Brandon to release collection of Irish accordion tunes
Caithness entertainer Brandon McPhee will be capturing the spirit of the Emerald Isle on his next CD.
It is a collection of Irish tunes and is due for release early next month, ahead of St Patrick's Day on March 17.
Brandon and his band had built up a strong affinity with Ireland before the pandemic, and as well as releasing the album they will be performing an online concert to mark St Patrick's Day.
“The CD is going to be a tribute to Ireland – it's all Irish accordion tunes, my take on the Irish style," Brandon (24) explained.
"A lot of the work we were doing latterly was over in Ireland. It almost became a second home, figuratively speaking, and we loved going over there, so we thought that a good thing for St Patrick's Day would be to release an all-Irish CD.

"It's something we have never done before, because the style from Scottish music to Irish music is a lot different. The Irish have different grace notes and a different style of playing the accordion, which I tried my best to copy – after a lot of research and a lot of 'how to' books.
"Of course, to get that 100 per cent you kind of need to be Irish! But we tried our best and are looking forward to it coming out.
"Mick Foster [of Irish musical duo Foster and Allen] has written a little bit about it as well which is going to be in the sleeve notes."
The CD will have 15 tracks and will be entitled Brandon McPhee: My Tribute to Ireland.
Brandon has had an enthusiastic response to his latest virtual concert, celebrating the life of Sir Jimmy Shand. It went out last Thursday, on what would have been Sir Jimmy's birthday, replicating the acclaimed touring show in which Brandon and his band paid tribute to the late accordion maestro.
The concert, recorded before the latest lockdown came into force, is available to order until February 11.
"It was really good and again we've had comments from people all over the world," Brandon said. "There were even some people that phoned the studio here, which was great.
"As long as people keep tuning in to the music and hopefully enjoying it, that's the main thing."
A CD based on the Jimmy Shand show is available and Brandon hopes a DVD can be produced as well.
Brandon and his band will be presenting another live-streamed concert on Thursday, February 18, called Brandon McPhee At Home. It will feature Manson Grant as special guest, as will the St Patrick's Day concert on Wednesday, March 17.
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These events, along with the Jimmy Shand show, are available to book through the ViewStub online platform. Brandon has described Sir Jimmy as "one of my musical heroes, who has inspired me and will continue to inspire me for the rest of my days in music".
Sir Jimmy, from Auchtermuchty in Fife, was a prolific composer and renowned band leader whose career in music spanned more than 70 years.
Meanwhile, Brandon is delighted with the feedback to his most recent CD – Brandon McPhee's Scottish Serenity, recorded during the first lockdown and released last summer. It features 14 soothing and tranquil instrumental tracks, with Brandon on accordion and Manson Grant on piano and string arrangements.
There are traditional favourites such as Highland Cathedral and The Dark Island, as well as several carefully chosen medleys, including The Skye Boat Song and Skyline of Skye; My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose, Ae Fond Kiss and Ye Banks and Braes o' Bonnie Doon; The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen, The Road and the Miles to Dundee and I Belong to Glasgow; and Grannie's Heilan' Hame, The Auld Meal Mill and Come Over the Ord.
Brandon and has band, forming their own bubble, have recorded well over 200 tracks since the pandemic began.
“Obviously we can't release all that at the same time," he said. "We just thought it would keep us busy and maybe get ahead of the game for when things get back to normal, which means we can then focus on other aspects of our work."
He said Scottish Serenity was intended to be reflective while bringing people together through music at a difficult time.
"These are melodies that have been taken all around the world, and hopefully we can join people together through the virtual experience of the recording – that's the idea," Brandon said. "The feedback we got from the CD was great and a lot of people said it was the best thing I'd ever recorded.
"That was really refreshing to hear, considering it was something completely different. Some of those tunes I had to learn especially for the album. It's a different sound, a different CD altogether.”
He added: "We've been learning a lot of new stuff. What we find when we're out on the road is that people always want new material and new CDs."
Brandon McPhee's Scottish Serenity is available from Brandon's website and from Pan Records.