/blues tracks making up the selection of 12 songs. Including a version of Slaves Lament, a Rabbie Burns poem which can be reasonably (and perhaps controversially) claimed to be among the first ever Blues songs, when it was written as a protest for the abolitionist movement in 1792.  Tam brought out the Blurs element of the song in his version which was a stripped back recording with Harmonica, Acoustic Guitar and Electric Lead.

Instead of live drums, we brought in percussionist Dave Haswell to maintain the lean sound that suited the movie tracks. Guitarist Neil Warden joined to play the Electric Lead and Rhythm Tracks. Fraser Speirs on Harmonica and Foss Paterson on Keyboards. I played Bass, programmed the drums and played some basic Keyboards tracks too. My son Paul McKinna created drums on one track. 

TAM WHITE BACK STORY

Tam White (1942–2010) was a Scottish blues and jazz singer from Edinburgh, often described as “the godfather of Scottish blues.” He started performing in the 1960s with his band the Boston Dexters, then fronted the blues-rock group The Buzz. Tam developed a powerful, soulful voice that made him a fixture in Edinburgh’s music scene, especially at the Jazz Bar and Queen’s Hall. Beyond music, he acted in films and TV, including Braveheart and Rebus. He was the singing voice of Robbie Coltrane's character Big Jazza in John Byrne's Tutti Frutti. he recorded one single with producer Joe Meek in 1966. In the 1970s Tam was the first artist to sing live on Top Of The Pops. Though he never chased fame outside Scotland, he was hugely respected by musicians and audiences alike for his authenticity and charisma.