Glasgow’s impact on music is a global affair. Nascent musicians have been plucked from the embrace of the city and scattered to other places around the world, finding their voice along the way.
Songwriters from other towns and cities have had their music informed by interactions with the local scene. Then there is a litany of bands originating in places with Glasgow postcodes that have been absorbed into the city’s cultural sphere of influence.
We previously brought you the best albums from Glasgow, a list of records where the definition of a Glasgow musician had fairly narrow geographical parameters. It still managed to include Mogwai, Deacon Blue and The Bluebells - three bands imprinted on Glasgow’s music scene but with members from beyond the confines of the city.
There was an immediate outcry from readers: Demands for recognition of the bands they associate with Glasgow, excluded because they are actually from Paisley, Coatbridge or East Kilbride.
Are any of these albums from Glasgow? The echoes of the city you hear in the music and how songs have become local anthems are more important than the distance from the Barrowland Ballroom they were born or what bus they got home.
So here’s 20 Glasgow albums that stretch that connection to Glasgow to its furthest limits. It makes for an impressive, varied playlist and a source of local pride.
13. Paolo Nutini: Sunny Side Up
Paisley star Paolo Nutini’s second album debuted at number one in the UK charts in 2009. It features great like ‘Pencil Full of Lead’, ‘10/10’ and ‘Candy’. He first started demo-ing songs in Glasgow’s Park Lane studio. Photo: Jeff Gentner
14. Donovan: Sunshine Superman
Although it wasn’t released in the UK until years later, Sunshine Superman is Donovan’s most successful album. The title track includes Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page on guitar. Donovan was born in Maryhill before moving south with his family to Hatfield. | Donovan
15. Bert Jansch: Bert Jansch
Bert Jansch may have been brought up in Edinburgh but was born in Glasgow’s Stobhill Hospital in Springburn during the Second World War. A terrific album which contains ‘Needle of Death’ and ‘Strolling Down the Highway’. | Bert Jansch
16. Daft Punk: Homework
The debut album from French duo Daft Punk has a strange connection to Glasgow. They met a Glasgow label boss at a rave in Paris’ EuroDisney and were signed to Soma Quality Recordings releasing their first single. Some of the demos they worked on in Glasgow formed part of Homework which includes the classic tunes ‘Around the World’ and ‘Da Funk’.