Derek Hamilton - Obituary
1945 - 2022
by Charlie Kirkpatrick
B&F June 2022
Year 45 No 06
With the passing of Derek Hamilton our music scene has lost one of our most popular and most versatile performers being equally adept on accordion, piano, drums and guitar as well as possessing a fine singing voice.
Although born in Duns, Berwickshire, Derek moved with his family at a young age to Galston, Ayrshire when his father bought the local shop and he was to spend the rest of his life there. Derek had an aptitude for music from an early age and when growing up as a teenager was involved in many groups over the years – the names The Likely Lads and The Beetles spring to mind. When he later became involved in the Scottish dance music scene this earlier grounding gave him an unrivalled musical knowledge.
The next phase of Derek’s musical life came when he started to play drums in the George Fleming Scottish Dance Band playing mainly for country dances all over the country and enjoying many trips to Majorca with the band. Derek had long had an interest in recording music and with George Fleming he set up Ayrespin Music which in turn led to him setting up his own recording company Bryansroom on George’s death. The list of artistes he recorded is lengthy and many players today are thankful that Derek gave them their first chance to record cassette tapes, CDs etc. Around this time Derek was involved in the setting up of Galston Accordion and Fiddle Club along with Davie Ross and Billy Stewart. He went on to serve that club and then later Mauchline Accordion and Fiddle club all of his life.
I first met Derek in 1978 when the Galston club hosted the Cullivoe Band as part of their tour of the Scottish mainland. Derek accompanied me on piano that night and that started a musical friendship which lasted until his death. He started to do a few gigs with myself and Billy Grant on drums. After one gig outside the Sherbrooke Castle Hotel in Glasgow I asked Derek if he would like to join the band with a view to going for an audition for Take the Floor. “I’d be delighted, I’d be absolutely delighted” he said. The rest as they say is history, we passed our audition, went on to do many broadcasts and travelled the length and breadth of the country playing at weddings, ceilidhs and accordion clubs as a trio. Over the years the following drummers made up the trio Billy Grant, John McCroskie, Bill Buchan, Gordon Young and Ian Graham. As well as the aforementioned George Fleming and myself, Derek played with many other bands too numerous to mention but the main ones being Ian Muir and Ewan Galloway. Over the years, he also enjoyed attending events such as the Skye Music Festival in the company of his great friends the late Jimmy Macdonald from Tighnabruaich and Richard Hughes from Tobermory.
In recognition of his contribution to our music, Derek was Guest of Honour at the AGM of the National Association in June 2013. His acceptance speech is still talked about as being the longest ever although thankfully it was also witty and funny. Of recent times, Derek has been the driving force behind GH Radio an online radio station with the main aim of giving a platform to our type of music. This has proved to be an outstanding success story as many of our Box and Fiddle readers will testify.
In March 2020, just before lockdown, Derek suffered a heart attack while on the way to a gig and although he recovered from that his health over the last two years was not great. In March this year he contracted the Covid virus and was hospitalised at Crosshouse Hospital. Early signs were encouraging but as time went on, together with his underlying health problems things took a downward turn and Derek passed away on Tuesday 5 April 2022.
I have many happy memories of Derek but the one that will remain with me most of all is that I was guest at Canderside Accordion club in February this year and Derek and Gordon Young were in the audience. Apart from the jokes at their expense – last of the summer wine, etc – I invited Derek up to give a couple of songs. He sang The Auld Meal Mill followed by Side by Side and Heart of my Heart as we had done so many times over the years. The following day he phoned me up to say how much he had enjoyed the night and to thank me for asking him up to sing.
Although we will all miss Derek, his loss will be felt most keenly by his wife Jean, who herself developed Covid, his son Bryan who Derek’s recording company was named after, his son Kevin, Kevin’s wife Jools and family James, Kirsty and Jennifer. Our thoughts are with them. So farewell my friend we will miss you but you have left us with many happy memories and when we think of you, we will smile.
Although born in Duns, Berwickshire, Derek moved with his family at a young age to Galston, Ayrshire when his father bought the local shop and he was to spend the rest of his life there. Derek had an aptitude for music from an early age and when growing up as a teenager was involved in many groups over the years – the names The Likely Lads and The Beetles spring to mind. When he later became involved in the Scottish dance music scene this earlier grounding gave him an unrivalled musical knowledge.
The next phase of Derek’s musical life came when he started to play drums in the George Fleming Scottish Dance Band playing mainly for country dances all over the country and enjoying many trips to Majorca with the band. Derek had long had an interest in recording music and with George Fleming he set up Ayrespin Music which in turn led to him setting up his own recording company Bryansroom on George’s death. The list of artistes he recorded is lengthy and many players today are thankful that Derek gave them their first chance to record cassette tapes, CDs etc. Around this time Derek was involved in the setting up of Galston Accordion and Fiddle Club along with Davie Ross and Billy Stewart. He went on to serve that club and then later Mauchline Accordion and Fiddle club all of his life.
I first met Derek in 1978 when the Galston club hosted the Cullivoe Band as part of their tour of the Scottish mainland. Derek accompanied me on piano that night and that started a musical friendship which lasted until his death. He started to do a few gigs with myself and Billy Grant on drums. After one gig outside the Sherbrooke Castle Hotel in Glasgow I asked Derek if he would like to join the band with a view to going for an audition for Take the Floor. “I’d be delighted, I’d be absolutely delighted” he said. The rest as they say is history, we passed our audition, went on to do many broadcasts and travelled the length and breadth of the country playing at weddings, ceilidhs and accordion clubs as a trio. Over the years the following drummers made up the trio Billy Grant, John McCroskie, Bill Buchan, Gordon Young and Ian Graham. As well as the aforementioned George Fleming and myself, Derek played with many other bands too numerous to mention but the main ones being Ian Muir and Ewan Galloway. Over the years, he also enjoyed attending events such as the Skye Music Festival in the company of his great friends the late Jimmy Macdonald from Tighnabruaich and Richard Hughes from Tobermory.
In recognition of his contribution to our music, Derek was Guest of Honour at the AGM of the National Association in June 2013. His acceptance speech is still talked about as being the longest ever although thankfully it was also witty and funny. Of recent times, Derek has been the driving force behind GH Radio an online radio station with the main aim of giving a platform to our type of music. This has proved to be an outstanding success story as many of our Box and Fiddle readers will testify.
In March 2020, just before lockdown, Derek suffered a heart attack while on the way to a gig and although he recovered from that his health over the last two years was not great. In March this year he contracted the Covid virus and was hospitalised at Crosshouse Hospital. Early signs were encouraging but as time went on, together with his underlying health problems things took a downward turn and Derek passed away on Tuesday 5 April 2022.
I have many happy memories of Derek but the one that will remain with me most of all is that I was guest at Canderside Accordion club in February this year and Derek and Gordon Young were in the audience. Apart from the jokes at their expense – last of the summer wine, etc – I invited Derek up to give a couple of songs. He sang The Auld Meal Mill followed by Side by Side and Heart of my Heart as we had done so many times over the years. The following day he phoned me up to say how much he had enjoyed the night and to thank me for asking him up to sing.
Although we will all miss Derek, his loss will be felt most keenly by his wife Jean, who herself developed Covid, his son Bryan who Derek’s recording company was named after, his son Kevin, Kevin’s wife Jools and family James, Kirsty and Jennifer. Our thoughts are with them. So farewell my friend we will miss you but you have left us with many happy memories and when we think of you, we will smile.