John Doc - Forty Shades of Green

johndoc.co.uk
The Songs of Ireland, taken from the definitive source! Originally uploaded in 2021 sourced from a cassette belonging to Bobby Reynolds, the last President of Cleland Miners Ian Watt reached out to me last year with these jewels from the distant past to share with you all, featuring songs that would be ever present throughout John Docherty's career when he was performing many a venue that he would become synonymous with.
In memory of Robert McCallum Reynolds and David King Taylor Shanks.
Listen to the rest of this album below:
• The Songs of Ireland
John Doc's rendition of Johnny Cash's Forty Shades of Green that opens The Doc's album The Songs of Ireland. Penned by the great Johnny Cash, the song started life in 1959 during Cash's trip to Ireland and completed it in 1961 as a B-side on his album "The Rebel - Johnny Yuma."
While Cash lists a number of the most popular destinations in Ireland - Dublin, Shannon, Dingle, Skibbereen - local lore has it that he got the initial inspiration for the song in the Kockmealdown Mountains in County Tipperary.
Cash allegedly asked his Irish contacts where he could go to get a look at the true beauty of Ireland and was told to head for the Vee Pass, which divides the Knockmealdown and Galtee mountains in southern Tipperary. He kept that stunning view in his mind and sought to capture the lush greenery and beauty of the Irish landscape in song.
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The website that was launched for The Doc serves two purposes - to celebrate the life and music of one of the finest voices to ever grace these shores, and to seek out any additional material that may still be out there of Doc, especially the master tapes of his officially released albums.
Thanks to founder of Nevis records and legendary Scottish songwriter Jim McLean, he amazingly gifted me the master tape of Doc's first album At The Carousel to digitize and share, and would have done likewise with the second master tape, but unfortunately, it wasn't in his possession. The master tapes of At The Carousel Volume II, At Hasties Farm and At Cowie Bowling Club are still out there somewhere, and if anyone has any information on the whereabouts of the master tapes or any information on the recordings itself, avenues I should seek out etc, it would be greatly appreciated. Names that may be of help are: Sam Plotnikoff, Graham Gordon, Billy Brown and Keith Mitchell. If anyone knows these gentlemen, please pass on the website listed above where they can reach out to me via the contact form should they have any information that would be of use.
Slainte!
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The Doc's officially released discography below:
At The Carousel:
• John Doc - At The Caro...
At The Carousel Volume II:
• John Doc - Together Again
At Hasties Farm:
• John Doc - Everybody K...
At Cowie Bowling Club:
• John Doc - Sweet Dreams
Sincerely Yours:
• John Doc - Yours (Quié...
Easy Listening:
• John Doc - Everything ...