Introducing - Gerry Cinnamon

Gerry Cinnamon has been kicking around the Scottish music scene for a number of years. I first caught him live with his band The Cinnamons when my friends (also from Castlemilk) in Sonny Marvello suggested them for a support act away back in 2009.

Gerry shaked, shimmied and owned the stage in Stereo that night and then promptly went AWOL for a few days.  His personality, humour and love of music shone through then. It burns even brighter now.

Part of the reason for the fire burning brighter is the fact that so many people have fallen in love with him. His confidence is sky high. A lot of that stems from the incredible reaction to his song Hope Over Fear that he posted online shortly before the Scottish Independence referendum. Gerry went viral.

The reaction led to Gerry headlining rallies and been invited to play all over Scotland. With a growing catalogue of his own songs and a steady supply of cover versions thanks to considerable time spent hosting open mic nights - Gerry won hearts and minds with his political views, twinkle in his eye and his songs from the heart for the people. I look forward to his forthcoming album.

I couldn't make his show at the ABC but my friend Ryan (also from Catlemilk) kindly offered to write a guest blog review.

Gerry Cinnamon: O2 ABC, Glasgow. Friday 4^th November 2016

There’s a buzz in the air. From the bus stops of Castlemilk Drive and the back seats of every taxi leaving the scheme right up to the queue outside the O2 ABC that extends round the corner and up the hill.

I didn’t manage get a ticket when they went on sale. They sold out in less than a week, making him the first unsigned act to ever do so. I had to rely on my ever-reliable source for tickets, who managed to sort me out at the 11^th hour. He has asked that he remain anonymous. Cheers John.

I first met Gerry 15 years ago at a music night in Castlemilk. He appeared quiet and shy, stood there in his AC Milan tracksuit watching the band that was sound checking. I’d heard he was a local boy who was writing songs and he was due to play a few of them on the night but he was nervous. “I haven’t brought my guitar”, he said. I offered him mine but he said, “Na, it’s ok.”  He didn’t play that night.

Fast-forward 15 years and it’s a far cry from the shy, introverted teenager, too timid to take the stage that night. I don’t know him personally but I’ve followed his career with interest since then, from the low-fi days of The Cinnamons to critical acclaim as a solo artist.

On stage now stands showman, able to melt your heart with a love song or smash you in the face with a chorus. There’s a rawness about his act and an honesty in his songs that comes from the heart. That’s why we’re all here.

We arrive at the venue in good time. Outside, a sea of people stand patiently; either waiting to get in or trying to punt a ticket for three times the face value.

Either way, the buzz has intensified. Some folk are chanting his name in the lobby or singing the odd chorus here and there. Following another successful appearance at T in the Park and winning Best Live Act at the Scottish Alternative Music Awards people know what they’re coming to see.

There’s a friendly atmosphere around the place; handshakes and hugs all round, sometimes the occasional nod. It’s like when you meet someone on holiday and you recognise their face and your mind is blown and instantly become their best fuckin’ pal, for the duration of the holiday at least, even though you walk past them in the street every other day. It was that kind of vibe.

Over 1400 are people packed into the main room of the O2 ABC. It’s a good night to be a housebreaker in Castlemilk as half of its population is in Sauchihall St. As usual, the front is crammed with people eager to get as close as they can to the madness. The lights dim and so starts the chanting: “GERRY CINNAMON, CINNAMON, GERRY CINNAMON. NA NANANA NA NA NA NA NA”

As the intro video plays on a huge screen above the stage, a silhouetted Gerry walks on stage to a wall of noise from the crowd. There’s a pause as he appears to take it all in. Then he gets down to business. From the opening beats of Gerry’s Lullaby it was clear that everyone in the room was strapped in and ready for the ride.  Here we…

Sing me to sleep. Sing me a love song. Sing me a lullaby.

What follows is a blistering 80-minute set. The sound generated by one man, a guitar, a loop pedal and a harmonica is incredible. The crowd, lost in the moment, passionately sings back every word of every song. And they mean it too. Every syllable.

It’s hard to believe that his album hasn’t even been finished yet.

The opening guitar riff of Sometimes, a favourite of those who followed The Cinnamons, is belted out note by note by the crowd. A life long friend of mine leans into me and says, “This song just reminds me of my weekends.” Yes, Barry, you and 1,399 other people mate. From here on in it’s any man (and woman) for themselves.

“Can I have two pints, mate”

“We’ve got Tennents or Carling.”

“Doesn’t matter mate. They’re just for throwing.”

“ £10.60 please.”

As the night went on the crowd grew with every track.  The number of drinks being thrown and people on shoulders began to multiply, as did the decibels.

Dead Man’s Shoes and War Song Soldier caused further chaos. The former a single released by The Cinnamons, the latter a harmonica driven folk song that Dylan would have written had he grown up in a scheme in Glasgow.

Gerry is joined on stage by Calum Frame for a rendition of Fickle McSelfish, a personal favourite of mine. Lyrically beautiful and peppered with self-deprecation, every man can relate to it. And if you can’t, you’re a fuckin’ liar.

“Then she grabbed on my hair, bit on my lip ‘til in bled.

Fuck the notion of living without you, I’d rather be dead.”

New track She’s A Belter is a love song, so warmly received it sounds like a new fan’s favorite already, even though it’s never been recorded. Its Irish folk song melody and Glaswegian lyrics makes it instantly lovable.

“She is a gangster, with a 100 mile stare. When she walks her feet don’t touch the flair.”

Diamonds In The Mud slows things down. It has a sound of nostalgia that lifts halfway through. It feels like storytelling at it’s most personal.

Single Kampfire Vampire is a highlight of the set. The harmonica solo and aggressive guitar playing bring the audience up a notch again. It becomes an anthem before the harmonica outro bring the audiences hands in the air to show their appreciation. It’s becoming hard to keep up.

“Schools, run by fools. Leave to get education.”

The encore closes with a cover that seems close to Gerry’s heart, Caledonia. One last sing-along before the curtain falls and the crowd leave knowing they’ve seen something special. One of those nights you’ll be saying in years to come, “I was there.”

Gerry discredits music industry ‘vampires’ and encourages people to “Build their own bonfires.” Some might say that Gerry’s built his own bonfire.

I disagree.

It’s more of an active volcano and it’s ready to erupt.

So, what’s next for Gerry Cinnamon? With the album on it’s way and the small matter of some high profile support slots I can’t see this train coming off the tracks. The people are behind him and they want more.

Jools Holland? The Barrowlands?

Who knows? All I know is, based on what we’ve witnessed tonight, whatever the future holds, it’ll be fuckin’ chaos.

Ryan Davidson.

The Lemonheads at the ABC Glasgow

Shortly after 8.30pm Evan Dando and his latest incarnation of The Lemonheads strolled on to the ABC stage. There was no build up, entrance music or drama. This was a band here just to play music and that they did.

Guitarist Chris Brokaw said 'We're the f**king Lemonheads from Boston Massachusetts' and they were off. Roaring through guitar punk pop gems and moments of tender songwriting/storytelling genius from throughout their catalogue (must have been close to 30 songs), many at under 3-minutes long and with little pause for applause in between. 

Dando, despite decades of hard partying, still looks incredible. He has that stoned, slacker, surfer look to perfection. And he doesn't even try. Overgrown blonde/brown hair, stubble, a white shirt with don't jizz on satan scrawled on it and paint splattered jeans. He is just a good looking, funny, intelligent and talented guy and he had the audience in the palm of his hand.

The warm guitar sounds of Hospital opened proceedings and the set was kind of split into 5. The band - Evan (with Chris for some songs) - the band - Evan - the band.

Evan could have played all night and it was a shame the venue had a 10pm curfew as in his latter solo set he seemed to have really warmed up and loosened up - just wanting to play and sounding fantastic, dropping a Willy Mason song and announcing they have a band called Sandwich Police! 

The band sets included favourites from the It's A Shame About Ray and Come On Feel the Lemonheads albums; blasting through Bit Part and Confetti, Hannah and Gabi sounded glorious and despite struggling with a sore throat Evan hit the long note during It's A Shame About Ray. 

'This is a song about accccc aspirin' introduced Drug Buddy, Rudderless was a little raw with Evan calling on help from the band (and a sip of what looked like whiskey) to get his voice through it.

The Great Big No was one of the band highlights for me, as was the brilliant crazy stoned Style and a full band romp through Stove was a delight - an incredible song., the story of Evan being heartbroken about getting ride of his old stove.

It was great to see and hear a proper guitar band, the duelling guitars sounded glorious at times, but it was in Evan's solo sets that the real incredible moments took place for me.

There was the humour, emotion and exceptional songwriting of Being Around and Outdoor Type, the tender beauties of Into Your Arms, Frying Pan (just genius at work) and some gems from his incredible solo album Baby I'm Bored - Hard Drive is just incredible, as is the autobiographical (?) brilliance of Why Do You Do This To Yourself?. Ride With Me is another example of just exceptional songwriting.

I lied about being the outdoor type

I never owned a sleeping bag, let alone a mountain bike

At times during his solo sets you could have heard a pin drop, at others Evan held back to let the crowd sing-a-long, to either his parts or the backing vocals. He was also quick to thank the crowd and highlight how it was always a pleasure to play Glasgow - a city where he has often hung out.

Ending with a romp through Alison's Starting To Happen and a delicious If I Could Talk I'd Tell You dedicated to co-writer Eugene Kelly who was in the crowd, this was a great set.

I hope Evan comes back again soon - with or without his band. Never mind about a support band, give Evan a little longer.

Admiral Fallow at the ABC Glasgow, 27th January 2012

Last night Admiral Fallow turned in a majestic performance at the ABC in Glasgow as part of Celtic Connections. 


There was an air of anticipation surrounding the sold out performance, a homecoming if you will.


It was my birthday so I had the day off, spending a great morning and afternoon chilling with Zoe before heading into town to meet my mate Colin in the Variety Bar at 5pm. The tunes were as good as always and I felt pissed after two beers - must be my old age!


Lynn and Lorna joined us and we also met our friends Harri and Steve who were out for the night.


Catching up soon with good company in good surroundings soon led to us deciding not to get some food as we stayed in the Variety, missing the first band of the evening - Chasing Owls.

We did ensure we were in for FOUND - one of Lorna's fave bands. The ABC was already busy and it wasn't even 8pm.


FOUND didn't really do it for me. I think their music didn't really transfer to a venue of ABC's size. Lorna loved them though. Colin and I marvelled at the synth/keys old skool Slazenger jumper!

Admiral Fallow appeared on stage to a huge roar and proceeded to play a spell binding set. 


As I said, I was rather drunk so I can't remember the exact order of the songs, so I am hoping that the setlist online HERE is correct. 


'Old Balloon' is possibly my favourite Fallow song. Melodic, building nicely and becoming epic. The lyrics are beautiful, they really do paint a picture. The end of the song really picks up the pace and it was amazing how at ease the band looked on stage.

'Cause sometimes it's like trying to breathe through a pillow,

Trying to dance on the tightrope in the pouring rain.

Sometimes it's like, like you're treading on egg-shells,

Trying to floss up your top-set with a rusty chain.

It's all because of you (x6)

I did wonder at one stage how many people in the audience had seen Fallow singer Louis Abbot playing in the pubs of Glasgow over the last few years. He and his band have really built up a loyal grass roots following and it was out in force at the ABC last night.

The sound was superb last night and the band seemed to revel in it; the sound, venue and crowd.


The close harmonies between Abbot and the gorgeous Sarah Hayes were spine tingling throughout the show.  

The sense of occasion was rammed home when giant confetti cannons went off towards the end of the gig. Everything came together for Admiral Fallow last night, the result of a good few years hard work mixed in with exceptional talent.


The band have just announced that they will be playing the Barrowlands in December. I am getting my ticket now.