Brandon McPhee on working with Daniel O'Donnell, his family in Scotland and the challenges of music

1 week ago 4

How did you get involved in country music?

I first started playing the accordion when I was 10 years old. My grandad first introduced me to it. Around the same time I got into the music of Daniel O’Donnell and Foster & Allen, so I’ve always had a strong interest in country music. It was there from an early age. However, I didn’t start actually singing until I was 16. All these years later, I’m still enjoying what I do and I love making music.

Read more: KFM’s Liam Kett on beginnings in pirate radio, meeting Charley Pride and his passion for country music

Read more: Country music's Brendan Quinn on life's highs and lows, losing his sister, and his family

What’s the country music scene like in Scotland compared to Ireland?

People in Ireland love their music even more than here in Scotland. There’s a big interest in Irish music and country music in Scotland, but there’s a different type of magic in Ireland. There’s a really happy and feel good factor when you play around Ireland. The kind of work I do is all concerts, I don’t really do dances. In Ireland, the dance scene is still very popular and it’s not the case here in Scotland. The crowd is a lot younger in Ireland as well.

Foster & Allen have been a big support to you over the years, how did you get in touch?

I’ve been a Foster & Allen fan since I was 10 and I got to meet them both together for the first time at the Hot Country Awards. On my first tour of Ireland I was a guest on the same show as Mick Foster and his wife Moyra Fraser. Mick and I did some tunes together on stage. We got talking about doing a song together and that’s where it all started. We’ve since become great friends and great colleagues. I toured with them around England, we did 22 dates together and I was their guest. They’re incredible.

Have they given you advice?

They inspire me and I think they will continue to inspire me. A lot of people my age are inspired by Taylor Swift and they think she’s incredible, which she is. But I’m inspired by Foster & Allen and Daniel O’Donnell. Nobody will ever come close to them for me. I love their music and everything they have done in their careers has been fantastic. If I could ever get up to their level, it would make me very happy. I will certainly try my best!

You released a single with Daniel O’Donnell earlier this year, how did that come about?

The song has proved to be very popular and it has been played all around the world. I’m delighted to say that it was played in Australia three times in one week. I’ve a radio tracker on it at the moment. The tracker tells me all the places it has been aired. Daniel wrote sleeve notes on one of my early singing CDs when I was just 17. After that I got invited to perform on his TV show Opry Le Daniel on TG4. That was our first time performing together. Over Covid I was working on things and I wondered what the chances of him recording a song with me would be. To my surprise he said he would be delighted to work together. We went for an Eric Bogle song, Across The Hills Of Home. We got great feedback after its release and we recorded a music video in Dungloe. I feel honoured that both Foster & Allen and Daniel have taken the time to record with me. This has connected Scotland and Ireland together with music, which is lovely.

They must be pinch me moments, they’re your heroes and here you are working with them.

They say you should never meet your heroes, but that’s a load of rubbish. I couldn’t have met nicer people, they are some of the nicest guys I’ve ever come across. The amount of help, encouragement and support they’ve given me is more than I could ever ask for. I don’t think I’d even be talking to you right now if it wasn’t for their musical inspiration. I love everything that they do and I’m honoured to say that we’re friends. Our friendship shows that music can bring you together no matter what country you live in or what stage of life you’re at. We’re all in the same country music family.

What would fans find at your shows?

It’s a mix of me playing the accordion and me singing.

Is it a hard slog to get started in the music business?

I left school when I had just turned 18 and I began working in music full-time. I first started touring with a variety show that included the accordion, some Irish singing and some country music. We were trying to get the name out there, but it was a slow process. Things were going well before the pandemic. Covid slowed it all down and it has been like starting all over again ever since. We are trying to branch into new areas and we are getting different support. This industry is a 24 hours a day job, with releasing music, rehearsals and touring. The most important thing is getting the music out there.

What part of Scotland are you from?

I’m from the very north of Scotland, up beside the Castle of Mey.

Does that make touring harder?

We’re used to travelling. Our nearest city is Inverness and that’s two and a half hours away. It’s two hours more to Perth and then 30 more minutes before you get to Glasgow. Glasgow is about five and a half hours away. To get to Ireland, we’ve to go to Glasgow first and then drive to Cairnryan to get the ferry to Larne. We’re going to be performing in Ireland again in October, we’ve gigs in Moate, Strabane and Cork. I will be singing the songs I recorded with Foster & Allen.

Have you suffered any travel disasters over the years?

The van broke down once. I had another disaster when I was playing the accordion in the Scottish Championships. With the type of accordion I have, you have to have the straps pretty secure onto the instrument to play it properly, even if you’re sitting down. There were two heats in the competition and I got through the first. There was a three hour wait before the next heat and, of course, the brackets on the accordion broke in the meantime. We had to drive to an expert’s house for him to fix it and we arrived back just as the adjudicator was calling my name on stage. I won the competition in the end. The amount of stress I went through that day was incredible. Since then, I’ve carried around two accordions with me in case one of them breaks.

Do you get a lot of support from your family at home?

They love country music as well, but I’m the only one who plays. My grandfather is my biggest supporter, he started me off playing. My parents always come to see me when I’m playing in the area. My friends and teachers were a great support when I was in school. It’s lovely to have all of that because it’s not like it’s an electric guitar playing rock music, it’s an accordion. We couldn’t do what we love if people didn’t come to see us play.