Jack Alexander - Obituary (died 2/11/2013)
The Guardian (Sunday, 10th November 2013)
For more than 50 years, the Alexander Brothers were among the most popular Scottish musical entertainers. Their style owed much to performers such as Jimmy Shand, Kenneth McKellar and Andy Stewart, happily mixing Scottish folk songs and tunes with popular songs, all dressed up in kilts and accompanied on the accordion. Their easy-listening, singalong repertoire found a ready audience in their native country, and with Scottish expatriates around the world. Tom Alexander was the master of the piano accordion, but it was Jack Alexander whose tenor voice, good looks and personal charm on stage endeared the duo to their audiences. Jack has died aged 77 following a stroke.
The Alexander Brothers' style of performance may not have appealed to traditional folk music enthusiasts – it owed more to the variety theatre than the folk club – but they enjoyed widespread popular success in Scotland (on television and in concert halls) as well as Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand. They performed at the Sydney Opera House alongside Shand and at Carnegie Hall in New York. Charlton Heston was a big fan. Alongside Stewart and Scottish country dancers, they performed on the BBC's The White Heather Club, and hosted their own shows on Scottish Television (STV).
Jack was born in Cambusnethan, near Wishaw in Lanarkshire, a year after his brother. Encouraged by their musical mother, Tom started accordion lessons while Jack learned to play the piano: in each case, the repertoire was classical rather than distinctly Scottish. After leaving school, they both became painters and decorators, but in their spare time entered talent shows and performed locally and in working men's clubs.
After Jack returned from national service, they decided to turn professional, and in 1958 secured a summer season at the Webster theatre, Arbroath, in a variety show called Arbroath Follies. It was there that they switched from the light classics to a largely Scottish repertoire. Out went the suits, to be replaced by kilts. They were encouraged to make the switch by their manager, Ross Bowie, and were soon appearing in a Scottish show at the Metropole theatre in Glasgow.
Bowie introduced the brothers to the songwriter and producer Tony Hatch, who arranged a contract with Pye Records. Their first album, Highland Fling (1961), included standard Scottish songs such as Scotland the Brave and Mairi's Wedding. Although later albums included songs from beyond their home country, they were given a Scottish "accent" with accompaniment on accordion from Tom and piano from Jack. Their version of the Hank Snow song Nobody's Child, released in 1964, was reported to have sold more copies in Scotland that year than the Beatles did.
They performed alongside Shirley Bassey on the television variety show Sunday Night at the London Palladium and by 1965 had been given their own show on STV. Buoyed by sales in Scotland, their album These Are My Mountains (1966), named after one of Jack's most popular songs, reached No 29 in the UK album chart.
By the 1980s, the brothers were familiar faces on Scottish Television's annual Hogmanay celebration, and they also appeared on Shindig, where Jack's medleys of folk songs, such as The Barnyards of Delgaty, The Bonnie Lass of Fyvie and The Mucking of Geordie's Byre were popular. The variety music programme Northern Lights was named after another song that Jack sang, The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen.
The Alexander Brothers continued to perform after many similar Scottish entertainers had retired. Jack sang tributes to fellow performers, such as A Toast to Andy Stewart (with its chorus, "we'll drink a toast to Andy Stewart every Hogmanay") and Jimmy Shand the Legend.
The brothers' style of music moved out of fashion from the 1980s but they retained a strong fanbase and album re-releases on CD and DVDs of concerts led to a resurgence of interest.
In 2005 the brothers were both made MBEs, and in May 2012 they announced their retirement owing to Jack's increasingly poor health.
Jack is survived by his second wife, Lillian, two daughters from his first marriage, and by his brother.
• Jack Alexander, singer and musician, born 11 November 1935; died 2 November 2013
The Alexander Brothers' style of performance may not have appealed to traditional folk music enthusiasts – it owed more to the variety theatre than the folk club – but they enjoyed widespread popular success in Scotland (on television and in concert halls) as well as Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand. They performed at the Sydney Opera House alongside Shand and at Carnegie Hall in New York. Charlton Heston was a big fan. Alongside Stewart and Scottish country dancers, they performed on the BBC's The White Heather Club, and hosted their own shows on Scottish Television (STV).
Jack was born in Cambusnethan, near Wishaw in Lanarkshire, a year after his brother. Encouraged by their musical mother, Tom started accordion lessons while Jack learned to play the piano: in each case, the repertoire was classical rather than distinctly Scottish. After leaving school, they both became painters and decorators, but in their spare time entered talent shows and performed locally and in working men's clubs.
After Jack returned from national service, they decided to turn professional, and in 1958 secured a summer season at the Webster theatre, Arbroath, in a variety show called Arbroath Follies. It was there that they switched from the light classics to a largely Scottish repertoire. Out went the suits, to be replaced by kilts. They were encouraged to make the switch by their manager, Ross Bowie, and were soon appearing in a Scottish show at the Metropole theatre in Glasgow.
Bowie introduced the brothers to the songwriter and producer Tony Hatch, who arranged a contract with Pye Records. Their first album, Highland Fling (1961), included standard Scottish songs such as Scotland the Brave and Mairi's Wedding. Although later albums included songs from beyond their home country, they were given a Scottish "accent" with accompaniment on accordion from Tom and piano from Jack. Their version of the Hank Snow song Nobody's Child, released in 1964, was reported to have sold more copies in Scotland that year than the Beatles did.
They performed alongside Shirley Bassey on the television variety show Sunday Night at the London Palladium and by 1965 had been given their own show on STV. Buoyed by sales in Scotland, their album These Are My Mountains (1966), named after one of Jack's most popular songs, reached No 29 in the UK album chart.
By the 1980s, the brothers were familiar faces on Scottish Television's annual Hogmanay celebration, and they also appeared on Shindig, where Jack's medleys of folk songs, such as The Barnyards of Delgaty, The Bonnie Lass of Fyvie and The Mucking of Geordie's Byre were popular. The variety music programme Northern Lights was named after another song that Jack sang, The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen.
The Alexander Brothers continued to perform after many similar Scottish entertainers had retired. Jack sang tributes to fellow performers, such as A Toast to Andy Stewart (with its chorus, "we'll drink a toast to Andy Stewart every Hogmanay") and Jimmy Shand the Legend.
The brothers' style of music moved out of fashion from the 1980s but they retained a strong fanbase and album re-releases on CD and DVDs of concerts led to a resurgence of interest.
In 2005 the brothers were both made MBEs, and in May 2012 they announced their retirement owing to Jack's increasingly poor health.
Jack is survived by his second wife, Lillian, two daughters from his first marriage, and by his brother.
• Jack Alexander, singer and musician, born 11 November 1935; died 2 November 2013