It would be unfair to fathom an artist’s talent by a single song they wrote, yet it’s a good a method as any if a lot of listeners who love the song aren’t too familiar with its writer’s name. This might be the case with Gavin Sutherland, as many people don’t know, or forgot, THE SUTHERLAND BROTHERS, despite “Arms Of Mary” and a few more of their numbers being hits, but everybody remembers Rod Stewart’s take on “Sailing” which still is Gavin’s most famous piece. Sutherland never stopped working, though, and while his 1982 solo debut “Beat Of My Heart” was followed by a long pause which ended with the appearance of “Diamonds And Gold” in 2000, the veteran’s been speeding up his release schedule ever since, and less than a week ago the Scottish musician issued, after several EPs, a full-length album.
Titled “A Fragile World” and available from Sutherland’s Bandcamp, it’s what one can expect from him – and more. How did it come about?
“The songs on the ‘A Fragile World’ album come from the same place my songs always came from, and that’s nowhere,” says Gavin. “Perhaps some reflect a simple, personal, philosophy based on my own life experience, the kind of things I could share with my children and grandchildren but, of course, never do. I like melody, harmony and rhythm. I’ve never been a fan of complex music, and I’m happy for other folk to deal with all that. I think there’s maybe two fundamental types of music: brain and memory music and heart and soul music. I hope mine falls into the latter category, I’d just like to think that some folks might enjoy hearing it. Humans are hard-wired for music. It’s not a luxury item, we need it!”
1. Raging Sea
2. The Goose Is Cooked
3. Crossing The Water
4. Best Thing I Never Had
5. How The Rain Came Down
6. Saints and Sinners
7. The Boat Will Find The Shore
8. Trials And Tribulations
9. A Fragile World
10. The Show Must Go On