It was always going to be full-time entertainment
Recorded 4 years ago
About this recording
Brandon McPhee was introduced the button accordion at the age of 10 by his grandfather, Donald McPhee Snr. Since then, Wick-born Brandon has gone on to enjoy phenomenal success as a multi-talented entertainer and as presenter of his own TV show.
"From the very second that I played an accordion I knew that entertainment was exactly what I wanted to do with my life," he says in this interview. "It just felt right and ever since that moment, every single day, I've been working towards full-time entertainment."
Brandon talks about some of those who have influenced his life in music and how he began playing in Dynamos alongside Manson Grant and Robert Cameron. He reflects on and career highlights such as performing in Buckingham Palace; touring with The Sir Jimmy Shand Story, a tribute to the late accordion maestro which Brandon and his band took to venues across the UK and Ireland from 2017 to 2019; and making the single Walking on the Waves with veteran Irish duo Foster and Allen. The song was featured on the Heartland digital network which broadcasts from Tennessee.
Brandon gives an insight into how he and the band had to adapt to the Covid-19 pandemic. They concentrated on recording album tracks and producing online shows when it was impossible to arrange live performances, although Brandon maintains that virtual concerts "will never replace the real thing".
He says: "When the pandemic hit we had the busiest year that we've ever had planned. Overnight, every show we had lined up, every performance, every piece of promo work was all gone.
"It was quite hard to take but it was paramount for everyone's safety. It was a time for us to just try and stay positive, go into the studio and record."
He also talks about his weekly programme on Spotlight TV (Sky 365, Freesat 516). It goes out on Thursday at 4pm and Wednesday at 3pm.
"I would just love to tour the world some day," Brandon says. "I'm going to keep at it and maybe one day I'll get there. There was never going to be a Plan B. It was always going to be full-time entertainment.
"All I want to do is to keep moving forward with my music. I just love every aspect of it."
The two accordion pieces on this recording were written and arranged by Brandon. Firstly there is Achnaclyth House and, to conclude, Dr Fiona Grant / The Caithness Undertaker
Photo by John Baikie.
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