Emily Smith at The Monday Night Thing - Perthshire Advertiser [Website link]
October 2009

THE Monday Night Thing series delivered another top drawer evening in cosy Redrooms thanks to Scots Singer of the Year 2008/2009 Emily Smith and multi instrumentalist Jamie McClennan.

Appetites had been whetted to see this Dumfries-shire lass live following her appearance on the BBC TV’s Transatlantic Sessions and extensive radio play, and she certainly did not disappoint with her sweet voice, combined with the couple’s fine musicianship and delightful personalities.
Emily and Jamie came to Perth as part of a short tour centred on their project for the Homecoming 2009 – the recording of their album, ‘Adoon Winding Nith’, of imaginative arrangements of Robert Burns material offering a fresh perspective on our national bard.

The album isn’t released until November 9, but judging by the material Emily and Jamie performed in Redrooms, they have a hit.
Emily and Jamie have mostly chosen Burns’ less well-known songs – his own and the many he collected on his travels – all beautifully arranged and performed. On stage, Emily gives lovely introductions to the songs, which focus mainly on love and the lassies!

This very convivial concert sprinkled Emily and Jamie’s own work among the generous helping of Burns’ songs. Two sets of tunes by Jamie, from his new album In Transit, were enjoyable and impressive, and we were treated to a new and as yet unrecorded song by Emily, the up-tempo Butterfly, before the evening closed with a stunning rendition of one of Burns’ most powerful songs, A Man’s A Man.

Alison Anderson