As part of the Nashville Songwriters Festival we were invited along to the Avalon Guitar sponsored spectacular featuring no less than five remarkable artists. I hope to bring you a photo post of each artist in the days ahead, the first artist being a favourite of mine Iain Archer. I interviewed Iain for a magazine a few years a back and without doubt he is one of Northern Ireland most talented songwriters.
Iain began his career with a move from Belfast to Glasgow in the mid 90’s where he made two albums with Sticky Records, an Ayrshire based indie label. These early works led to him being invited to tour as support act to John Martyn, where he formed a friendship with the legend and accompanied him on vocals. He toured relentlessly and became known for his solo performances with stirring vocals and guitar work. Radio and press picked up keenly on the releases.
Still the musical traveling bug took him off to explore new territory. Archer felt he had more to say, and other ways to express it, and so a period of hiatus and collaboration ensued. He took a job working in a homeless hostel in London, which allowed him a window on another side of life and took away any pressure of touring.
He set about rediscovering his muse. During this time he worked with a number of artists including Fionn Regan, Juliet Turner, Jacob Golden, Reindeer Section and Snow Patrol. Soon Archer was asked to join forces with Snow Patrol and spent a year on the road and in the studio. During this time Iain was involved in co-writing key tracks on Snow Patrol’s soon-to-be breakthrough album ‘Final Straw’, which would later earn him an Ivor Novello Award.
