My take on 'For Stuart' a tribute by Bill Nelson to the late Stuart Adamson.
Story behind the song
Guitars and Bass played with the Roland GR-55 & Carvin SH65B Guitar Synth.
Drums; Programed using Magix VITA.
'For Stuart Adamson' was inspired by 'For Stuart' which was composed as a tribute by Bill Nelson to the late Stuart Adamson.
William Stuart Adamson (11 April 1958 16 December 2001) was an English-born Scottish guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter described by broadcaster and DJ John Peel as Britains answer to Jimi Hendrix.
He founded the Scottish artrock band 'Skids' and later the more mainstream rock group 'Big Country', as well as the 1990s alternative country rock act 'The Raphael's'.
Sadly he committed suicide in 2001 and the world lost a truly great artist.
Bill Nelson (born William Nelson, 18 December 1948, Wakefield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England) is an English guitarist, songwriter, producer, painter and experimental musician.
"About a year after Stuart's death, a tribute concert was arranged for him at Glasgow's Barrowlands Ballroom. Lots of people performed in honour of his life. Steve Harley, Midge Ure, the original Skids, Stuart's talented son Callum, amongst others. I was invited to perform something too but struggled to find the right approach and context. Then I hit upon the idea of composing a guitar instrumental that would not only carry Stuart's name but that would make reference to some of those Be Bop Deluxe guitar licks he'd loved so much. I also wanted to bring out a sense of his Scottish roots. In fact, this was important to me too as my paternal grandmother was Scottish, (Mary McIntyre-McTavish, I believe,) and I've always felt an affinity with Scotland as a result. So, 'For Stuart' was born, an epic 'guitar poem' dedicated to a good man, an old friend and a fine musician. I deliberately built in to the piece quotes from 'Sister Seagull', 'The Modern Music Suite', 'Maid In Heaven' and 'Panic In The World,' which were some of Stuart's favorite Be Bop tracks. I quoted these briefly and lightly, rather than build the entire piece around them, but they serve as reference points for 'those in the know.' I ended the piece with a coda that suggested Scotland and its Highlands and all the nobility that Stuart felt was part of his roots. It was meant to be triumphant in the way that Stuart's music often was, but it was also meant to be melancholic, a lament from the heart, both for Stuart and the loved ones he left behind.
I had no idea how well received the piece would be. It got a tremendous response on its first hearing at the Glasgow tribute concert and has continued to move audiences whenever I perform it live. It has now become an expected inclusion in all my live concerts, a fixture, and I intend to perform it again as part of my planned autumn solo tour this year.
So, there you have it, the true story of 'For Stuart'."
Bill Nelson.
A bit of a hermit, Bill has produced home recorded CD's constantly over the past 20 years, but only appears 'live' at the now annual Nelsonicon event, held in England every year.
He currently lives in York and continues to make beautiful noise to this day.