Steve Morgan
Bergen, Hordaland, Norway | Established. Jan 01, 2014 | SELF
Music
Press
- Steve Morgan is one of those artists that you hear for the first time and say to yourself "this guy is great, why haven't I heard of him before" Here's a fair warning...this new CD 'Shadow Dancing' just may change all that. His Scottish roots and Norway residence are belied by his vocals, which is pure American Dixie. From the opening track 'Running With A Heartache' through the twangy 'Aripeeka Bay' and onto the title track 'Shadow Dancing', you get the immediate impression that this guy has been more than just writing about life. The feeling he puts into his vocals leaves no doubt he's lived these songs. Those vocals carry the lament of 'Miss You Dear' the joyful 'Sweet Music', and the triumphant 'Stand And Deliver'. The tenth track 'Ballad Of Forest Gump' is a stirring view of America with haunting background vocals. Backed by strong musicians throughout, including an exceptional horn section on many of the songs, Steve Morgan has a potential classic here. If you like American folk and roots rock n roll, and you purchase one CD this year, this reviewer highly recommends it be "Shadow Dancing". Tom McGeady - www.artistsilove.com
- www.artistsIlove.com
"Top class artist whose music has a depth and breadth which is rarely found in any artist. Needs to be exposed" - BT: Bergen, Norway
- Steve Morgan is one of those artists that you hear for the first time and say to yourself "this guy is great, why haven't I heard of him before" Here's a fair warning...this new CD 'Shadow Dancing' just may change all that. His Scottish roots and Norway residence are belied by his vocals, which is pure American Dixie. From the opening track 'Running With A Heartache' through the twangy 'Aripeeka Bay' and onto the title track 'Shadow Dancing', you get the immediate impression that this guy has been more than just writing about life. The feeling he puts into his vocals leaves no doubt he's lived these songs. Those vocals carry the lament of 'Miss You Dear' the joyful 'Sweet Music', and the triumphant 'Stand And Deliver'. The tenth track 'Ballad Of Forest Gump' is a stirring view of America with haunting background vocals. Backed by strong musicians throughout, including an exceptional horn section on many of the songs, Steve Morgan has a potential classic here. If you like American folk and roots rock n roll, and you purchase one CD this year, this reviewer highly recommends it be "Shadow Dancing". Tom McGeady - www.artistsilove.com
- www.artistsIlove.com
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Born and raised in the industrial heart of Scotland in the Lanarkshire town of Wishaw literally on the doorstep of the Ravenscraig Steel Works, Meadowhead Road to be exact (see inside cover of CD "Heaven Help Me"). A happy and robust childhood being exposed to music at a very young age by a musical mother who was and still is a wonderful singer of ballads and folk songs with a healthy love of music of all types from folk to classic to opera. I have very fond memories of a huge gramophone player pouring out the sounds of Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Frankie Laine, to name but a few, and of course the Irish and Scotish folk songs, some of which are with me still.
My first attempt at playing music was in the school penny whistle band then the school choir then moving on to violin and trumpet until my father brought home a guitar one day and that was it for me. However, music was never considered a career option in working class Scotland at that time so it was an education and a real job for you laddie. After leaving school with a fistfull of O levels and A levels I went to live and work in England, first Coventry then Nottingham. I always had my guitar with me and played for my own amusement until one fatefull evening in a Nottinham pub, things started to change. Long story short, I got offered a gig and did'nt even know what a gig was, some guy was willing to pay me to play music in his pub. Well, f--- me that was something I did for fun. I learned real fast, after a short while I was "gigging" six nights a week and making more money than I was in my day job. I learned real fast that in the music game it was more about who you knew as to what you knew. So I made friends and contacts and through one of those friends, an Australian musician named Don Fletcher, I was introduced to an agent in London called Ann Dex, who sent me on my first foreign gig, Oslo, Norway. The date was February 1982.
Well, Norway in the early 80's turned my head a little to say the least. I loved it, the life of a travelling musician, what the hell, I was young.
So, 24 years further on up the road I am still doing it, what a hell of a ride it has been too. Like any occupation it has had it's up's and down's but I don't regret any of it, 24 years of interesting countries like Norway, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, New Zealand, America, England, Scotland, yep I've been around. 24 years of playing some great music with some truly great people in some weird, wacky, wonderful , and not so wonderful places, that most people have never heard of never mind travelled to. In 2001 my long time partner and good friend Barry Richards and I played in the world's most northern venue Hotel Finken,Svalbard then a month later, totally by coincedence after a chance meet with a very fine lady called Anna Brown we ended up playing in the world's most southern venue, The South Sea Hotel, Stewart Island, New Zealand. You could'nt plan it if you wanted to.
These days most of my live work is around Bergen, Norway (where I now reside), Denmark, Bornholm (in the Summer), Austria, Switzerland (in the Winter), but you never know what can be round the next corner. So for now the wheels are still rolling and the music keeps coming
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