Artist Profiles

Geraint Watkins – Randy’s Rarities

randydafoe24 Comments
“Easy To Say, Bon Temps Rouler”
“I’m Just Crazy About You” from his 2004 album, Dial ‘W’ for Watkins

Geraint Watkins (geh-ruhnt) is from Wales and is a multi-instrumentalist and a first-rate Rock and Roll piano, and accordion player. He’s a singer/songwriter with several solo works to his credit. I found him through his association with Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe (here playing bass in the “Easy To Say, Bon Temps Rouler” clip). He toured with Nick back in 2010 and I saw them play at the Axis Club in Toronto. And a great night of music it was, Nick pointed out the Toronto based Ron Sexsmith in the crowd, a friend of Lowe’s and they have toured together also. Among many things, Geraint has teamed up with Bill Wyman and His Rhythm Kings.

This clip above is a live performance from that 2010 tour that I saw, Nick Lowe and Geraint Watkins’s “Only a Rose”.
“Deep in the Heart of Texas” written by Geraint Watkins, Geraint Watkins & The Dominators (1979)
“Deep in the Heart of Texas” covered by Dave Edmunds on the album D.E. 7th in 1982.

Will Trent, (caution: Spoiler Alert and a Nick Lowe nerd alert)

This seemed to be a good spot to mention that in the TV series Will Trent, (caution: Spoiler Alert) which I would recommend, in the most recent episode he meets his Uncle for the first time. At the end of the episode, he is presented with what is described as his (Will’s) mother’s favorite album. Purely coincidental to todays topic.

Nick Lowe’s Jesus of Cool (1978)

The episode closes with this song. Now that’s cool.

Credit for the still photo from the TV, Donald Teplyske- Fervor Coulee: RootsMusicOpinion @FervorCoulee

24 thoughts on “Geraint Watkins – Randy’s Rarities”

    • Of course you know DE and NL , I have pursued only a couple of the connections solo stuff. But im sure guys like Terry Williams , Billy B etc have done stuff on their own as well.

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  5. To jump in & answer Max’s question, it’s a poppy. The legion sell them in fall and people wear them as a sign of respect for veterans leading up to Remembrance Day (Nov.11)
    Good column Randy, I know of Ron Sexsmith but haven’t heard of Geraint…nor that TV show

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  6. So many songs I liked! My favorite though by him was “I’m Just Crazy About You”…and of course I like the Nick Lowe and Dave Edumnds doing those songs. Great post Randy….I never heard of him before but that is what rarities is all about.
    One stupid American question…what is that red thing he is wearing in the first video? I see those worn by Canadians.

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    • Those are poppies. What you call Veterans Day we call Remembrance in Canada and the UK, which you probably knew. We wear the poppy to honour the vets. I will just shortcut and copy and paste from wiki.
      “In Flanders Fields” is a war poem in the form of a rondeau, written during the First World War by Canadian physician Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae.
      In the poem he talks about the poppies growing in the fields. So to this day every November you see a lot of poppies, the ones in the UK are a bit bigger and nicer than the one we wear in Canada. Sorry that’s a lot explaination.

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