Rory McLeod

Listening to Skip James reminded me a bit of Rory McLeod whose songwriting on occasion borrows some techniques from James. I’ve written about Rory before. He’s a fascinating character who has travelled and performed all over the world. The factoid that’s usually mentioned in connection with Rory is that he was once a fire eater (true apparently)

He now lives in Orkney and I found this fantastic clip of him on youtube. You may not have heard a harmonica like this before as it is tuned to a harmonic minor scale giving a real ethnic quality to any music played on it.

If you’ve never heard a performer calling upon Brahms Slavonic dances, perhaps a wee bit from Dvorak’s Symphony for the New World, Sonny Terry, the blues, the spoons and maybe some music played by a gypsy violinist at a restaurant in Hungary then give it a click.

A a bonus here is the track which introduced me to the music of Rory McLeod.

Rory McLeod – Love Like a Rock

The Singing Copper

This is by Rory McLeod who isn’t slow at putting across a point in a song. Two songs here.

Click Here

Click Here for a posting I did about Rory McLeod on my old blog.

Rory McLeod

Rory McLeod

Rory Mcleod – ex-circus clown and fire eater. A one man soulband, poet and storyteller, singing his own unique upbeat dance stories. A modern travelling troubadour using tap shoes, acappella, harmonica, guitar, trombone, spoons, finger cymbals, bandorea, djembe and various percussion instruments!

Rory has travelled the globe for different reasons at different times, from Asia to the middle East from Gambia to Cuba, Central America, Australia, North America, Canada, Europe and other nooks and crannies of the earth.

"You don't listen to McLeod you travel with him"
City Hub, Sydney (Australia)

"I've travelled to look for work, to mend a broken heart, to be with someone I longed for. I'd travel to visit friends and on the way I'd make new ones, I'd roam because I was curious to see what was around the next corner, sometimes I travelled to follow the warmer weather and migrate… like the birds and the big whales and fishes do".
Rory McLeod

 

 

Rory McLeod – Love Like a Rock

Unfortunately I can't embed any of Rory's videos, but do yourself a favour and follow this link. It's the only time today you'll see a man singing and playing harmonica and spoons – oh! and tap dancing at the same time. All on the roof of a high rise!

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO_xCvYGtxY

 

 

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