Sydney Devine "...Sings Your Favourite Country Songs" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1970) (LP)
According to the friendly folks at Discogs, Sydney Devine's solo career actually kicked off down in apartheid-era South Africa, when he was on tour as a featured performer in pop singer Andy Stewart's entourage. These tracks were apparently recorded and first released by a South African label, then relicensed to Decca's Celtic subsidiary, Emerald Records. It did the trick though: Mr. Devine became the king of Scottish country music for pretty much the rest of the decade. Tons of cover tunes, most of it of older, 1950s vintage, with versions of "When You And I Were Young, Maggie," "Married By The Bible, Divorced By The Law," "Tennessee Waltz," "The Wild Side Of Life," and the like, as well as a few newer tunes such as Roger Miller's "Little Arrows" and "Act Naturally," from the Buck Owens catalog. No musician or producer credits, alas.
Sydney Devine "Country" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1973) (LP)
(Produced by Tommy Scott)
Another mix of country oldies and newer, more recent hits. "May The Bird Of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose," anyone? Or perhaps "Help Me Make It Through The Night" is more your cup of tea?
Sydney Devine "Encores" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1974) (LP)
A pattern emerges, after the third or fourth solo album by Mr. Devine: did no one at Decca's A&R department have any interest in contemporary Scottish or English country artists? I mean, sure, Sydney Devine was doing just fine covering old American hits and adding a little Glaswegian burr here and there, but it's not like there were no original twangtunes coming out of the UK in the 'Sixties and 'Seventies. He does cover an oldie from Lonnie Donegan ("Have A Drink On Me") and one from his former boss Andy Stewart ("There's Nothing There") but mostly this is all well-worn American stuff. But at least you get a chance to hear Devine dig into songs like "Jealous Heart" and "A Church, A Courtroom, Then Goodbye," or -- more important -- his version of Don Ho's "Tiny Bubbles," which became Sydney Devine's signature song.
Sydney Devine "Crying Time" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1974) (LP)
Wait... Is it really crying time.. again?
Sydney Devine "Absolutely Devine" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1974) (LP)
(Produced by Gordon Smith)
Sydney Devine "Live From The City Hall, Glasgow" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1975) (LP)
(Produced by Gordon Smith)
I'll admit, these live tracks are kind of a hoot, particularly as Devine lets his hair down for the hometown crowd, and delves delightfully deep into his Scottish brogue, for example pronouncing "Woman Sensuous Woman" as "census." It's a relentlessly cheerful, upbeat performance, and a pretty enjoyable album (settling aside ballads such as "Only You," etc.) and Devine's bleeped-out swear words on the spoken intro to "Road To Dundee" reveal a surprising puckishness heard only by the folks in the auditorium... My only complaint is the lack of musician credits, standard for UK albums to the time but frustrating nonetheless, especially since the steel player was pretty darn good. Oh, well.
Sydney Devine "Doubly Devine" (Philips Records, 1976) (LP)
(Produced by Tommy Scott)
I'm not sure if this 2-LP set is a proper album of newly-recorded material, or a collection of older tracks, though the inclusion of producer and engineer credits suggests it was a contemporary recording... At any rate, it's a sprawling set, showing Devine's diverse interests in both Pop and Country music, with composers Burt Bacharach and Percy Faith sidling up next to Hank Cochran and Harlan Howard. No info on the backing musicians, though... alas.
Sydney Devine "Devine Time" (Philips, 1976) (LP)
Sydney Devine "Greatest Hits" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1977) (LP)
Sydney Devine "Almost Persuaded" (Philips, 1977) (LP)
Sydney Devine "Nashville Album" (Philips, 1978) (LP)
Sydney Devine "My World Of Music" (Philips, 1979) (LP)
Sydney Devine "25th Anniversary Album" (Philips, 1980) (LP)
Sydney Devine "The Pride Of Bonnie Scotland" (Phonodisc Records, 1980) (LP)
Sydney Devine "Heartaches" (Philips Records, 1981) (LP)
Sydney Devine "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" (Decca/Emerald Records, 1981-?) (LP)
(Produced by Sydney Devine)
Sydney Devine "Favorite Memories Of Mine" (Country House Records, 1983)
Sydney Devine "By Request" (Country House Records, 1983)
Sydney Devine "From Scotland With Love" (Scotdisc, 1984)
Sydney Devine "Always And Forever" (Scotdisc, 1987)
A bunch of country evergreens... Of particular interest, though, amid the Jim Reeves and Marty Robbins covers are a few tunes from the Webb Pierce canon, including "More And More" and "There Stands The Glass." I've always though Pierce's high, nasal tenor would be a good match for the Irish and Scottish audience... and I guess Mr. Devine agreed!
With a career spanning back to the early 1950s, Scottish country crooner Sydney Devine (1940-2021) started out in musical theater and moved into popular music first as a sideman in TV host Andy Stewart's touring band, then as a solo star in his own right. He had a brief fling with rock'n'roll but really found his footing as a country singer, although his version of country music was very lush and pop-oriented. Back in Scotland in the 1970s, Devine hosted his own radio program and a television variety show called Devine Time, which gave him iconic/ironic national fame. Here's a quick, and undoubtedly incomplete look at his career...
