Robert Ogilvie Noakes (13 May 1947 – 11 November 2022) was a Scottish singer-songwriter. Noakes was at the forefront of
Scottish folk music
Scottish folk music (also Scottish traditional music) is a genre of folk music that uses forms that are identified as part of the Scottish musical tradition. There is evidence that there was a flourishing culture of popular music in Scotland duri ...
for over 50 years and recorded over 19 studio albums. He toured folk clubs and often performed at the Glasgow music festival
Celtic Connections
The Celtic Connections festival started in 1994 in Glasgow, Scotland, and has since been held every January. Featuring over 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, free events, late night sessions and workshops, the festival focuses on the roots of tra ...
.
In 1970 he released his first album ''Do You See the Lights'', a blend of easy-going country rock, and included songs "Too Old to Die", "Together Forever" and "Somebody Counts on Me". In 1971 Noakes was a founding member of the folk rock band
Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel were a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in 1972 in Paisley, Scotland, by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty. Their best-known hit is " Stuck in the Middle with You". The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed bri ...
, along with
Gerry Rafferty
Gerald Rafferty (16 April 1947– 4 January 2011) was a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was a founding member of Stealers Wheel, whose biggest hit was " Stuck in the Middle with You" in 1973. His solo hits in th ...
and
Joe Egan. He played on Rafferty's ''
Can I Have My Money Back
''Can I Have My Money Back?'' is the first solo album by Gerry Rafferty. The distinctive cover design was by John Patrick Byrne and was the start of a long working relationship between Rafferty and the playwright. The LP was well received, but ...
'', notably "Mary Skeffington". He recorded with
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...
in 1972, on songs "Turn a Deaf Ear", "
Nicely Out of Tune
''Nicely Out of Tune'' is the debut album by Lindisfarne, released in late 1970. It charted more than a year after release, thanks to the huge success of their second album ''Fog on the Tyne'', which topped the charts early in 1972.
"Lady Elean ...
", "Together Forever", and "
Fog on the Tyne
''Fog on the Tyne'' is a 1971 album by English rock band Lindisfarne. Bob Johnston produced the album, which was recorded at Trident Studios in Soho, London, in the mid-1971 and released in October that year on Charisma Records in the United ...
". He performed with Lindisfarne for a
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...
concert and in 1995 produced a
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
programme ''The Story of Lindisfarne''. One of his best-known recordings, "Branch", from his ''Red Pump Special'' album, received airplay on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
. Noakes' songs have been covered by Lindisfarne and
Barbara Dickson
Barbara Ruth Dickson (born 27 September 1947) is a Scottish singer and actress whose hits include 'I Know Him So Well', 'Answer Me' and 'January February'. Dickson has placed fifteen albums on the UK Albums Chart from 1977 to date, and had a n ...
.
Biography
Robert Ogilvie Noakes was born in
St Andrews, Fife
St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourt ...
, on 13 May 1947,
and brought up in
Cupar
Cupar ( ; gd, Cùbar) is a town, former royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland. It lies between Dundee and Glenrothes. According to a 2011 population estimate, Cupar had a population around 9,000, making it the ninth-largest settlement in Fif ...
.
In 1963 Noakes moved to London and worked for the
Civil Service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...
, where he played folk clubs at night. He returned to Scotland in 1967 and began a duo with Robin McKidd; they played their first gig at the Glasgow Folk centre, and in the same year he secured a month's residency in Denmark.
Noakes released his first album ''Do You See The Lights'' in 1970,
with a line-up that included ex-partner Robin McKidd on electric guitar and Scottish jazz bassist Ronnie Rae. This recording included the songs "Too Old to Die", "Together Forever", and "Somebody Counts on Me".
Noakes was a founding member of the folk rock band
Stealers Wheel
Stealers Wheel were a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in 1972 in Paisley, Scotland, by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty. Their best-known hit is " Stuck in the Middle with You". The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed bri ...
, along with
Gerry Rafferty
Gerald Rafferty (16 April 1947– 4 January 2011) was a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was a founding member of Stealers Wheel, whose biggest hit was " Stuck in the Middle with You" in 1973. His solo hits in th ...
and
Joe Egan in 1971. He sang backing vocals and played on the first solo album by Rafferty, ''
Can I Have My Money Back
''Can I Have My Money Back?'' is the first solo album by Gerry Rafferty. The distinctive cover design was by John Patrick Byrne and was the start of a long working relationship between Rafferty and the playwright. The LP was well received, but ...
'',
most notably on "Mary Skeffington", a song about Rafferty's mother. After these sessions he became an early member of Stealers Wheel,
while he left them before the release of the band's first album.
Noakes recorded and performed with
Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...
, whom he supported on a national tour in 1972, and recorded his songs "Turn a Deaf Ear" on their first album, ''
Nicely Out of Tune
''Nicely Out of Tune'' is the debut album by Lindisfarne, released in late 1970. It charted more than a year after release, thanks to the huge success of their second album ''Fog on the Tyne'', which topped the charts early in 1972.
"Lady Elean ...
'', and "Together Forever" on their second, ''
Fog on the Tyne
''Fog on the Tyne'' is a 1971 album by English rock band Lindisfarne. Bob Johnston produced the album, which was recorded at Trident Studios in Soho, London, in the mid-1971 and released in October that year on Charisma Records in the United ...
''.
Barbara Dickson
Barbara Ruth Dickson (born 27 September 1947) is a Scottish singer and actress whose hits include 'I Know Him So Well', 'Answer Me' and 'January February'. Dickson has placed fifteen albums on the UK Albums Chart from 1977 to date, and had a n ...
recorded "Turn a Deaf Ear" on her album ''
Do Right Woman
''Do Right Woman'' is the debut solo album by Barbara Dickson.
Barbara Dickson's first two solo albums were on Decca Records. They won critical praise but sold poorly. They show the repertoire that she had at that time as a singer in folk clubs ...
'', on which Noakes performed.
In May 1972, the British music magazine ''
NME
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' reported that Noakes was to appear at the Great Western Express Lincoln Festival on 26 May that year. Other acts to perform in the 'Giants of Tomorrow' marquee included
Budgie
Budgie may refer to:
Arts
* Budgie (album), ''Budgie'' (album), the debut album by the Welsh heavy metal band Budgie
* Budgie (band), a Welsh heavy metal band from Cardiff
* Budgie (musician) (born 1957), English drummer
* Budgie (TV series), ''Bu ...
,
Skin Alley
Skin Alley were a British progressive rock band founded by Thomas Crimble and Alvin Pope in the autumn of 1968. The original lineup consisted of Crimble on bass guitar and vocals, Pope on drums, Max Taylor on guitar, and Jeremy Sagar on lead v ...
, Tea & Sympathy,
John Martyn
Iain David McGeachy (11 September 1948 – 29 January 2009), known professionally as John Martyn, was a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Over a 40-year career, he released 23 studio albums, and received frequent critical acclaim. ...
,
Warhorse
The first evidence of horses in warfare dates from Eurasia between 4000 and 3000 BC. A Sumerian illustration of warfare from 2500 BC depicts some type of equine pulling wagons. By 1600 BC, improved harness and chariot designs ...
, and
Gnidrolog
Gnidrolog was a British progressive rock band. Gnidrolog at Allmusic/ref>
History
The band was founded in 1969 by twin brothers Colin and Stewart Goldring, who were joined by drummer Nigel Pegrum from Spice and Peter "Mars" Cowling on bass. Jo ...
.
One of Noakes's best-known recordings, "Branch", was released as a single in the summer of 1974 from his album ''Red Pump Special'',
which was recorded in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
, and produced by
Elliot Mazer
Elliot Mazer (September 5, 1941February 7, 2021) was an American audio engineer and record producer. He was best known for his work with Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, The Band, and Janis Joplin. In addition, he worked on film and telev ...
, attracted considerable
airplay
Airplay is how frequently a song is being played through broadcasting on radio stations. A song which is being played several times every day (spins) would have a significant amount of airplay. Music which became very popular on jukeboxes, in n ...
on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
, but without making the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
.
The album ''Restless'' (1978) was produced by
Terry Melcher
Terrence Paul Melcher (born Terrence Paul Jorden; February 8, 1942 – November 19, 2004) was an American record producer, singer, and songwriter who was instrumental in shaping the mid-to-late 1960s California Sound and folk rock movements. His ...
at Starling Sounds, based at
Tittenhurst Park
Tittenhurst Park is a Grade II listed early Georgian country house set in off London Road at Beggar's Bush near Ascot and over the parish border into Sunningdale, both in the English county of Berkshire. It was famously the home of musici ...
,
Ascot, former home of
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
and
Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono ( ; ja, 小野 洋子, Ono Yōko, usually spelled in katakana ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking.
Ono grew up i ...
, then owned by
Ringo Starr
Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...
. The albums, ''Rab Noakes'' (1980) and ''Under the Rain'' (1984) followed, but it was 1994 until ''Standing Up'' appeared.
Noakes subsequently toured with the Varaflames, containing
Pick Withers
David "Pick" Withers (born 4 April 1948) is an English rock and jazz drummer. He was the original drummer of rock band Dire Straits and played on their first four albums, which included hit singles such as " Sultans of Swing", " Romeo and Jul ...
,
Rod Clements
Roderick Parry Clements (born 17 November 1947 in North Shields, Northumberland) is a British guitarist, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He formed the folk-rock band Lindisfarne with Alan Hull in 1970, and wrote "Meet Me on the Co ...
, and the
harmonicist
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...
Fraser Speirs
Fraser Speirs is a Glasgow-based harmonica player. Originally trained as a medical illustrator, Speirs has been performing for over 30 years and is now an internationally known performer and teacher.
He continues to perform with such musicians ...
.
Later career and albums
Noakes became the senior producer for music programmes on
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is a Scottish radio network owned and operated by BBC Scotland, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts a wide variety of programmes. It replaced the Scottish BBC Radio 4 opt-out service of the same name from 23 November 197 ...
.
He left to create the production company Neon.
In November 2007, his album ''Unlimited Mileage,'' again with the Varaflames, was released. In 2012, CDs of ''Standing Up Again'' made in 2009 and ''Just in Case'' (recorded in 2007) were made available; those albums only having been available to download up until then.
In 2015, he released the album ''I'm Walking Here''. It was his 19th solo album and many of the songs tell the story of his working life as a songwriter and performer. It is a double album containing 26 songs. The first set consists of new compositions that show his gift for melody and love of
Americana
Americana may refer to:
*Americana (music), a genre or style of American music
*Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States
Film, radio and television
* ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...
, and include "Out of Your Sight", influenced by
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...
, a tribute to a 1920s minstrel singer, and a poignant lament for Rafferty. The second album is dominated by "interpretations" (he hated the word covers) of songs from early
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard (born Harry Rodger Webb; 14 October 1940) is an Indian-born British musican, singer, producer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who holds both British and Barbadian citizenship. He has total sales of over 21.5 million s ...
to
Garbage
Garbage, trash, rubbish, or refuse is waste material that is discarded by humans, usually due to a perceived lack of utility. The term generally does not encompass bodily waste products, purely liquid or gaseous wastes, or toxic waste produc ...
and
Beck
Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...
, along with the
skiffle
Skiffle is a genre of folk music with influences from American folk music, blues, country, bluegrass, and jazz, generally performed with a mixture of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a form in the United States ...
standard "
Freight Train
Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers.
A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) haul ...
", on which he was joined by
Jimmie MacGregor
Jimmie Macgregor (born 10 March 1930) is a Scottish folksinger and broadcaster, best known as half of a singing duo with Robin Hall.
Biography
Jimmie Macgregor was born in Springburn, Glasgow, Scotland, and grew up in a tenement and then a ...
, and a finely sung treatment of the traditional "The Two Sisters".
On 20 July 2017, he appeared on the BBC quiz programme ''
Eggheads''.
Personal life
In 1988, he met Stephanie Pordage and they married in 1998. She became his muse, manager and collaborator. They both left the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
to set up their own production company Neon in 1995. Pordage died from the effects of
in 2021. Noakes was diagnosed with
in 2015, but treatment was effective and he was back recording ''The Treatment Tapes'' in 2016. He also toured in 2017 – at the Leith folk club and with a full band at Celtic Connections. In 2022, Noakes continued to tour and work in collaboration with other singers.
Noakes died on 11 November 2022, suddenly, at the age of 75, in hospital in Glasgow.