On Reflection: The Scots Whay Hae! Podcast Talks To James Yorkston...
For the latest Scots Whay Hae! podcast Ali caught up with writer and musician James Yorkston to talk about his new book, Callum, Reine, Sylvie and Sparrow - A Fragmentary Novel, which is published by Oldcastle Books, and his new album La Magnifica which is released to celebrate his 25 years with the label Domino Recording Company.
James gives a brief breakdown of the novel and the personal reasons behind writing it, before the two talk about storytelling, creating memorable characters, and using real people, events, and shared anecdotes as the inspiration for fiction.
The conversation then turns to a discussion about just a few of those characters and what they represent, and those friends and other relationships which go on to shape you and your life.
James then talks about the 25-year career-spanning retrospective album La Magnifica, the tricky task of choosing which songs to include, and what it means to him to reflect on his different musical eras over that time. The new novel and the album work beautifully together as both have an aspect of reflection on the passing of time and together they prove that Yorkston is one of our great storytellers whether it's in song or on the page.
James Yorkston has written a number of books but Callum, Reine, Sylvie and Sparrow could be his best yet, and it was a genuine pleasure to be able to talk about it in such depth and detail with the author. We hope you enjoy listening to the interview as much as we did recording it.
If you aren’t yet a subscriber to the Scots Whay Hae! podcast you can do so, (or simply listen) at iTunes, on Podbean and Pocket Casts, with Spotify, by signing up to our Substack, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Or, if you want it right here, right now, you can listen on SoundCloud…
..or on YouTube…
Click here to order a copy of La Magnifica Click here to learn more about James Yorkston Click here to learn more about Oldcastle Books
Click here to learn more about Domino Recording Company In the meantime you can always check out our back catalogue of over 440 interviews with some of the most interesting names in Scottish culture.
Comments