James McMurtry (solo show)

James McMurtry brings his solo show to Saint Luke’s & The Winged Ox in Glasgow on 30 September 2026. A songwriter rooted in the American South and West, he blends roots rock, folk rock, alt‑country and Americana with a plainspoken voice and unfussy guitar. His songs read like short stories: characters on the move, two‑lane highways, small towns, work, frictions and routines, all sketched with a careful eye for detail. Raised in Virginia after being born in Fort Worth, he started playing his own material in Arizona and Texas before a first nod at Kerrville’s New Folk competition in 1987. Too Long in the Wasteland followed in 1989, co‑produced by John Mellencamp, and set the tone for a catalog that includes Candyland, Where’d You Hide the Body, It Had to Happen, Walk Between the Raindrops and Saint Mary of the Woods. Later records like Childish Things, Just Us Kids, Complicated Game and The Horses and the Hounds trace the same line: tight arrangements, steady grooves, and narrative bite. On stage alone, the lyrics sit front and center, carried by his dry delivery and steady picking.