When Colin Clyne left his native Scotland in 2003 to follow the love of his life to sunny San Diego, he had no way of knowing all the changes the next decade would bring. He dreamed of being a musician, although he got a late start; an accident to his hand kept him away from the guitar until he was 23. Working as a seabed surveyor in La Jolla, he became a husband and a father and slowly but surely built a career impressive by anyone’s standards. Clyne toured the West Coast, soon playing sold-out shows around California, and released three acclaimed albums, “Cold Store” (2006), “Doricana” (2010) and “Doon Tae the Wid” (2012). He took home trophies for Best Acoustic Performer at the 2011 and 2012 San Diego Music Awards, and he might have taken another in 2013 if he hadn’t had to return to Scotland for family reasons. He’s holding on to his San Diego connections, including those with Pacific Beach-based and Grammy Award-winning producer Alan Sanderson (Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac); Sanderson’s Pacific Beat Studios, which has worked on all Clyne’s albums to date; and filmmaker Craig Riann, who is working on a documentary on Clyne, largely shot in San Diego. He also plans a West Coast tour this winter, using La Jolla as a home base. Clyne has noticed a few a differences between California and Scottish audiences. “People actually understand my between-song banter here — well, for the most part,” he joked. Meanwhile, he said, the biggest surprise has been in the description of his music. “If you recall, people for the best part in the U.S. had me labeled as a Celtic artist,” he said. “Here, I’ve been described as country, which is fine, but I’d say Scottish, rootsy, Americana-ish. I’m like a stray dog. I’ve slipped my leash, sneaked through the fence, and I’m ready to explore every corner.” Upon his return to Scotland, Clyne hit the ground running, acquiring a backing band, The Carrons, gigging relentlessly. The hard work has paid off. “The Never- Ending Pageant” hit No. 6 on the iTunes country music chart with the album’s first single, “Merry Go Round,” climbing to 48. Clyne said the San Diego Music Awards wins helped with his current success. “Absolutely,” he said. “You just need to look at the list of previous winners in order for people to sit up and take notice.” That list includes the likes of Jewel and Jason Mraz. Clyne credits working with Sanderson as the catalyst for a hit record. “We were all proud of ‘Doricana,’” he said, “and it was the absolute best it could have been at that time. But this was a little more intense. We were genuinely moved while in the studio making ‘Pageant.’ Eight years of working together finally birthed the record Alan and I had always discussed, over many beers, making together.”
While he did make preproduction demos to test the songs and to keep the passion in the material, the band never heard them. “I don’t record demos that often anymore,” he said. “I keep them in my head, and if they are good enough, I’ll remember them — hopefully. However, for this record, we did a whole bunch of preproduction and demos to make sure the songs were absolutely spot-on before we got the band in. Of course, the band then wanted the charts and the demos, but I refused. What you hear on the record was done in the studio, unrehearsed and inspired.”
Clyne said he looks forward to returning to San Diego and the “great Mexican food.” He said he’s happy with where music has taken him — and it all started for him in La Jolla. “Music means as much to me now as always,” he said. “It’s saved me time and again. It’s the thing I was meant to do. Making records is like a drug to me. I’m obsessed with the pursuit of creating something akin to my heroes.”
For more information, visit colinclyne.com.