LONG GONE LONESOME BLUES - THE THOMAS FRASER STORY (Page 3)
Thomas met my Grandmother Phyllis Inkster in the early 50s. They married at Lerwick in February 1955. Phyllis also had a keen musical interest and husband and wife played and recorded together, Phyllis accompanying Thomas on guitar. Their first child, May, was born in August 1956. A 2 nd child, Phyllis Margaret, was born in October 1957 but died only a few days old. The couple were to have no more children. This period was an eventful one for the Fraser household for Thomas was now self-employed with the recent acquisition of the lobster boat, 'The Lark'. At night, like many Burra men, supplementary income to fishing was gleaned from machine-knitting jumpers.
As May grew up, father and daughter would sing and record together whilst my Mum would record her own versions of old country songs. Not surprising in these circumstances, her voice really developed and kick started a singing career which continues to this day. After having spent all day listening to scenarios like these, I would stumble out in the early hours of the morning having felt like I was in some kind of time warp. Exacerbating this surreal feeling was the stunning news emerging from the US and the aftermath of '9/11'.
The overwhelming feeling being relayed through the old tape was Thomas's passion for the music. He really poured everything into his recordings. This was a fact not lost on the many musical friends who would regularly visit Setter. The house became a musical magnet for people all over Shetland with the likes of Arthur Pottinger, Davie Manson from Quarff, Robbie Cumming, Bobby Fraser, cousin Alan Jamieson, Geordie Goodlad, Eddie Williamson, Victor Inkster, Ian Stewart, Tammie Johnson as well as Alec Pottinger & family and brothers John and Scott Christie, making regular visits. People would come not only to play with Thomas but to listen and learn from him. Budding young musicians would comment that although they wouldn't mind being able to play like Django Reinhardt, they really wished they could sing like Thomas Fraser....
Of course, Thomas was delighted to welcome the visitors and would take turns at playing tunes on their guitars and vice-versa. Strangely, no alcohol was consumed at these 'sessions', such was the seriousness placed on them & the dedication of those involved. Phyllis would supply copious amounts of Brünie and tea while May would stand shyly at the door, looking in at the throng. Little would they know that I would be poring over it nearly 40 years later.....
It became clear to me that the transfers I had made were going to be of no use commercially. I had to seek specialist opinion. Over the next few months I became something of a reel-to-reel tape machine enthusiast; phoning around, trying to sift through all the masses of information about. The best machines around were those of Swiss manufacturer, Revox. I bought a restored 2 track Revox A77 machine in early 2002 and promptly took 2 weeks off to go home and re-record the best songs for inclusion on the CD. The result were an immeasurable improvement. Songs were brought to life sounding crisp and clear.