Duncan McCrone

 

© Dave Arcari
 

Duncan McCrone’s musical career spans more than thirty years, playing in such renowned bands as Hot Toddy, Dapplegrim and, for eighteen years, The Clydesiders.

He has always had a great passion for song-writing and set up Ranza Music with Cy Jack.  In 1982 a song that Duncan co-wrote with his friend, Jimmy Jamieson, became a surprise Scottish hit for an established artist, Valerie Dunbar, the single selling tens of thousands of copies.  The song was called “Always Argyll” and, although much-removed from the type of material Duncan and Cy usually write, it became the launch pad for their writing and has now been covered by over thirty-five artists.  

Ranza Music has grown over the years into a very substantial business, producing music for film and TV as well as composing songs on commission for a variety of artists.

In late 2000 Glasgow label Downtown Records approached Duncan to record a live CD album. This would feature a mix of Duncan and Cy's songs and some traditional material, and would be recorded live in Glasgow's Tron Theatre.  The concert took place at The Tron in February 2001, with Duncan fronting a scratch band of amazing musicians – the “Tron Band” as it was to become.  As always, stalwarts of the band were Duncan and Cy, but the line up was a “Who's Who” of the folk scene – former Dapplegrim colleague Billy Ross on guitar and vocals, Jim Yule on lead guitar, Fiddler's Bid frontman (and ex-Clydesider!) Chris Stout on fiddle, Stevie Lawrence (ex Iron Horse) on bouzouki, cittern and whistle, and Duncan's great pal Ray Laidlaw from Lindisfarne on drums.  The album “Just a Glasgow Boy” was released in November that year, and continues to sell well.

In 2005 Duncan’s first studio album, “All You Need to Know”, was recorded, with The Tron Band stalwarts being joined by Catriona McKay on clarsach and Fraser Spiers on harmonica.

Today Duncan usually plays in a trio with Cy Jack and Stevie Lawrence, although he can occasionally put together the full Tron Band, with Chris on fiddle and Ray on drums. Duncan and Cy continue to write for various projects for production music libraries.  New songs, for both the live set and for other artists, are always “in production”, and one of their latest songs, “Trick of the Light”, has been recorded by The Macdonald Brothers on their CD, “The World Outside”. As Duncan always says, though, “Playing live is the best bit – an itch you have to keep scratching!!”

 

 

Duncan McCrone Tech Spec

www.duncanmccrone.com

www.myspace.com/duncanmccroneband 

 

Contact: Jacky Cooper

Tel: 01855-811 280

Mobile: 07894-941 981

E-mail: jacky@northbeat.org