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people would think and seeking the approval of purists. But now I think it’s more important to perform in a way that you feel com- fortable and can relate to.”
Do these purists really exist, or are they a fictional beast? Fun- gus the Mudcat man…
“Definitely in the beginning. Not so much now. In the begin- ning I got a lot of people coming up and saying, ‘You know Maddy Prior does a very good version of that and I’m not sure you’ve quite reached it…’ There was a constant comparison to the heavy- weights. Also if you’re a singer-songwriter and you get up and sing your stuff, people either like it or they don’t. Whereas with traditional stuff there’s a protective shield – an army of people making sure you’re not messing up the tradition.”
What’s palpably clear is that Emily doesn’t just want to sing; she wants to sing those songs. Driven by the thought that “if I don’t sing them then maybe nobody ever will.”
“It doesn’t feel like a calling or a mission that’s a burden. I’ve always had that in the back of my mind; it’s always just tugging away at me. I can’t deny it, I love traditional songs.”
Despite the presence of distinguished Americans on new
album Echoes, Emily stresses the importance that she’s seen as a Scottish singer.
“I just have a real connection with where I’m from. Because I love the traditional songs and the landscape and the history, being Scottish is such a big part of my music. I couldn’t even comprehend not having that. I like having that identity.”
But it’s more localised than that. I don’t remember a gig where Emily hasn’t name checked her home region of Dumfries and Galloway. Which is… where exactly?
“Even within Scotland people ask where you’re from and when you say Dumfriesshire they ask ‘Is that near Dundee?’ No. It’s like a forgotten region. So that’s another little mission that I’m on. I love Dumfries and Galloway, I love the south west. And I think I’ll always try and keep some elements of that in my music. I like doing that.”
Its geographical obscurity is more baffling when you learn
that it’s Burns country. It would be like not knowing Shakespeare liked to flaunt his ruff in Stratford-upon-Avon.
T
“Jamie and I were just talking about this very thing because tourists who come looking for Burns go to Ayrshire first. And yes, he was born in Ayrshire but spent most of his adult life in Dum- friesshire. So I think it’s partly Dumfries and Galloway’s fault that we’re not out there shouting about our history, compared to when you go up north.”
here is perhaps an unspoken acceptance across the modern traditional music scenes that, due to budget constraints, albums won’t necessarily sound on a par with their mainstream counterparts, lacking some of the care and finesse that time and cash can bring.
That isn’t true of Echoes. There’s a richness and clarity to the pro- duction that matches the upped game performances and musi- cianship. It will either surprise or annoy you to learn that most of it was recorded just a few steps from where Jamie and Emily sleep.
“All of my vocals were done at our studio at home. Natalie Haas was over for Celtic Connections so she came to us. We tried to get a lot of the band recording done live, so that was done at our neighbour’s studio (we live in a village with two recording stu- dios!). But Aoife and Jerry did their vocals in Nashville and New York.”
“We by no means have a fancy bells and whistles studio. We just thought things through. Jamie did a lot of research into what microphone would best suit my voice. Not just use a Neumann because everyone uses them. And so he’s carefully chosen what gear we have. And you wouldn’t know that Jamie doesn’t come from years working in the studio. He’s learnt it all himself, nobody’s shown him.”
“And when we were finishing it off I had a really tiny baby so I
couldn’t be involved in every single note as I had been on previous records. But I’ve known Jamie long enough to know he’d make the exact same choice I would make. And he did.”
And even the baby can claim to have assisted in Echoes’ excel- lence, should he wish to impress other babies.
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