Have just uploaded the track 'Winter Me' the words were written by Iris MacFarlane and the music mostly by me.

Iris died in February this year (2007), amongst other things she was a great writer, traveller and had a great interest in folklore and stories. I met her up on North Uist when I was a kid and have seen her on and off over the years during my regular trips to Locheport. One time about 10 years ago I drove her down to her home in Yorkshire and she gave me some song lyrics, which as she said she couldn't sing them she'd rather they were used by someone.

So I put this song together using Iris's words and a vague idea of a melody she had put down on a tape now sadly missing, it lived in the bottom drawer, I would sing it on and off and kept meaning to record it for Iris to hear, but of course being a useless layabout I am sorry to say I didn't manage to get this together until after she had gone.

I bought Vashti Bunyan's 'Just Another Diamond Day' towards the end of 2006 and on listening to it for the first time was suprised to discover the exact same words in a different order with a different melody on her track 'Iris's Song for Us'. It turns out that on her travels up the country in a horse and cart Vashti met Iris who many years later gave Vashti the exact same words she gave to me with the same idea "to be used for something".

I am really good pals with Iris's family Fiona, Florence, Alice and William so I thought it fitting to record the song, finally, I wanted to lay it down do anyway as love it and it's sentiment. So I asked Vashti if she'd like to sing on it too as our tribute to Iris, I emailed the mp3 over to L.A (amazing technology!) for her and on hearing it she agreed.

So we put down Vashti's lovely ethereal vocals on the track in her house back in September, over cups of tea and a chat about our unusual coming together and common friends, I guess it was all organised by Iris in the end...