Sir William Connolly is a Scottish actor, retired comedian, artist, writer, musician, and television presenter. He is sometimes known by the Scots nickname the Big Yin. Known for his idiosyncratic and often improvised observational comedy, frequently including strong language, Connolly has topped many UK polls as the greatest stand-up comedian of all time. In 2022 he received the BAFTA Fellowship for lifetime achievement from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
Punk-O-Rama was the title given to a series of ten compilation albums published by Epitaph Records. The first volume was released in 1994, the second in 1996, and the rest annually from 1998 to 2005. The albums included artists from Epitaph's roster as well as from its subsidiary label ANTI- and its partnership labels Hellcat Records and Burning Heart Records. In total the series included 257 songs contributed by 88 different artists.
Stealers Wheel were a Scottish folk rock/rock band formed in 1972 in Paisley, Scotland, by former school friends Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty. Their best-known hit is "Stuck in the Middle with You". The band broke up in 1975 and re-formed briefly in 2008.
"Stuck in the Middle with You" is a song written by Scottish musicians Gerry Rafferty and Joe Egan and performed by their band Stealers Wheel.
Gerald Rafferty was a Scottish singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was a founding member of Stealers Wheel, whose biggest hit was "Stuck in the Middle with You" in 1973. His solo hits in the late 1970s included "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line", and "Night Owl".
"Baker Street" is a song written Scottish singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty and issued as a single by him in February 1978. It won the 1979 Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically and reached the top three in the UK, US and elsewhere. The arrangement is known for its saxophone riff.
The Humblebums were a Scottish folk rock band, based in Glasgow. Its members included Billy Connolly, who later became a renowned stand-up comedian and actor; guitarist Tam Harvey; and singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty. The band was active from 1965 to 1971.
Shoot Out the Lights is the sixth and final album by British husband-and-wife rock duo Richard and Linda Thompson. It was produced by Joe Boyd and released in 1982 on his Hannibal label. A critically acclaimed work, AllMusic's Mark Deming noted that Shoot Out the Lights has "often been cited as Richard Thompson's greatest work."
The Kooks are an English pop-rock band formed in 2004 in Brighton. The band consists of Luke Pritchard, Hugh Harris and Alexis Nunez (drums).
Bill Leader is an English recording engineer and record producer. He is particularly associated with the British folk music revival of the 1960s and 1970s, producing records by Paddy Tunney, Davey Graham, Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Frank Harte and many others.
City to City is the second solo studio album by Scottish singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty, released on 20 January 1978 by United Artists Records. It was Rafferty's first solo release in six years—and first release of any kind since 1975—due to his tenure in the band Stealers Wheel and subsequent legal proceedings which prevented Rafferty from releasing any new solo recordings for the next three years. The album was well received, peaking at No. 1 in the US and going Platinum, as well as reaching No. 6 in the UK Albums Chart and achieving Gold status. "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line" and "Home and Dry" were successfully released as singles.
Night Owl is the third studio album by Scottish musician Gerry Rafferty. It was released a year after Rafferty's Platinum-selling album City to City. While not quite performing as well as its predecessor, Night Owl still managed enough sales to achieve platinum status in Canada, gold in the United Kingdom, and gold status in the U.S. The title song reached No. 5 on the UK charts. The album made the UK Top 10.
Snakes and Ladders is the fourth album by Gerry Rafferty. It was released in 1980, following the success of his previous two albums, City to City and Night Owl. The album charted at No. 15 in the UK but only reached No. 61 in the US, while singles achieved #54UK, and #67UK / #54US. The album was released on CD in 1998 [EMI 7 46609-2] but deleted soon after that, and it got reissued on CD in August 2012 as a 2-CD set with "Sleepwalking."
Another World is the ninth studio album by Gerry Rafferty. The album was released in 2000 on the Icon Music label to good reviews. It was re-released in 2003 on the Hypertension label with a slightly amended track order, and with "La Fenêtre" replaced by "Keep It To Yourself", the latter track also being released a single in Europe and the UK. Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits appears throughout the album, providing rhythm guitar and lead fills. The album was originally only available through Rafferty's website to download.
Can I Have My Money Back? is the first solo album by Gerry Rafferty. The distinctive cover design was by John Patrick Byrne and was the start of a long working relationship between Rafferty and the playwright. The LP was well received, but performed poorly in charts and sales, in part because Rafferty had just left a well known band, The Humblebums. The album also saw Joe Egan come on board, and the pair formed Stealers Wheel shortly afterwards.
Over My Head is the eighth studio album by Gerry Rafferty, released in 1994. It is the follow-up to his album On a Wing and a Prayer and features many of the same musicians. The album includes songwriting contributions from Joe Egan and a John Lennon cover. The album also includes Rafferty's version of "Lonesome Polecat" a mournful ballad from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. The final track on the album is a reworking of a song written for The Humblebums.
Countdown 1992–1983 is a double compilation album by the band Pulp released by compilation specialist Nectar Masters on 11 March 1996.
Transatlantic Years is a double compilation album by Billy Connolly, released in 2001 on Sanctuary Records. It includes material recorded between 1969 and 1974, both with Connolly as a solo act and also as a member of the Humblebums, either with Gerry Rafferty or Tam Harvey.
It's Just Begun is the second album by the Jimmy Castor Bunch, released in 1972 on RCA Records. "It's Just Begun" and "Troglodyte " have each become staples in hip-hop sampling. Songs from the album have been sampled more than twenty-five times. The song is considered by some to be one of the first disco songs.
The Best of... So Far is a greatest hits album by British rock band The Kooks, released on 19 May 2017 by Virgin and Astralwerks. The compilation includes singles from the band's four studio albums to date, non-singles "Seaside" and "Matchbox" from debut album Inside In/Inside Out, and two new tracks, "Be Who You Are" and "Broken Vow". The deluxe edition of the album includes a 20-track second disc containing demos and alternate versions.
