English musician who plays on the concertina and the Northumbrian smallpipes. Under the influence of American folk music, Alastair began playing on his father’s banjo in the 1960’s. after buying a concertina for five pounds, he gave the banjo to his friend Dave Richardson (later member of the famous The Boys of the Lough). He also started playing on the Northumbrian smallpipes. In 1967 he was one of the founders of The High Level Ranters, along with accordionist Johnny Handle and piper and violinist Colin Ross.
In 1979 he left the band and started solo career and made his album ‘Steel Skies’ in 1982. After that he became a member of another band, the Shephards. This band played national events throughout England from 1980 to 1995. He remained active behind the scenes as well. In addition to founding the Rothbury Traditional Music Festival, he helped to form Folkworks, a folk music development agency that has produced numerous festivals and workshops.
For Kate, he played concertina on the song Rocket Man.
