A Tune from

Tony McManus

Scotland’s premier virtuoso guitarist has toured and recorded widely as a soloist and on over 50 albums by other great musicians.

Tune from YE BANKS AND BRAES, song by Robert Burns

Many years ago I was in the “House Band” for a series of TV shows on the songs of Robert Burns. I accompanied several singers but was thrilled to get to work with Rod Paterson of whom I’d been a fan for many years. Among the songs he performed was “Ye Banks and Braes O Bonny Doon” and I came up with a chord pattern and an intro that served as the bridge between the songs two verses- and I toyed with playing the piece instrumentally

Some years later I was sitting in the car park outside Castle Sound Studios where I was recording the album “Ceol More”. I was lamenting the fact that I was about two or three minutes shy of a CD. As I went through some ideas in my head as to material to record I noticed how much I was enjoying listening to the birds warbling and chanting in the trees ... and the path to the last track for the CD became evident.

– Tony McManus, January 2017

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