Tristan MacKay - From Busker to Best-Selling I-Tunes Blues Artist
The first time I saw Tristan Mackay perform live was when he was supporting Beth Hart way back in 2013. With a similarity in looks to Johnny Depp and a versatile voice akin to a young James Taylor, he quickly had the audience mesmerized with his beautifully crafted melodies and accomplished guitar playing. His laid back song delivery and the intimate story-telling nature of his lyrics, ensured him of an instant rapport with the audience and by the end of his toe-tapping set the whole venue was joining in with his Drinking Song - "One More for the Road". Since then I have followed Tristan's flourishing career with much interest and my faithful gig biddy and I - along with many more of Tristan's loyal fans - have helped out with funding for his forthcoming 2nd Album "Wire and Wood".
Tristan, who was born in Tiverton, Devon, began playing guitar as a young teenager, and was influenced by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen amongst others. In 2001, whilst studying at Leeds University, Tristan turned to busking in order to earn himself some extra cash and then continued to play his own brand of acoustic blues and cover songs out on the streets and in large shopping centres to help promote his music career and build a fan base. This is where he honed his natural abilty to charm an audience and devoped his performance skills.
SWEET HOME ALABAMA - TRISTAN MACKAY BUSKING
This talented and enterprising young musician then went on to release 2 EP's which were recorded in his own home - the aptly titled ‘Tales from a bedroom orchestra’ and ‘Live from the lounge’. His track ‘The Wine and Me’ was then picked up and featured in the Channel 4 show ‘Skins’. Another of the songs from his first E.P. ‘Be all that you can be’ was used by World of Duty Free as their summer Campaign song in 2011.
By this time Tristan was busking full time and self promoting his music on My Space where top music producer Martin Levan ( who had previously worked with John Martyn) discovered him. Levan invited Tristan to come to his studio and lay down some demo tracks. In 2010 they worked together to produce Tristan’s superb debut album ‘Out Along the Wire’ which also featured other outstanding musicians like Pete Van Hooke (Mike and the Mechanics & Van Morrision) and John Garden (Scissor Sisters) as well as a cameo organ performance from Paul Carrack. The album of all original tracks was released on 20th Feb 2012 and went straight to No 1 on the I-tunes blues chart in the UK and Australia and received a swathe of 4 and 5 star reviews in the music press.
Since 2013 Tristan has provided solid support for a host of other great bands and musicians, including Robben Ford, Eric Johnson, Caravan, Joanne Shaw Taylor, The (Beautiful) South, The Proclaimers and Billy Bragg, He has also recorded live sessions and interviews for BBC Radio 2 and BBC 5 Live as well as for many regional radio stations. He's had great reviews and features in the music press, and one of his songs was recently nominated for a British Blues Award.
AIN'T NO SUNSHINE - JAMMING LIVE WITH ERIC JOHNSON
In order to produce his eagerly awaited 2nd Album "Wire and Wood" he raised over £12,000 on Kickstarter and has been in the studio for much of 2014, again working with Peter Van Hooke, Tim Harries, John Garden & producer Martin Levan to lay down a predominantly acoustic record, full of his most intimate songs, in what he describes on his website blog as "intense, emotional and exhilarating sessions",
FROM BEGINING TO END - TWO OF TRISTAN'S KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN VIDEO'S
In his personal life, Tristan has recently become a father to a beautiful baby girl called Layla
( named after one of his favourite Clapton tracks) and some of the songs on the new album will, I am sure, be influenced by his new role, as this video for the poignant special pre-order bonus track reveals.
With a new breed of young acoustic singer-songwriters like Ed Sheeran and George Ezra currently very much in vogue, I really hope that Tristan's new album will get lots of airplay in 2015 and that we'll soon see him touring the UK again - not as a support act any more but as a fully fledged headlining troubador, owning his own stage at music festivals and in packed venues around the UK. As supporters of his Kickstarter campaign, we may well be privilleged to be at the launch party in 2015. For now have a listen to another preview track and pre-order your copy today. Tristan is certainly one act we'll be tipping for success in 2015.
For more info and to purchase copies of Tristan's acclaimed 1st album Out Along the Wire visit
