Jack
was born in
From 1964 till 1967 he partnered the
well-known singer Barbara Dickson and throughout the 1960s he was part of the
circle which included Archie Fisher, John Watt, Rab Noakes, Jimmy Hutchison,
The MacCalmans, The Corries, The Incredible String Band etc.
In 1976 he co-founded the acclaimed folk-band
‘Heritage’, which went on to make a number of recordings, broadcast on radio
and TV, played most of the Scottish festivals and clubs and toured Europe
frequently.
In 1989 he visited the US for the first time,
and has returned regularly most years since then, performing in Maine and
E Tennessee, where he has lectured on the Appalachian Studies program of ETSU
and at the Swannanoa Gathering in N. Carolina. Around the same time he began
broadcasting a live interview programme, monthly, on Heartland fm in Pitlochry,
which was recorded and then re-broadcast by WETS fm from the campus of ETSU
in Johnson City.
During the 1990s he performed more frequently
as a solo singer or in tandem with his ‘Heritage’ colleague George Haig. He
also revived a long-standing partnership with the singer/songwriter John Watt
and more recently with ace guitarist Sandy Stanage - they perform regularly as
a duo at clubs and festivals.
His most recent venture is a
presentation/workshop/concert called ‘A Stranger in this Country’ involving
Sara Grey, Anne Neilson and Jack, which examines Scots and American versions of
the same songs and ballads. This has been performed both in Scotland (Celtic
Connections Festival) and, in the US, from S. Carolina to New York (and all
points between).
In 1990 Jack was made an honorary life member
of the Traditional Music and Song Association of Scotland and since 1999 he has
been external examiner in Scots Song for the Degree programme in Scots Music
Performance at the prestigious RSAMD in Glasgow.
Jack’s
‘day job’ till 2001 was head of department in a community college in
Dunfermline. Since then he has been an education and training consultant.
They say:
'His
delivery of the classic Scottish ballads is outstanding' - Ian Green
(Greentrax
Records)
'I
can certainly vouch for the quality of his presentations - very definitely
worth
hearing' - Sandy Ives (Dept of Folklore - University of Maine)
'A
fine singer, with a uniquely compelling quality of delivery' - Hamish
Henderson
(School of Scottish Studies)
'The
song is the thing with Jack - - - -one of the last of the singers that
form
the bridge between the old rural tradition and the urban revival' -
Archie
Fisher (singer and broadcaster)
Click
here for a history of the folk band ‘Heritage’