John Doherty

Waiting For A Song, the 1974 solo album by former member of the Mamas and the Papas Denny Doherty, was only released in the UK and the singer’s native Canada. Fantastic Voyage has remastered the album from the original tapes and retained the original UK sleeve artwork. The album spans the sunshine pop/harmony vocal sounds of the Sixties (check out Together), country/soft rock (Southern Comfort) and the singer/songwriter sound prevalent in the Seventies. Doherty tackles songs by such notable writers as Gary Osborne (lyricist for Jeff Wayne’s The War Of The Worlds project and occasional collaborator with Elton John), the Addrisi Brothers (of “Never My Love” fame), and music duos England Dan & John Ford Coley and Hall & Oates. He also tackles “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’”, while a Forties standard by Harry Warren & Mack Gordon gave him a US Easy Listening Top 20 hit. Much in evidence are the harmony vocals of his former bandmates “Mama” Cass Elliott and Michelle Phillips.

Hamburg Demonstrations is an album from the enigmatic The Libertines front man Pete Doherty. Produced & mixed by Johann Scheerer (Faust/Bosnian Rainbows/The Killers) and recorded at his analogue-based studio, Clouds Hill Recordings in Hamburg. Hamburg Demonstrations includes the previously released singles ‘The Whole World Is Our Playground’ and a new recording of the Amy Winehouse tribute ‘Flags From The Old Regime’. The album also features ’Hell To Pay At The Gates Of Heaven’ written after the Paris attacks last November; ‘Kolly Kibber’ inspired by the newspaper man who meets a sticky end at the beginning of ‘Brighton Rock’ and ‘A Spy In The House Of Love’ a title borrowed from the Anaïs Nin novel.

John Doherty began his career in music as a Phil Lynott-loving bass player in cover bands in his native Killybegs, Co Donegal. These days, John Doherty is pitching for stadiums with his glossy brand of emotive folk-pop. Formerly part of a duo featuring guitarist Ryan McCloskey, the piano-playing songwriter is going it alone for his debut album, packed with lovelorn ballads that are all variations on a very similar theme. Doherty may cite the likes of John Martyn and Van Morrison as influences, but these songs sound more like OneRepublic and Ed Sheeran. Moody production, gospel-inflected backing vocals and Doherty’s swarthy voice dominate the indistinguishable Walk on By and Lost Boys.