Irvin Duguid – Interview 2004

Irvin is returning to Germany with the Ray Wilson Acoustic Trio in February. We spoke to the likeable Scotsman via email at the beginning of January.

GNC: When and where were you born?
Irvin: I was born in December 1969 in a village called Aberchider in north-east Scotland. The birth took place at a police station where my father was working as a policeman at the time. But it didn’t happen in a prison cell, honestly!

GNC: What is your marital status?
Irvin: I’m single.

GNC: What did you do after school?
Irvin: I went to Glasgow to study piano, violin and drinking alcohol. I did that for three years. The drinking took the most practice.

GNC: Where and when did you first meet Ray Wilson?
Irvin: I first met Ray at the first rehearsals for the Stiltskin concerts. I had been invited to support the band for live concerts because I was a good friend of James Finnigan, who played bass for Stiltskin.

GNC: What have you been doing in recent years and what are you currently doing, apart from your work with Ray?
Irvin: Well, you can find out a lot on my website. Before Christmas, I was the musical director for a Christmas show in Glasgow. I’ve done a lot of work for theatre and television, but also in the rock and pop sector.

GNC: You’ve also worked a lot with Fish. Tell us about that!
Irvin: I played in Fish’s live band for 18 months. After that, I was involved in writing the songs for the Field Of Crows album. It was great to be part of that. It was a lot of fun to have had a bigger influence on the creation of the album. But I decided to leave the team before we started recording because we had too many different opinions.

GNC: Do you see yourself more as a live musician or a session musician?
Irvin: This may sound like a safe answer, but I actually enjoy both equally. I really enjoy being creative in the studio, but the energy of a live performance can also be very overwhelming. A few years ago, I arranged the song Caledonia for a Frankie Miller charity album called Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed But Most Definitely The Blues, which Fish sang on. Brian Robertson kept saying, ‘I love your string arrangement, you’re a master’ – I felt very flattered that the musicians of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra played my arrangement.

GNC: What do you think of Genesis?
Irvin: They’re not necessarily my favourite band ever, but their contribution to rock history over the years is huge. They have millions of fans and have inspired hundreds of musicians to copy them. And you can’t necessarily say that about Boyzone.

GNC: You’ve thrilled many fans with the way you play the keyboard, especially on the Genesis songs, of course. How do you rate Tony Banks’ work?
Irvin: Tony did a lot of pioneering work in his day. He’s one of the few who are equally good on the piano and the keyboard. You don’t see that very often.

GNC: Which Genesis song from the acoustic set is the most difficult to play and which is your favourite?
Irvin: Now that I know the songs, none of them are really difficult to play. But I always need an extra dose of concentration for Ripples. That’s probably the song I like playing the most.

GNC: How did you end up working with Ray again after such a long break?
Irvin: Since Stiltskin broke up, Ray and I have always stayed in touch. I also played keyboards on Change and The Next Best Thing. Eventually, he asked me if I wanted to play keyboards for the acoustic concerts in 2004 and then for the band tour last autumn. I was really happy about that. Ray really cares about his musicians.

GNC: Do you prefer playing concerts with the acoustic trio or with the band?
Irvin: The acoustic gigs are a bit more nerve-wracking because the keyboard playing is more in the foreground, so I was a little apprehensive before the first concerts. But now I’ve gotten a really good feel for the material and it’s gotten easier. But of course, almost nothing can beat the sound of an electric guitar turned up to full volume.

GNC: How does it feel to be part of an acoustic trio with an electric keyboard?
Irvin: Well, that’s one of the compromises of touring these days.

GNC: Will you be more involved in Ray’s next studio album, for example in the songwriting?
Irvin: I hope so, Ray has already given me some ideas, we just can’t find the time to sit down together and talk about it.

GNC: Do you have any plans for your own band or a solo album?
Irvin: Well, I definitely have plans for a solo album, it’s just difficult to find the time to work on it seriously or arrange the final details. I’d like to involve more people I’ve worked with over the years, but they’re all so busy that it’ll probably never happen. Either way, I’m going to finish something that should be released in 2005. I don’t really know how to describe the material, but anyone who wants to listen to it will be able to make up their own mind.
Photo: Billy Devine

GNC: What was your craziest experience in the music business?
Irvin: It’s not directly related to the music business, but it happened after a concert. We were pushing a broken-down Lada through the streets of St. Petersburg at three in the morning. We had done a few gigs there a few years ago about the Scottish poet Burns. During the night, we helped this guy push his car through the streets. We couldn’t communicate at all, but at least we could help him. He then drove off waving and we stood there in the middle of the night on the snow-covered street – in our kilts! People looked at us a bit strangely.

GNC: Apart from the alcohol content, how would you describe the difference between Scottish whisky and German beer?
Irvin: Scottish whisky makes you aggressive and hot-headed quickly, with German beer you need quite a lot before you get there.

itGNC What’s your favourite whisky?
Irvin: None at all, I haven’t touched the stuff since I found out it makes me aggressive and gives me the mother of all hangovers. It’s the devil’s drink. Well, that and tequila.

GNC: Irvin, thank you very much for the interview and see you soon!

Interview, transcription, translation, photos: Christian Gerhardts