Wigan musician's new single reflects on life in lockdown

The new track has struck a chord online with music fans who have to stay at home in the current lockdown after months of restrictions due to the novel coronavirus.

The song is a bonus track Scott, from Whitley, suddenly came up with after finishing the writing for his new full-length album which is due out later this year.

He was inspired to sit down at the piano once more due to the toll living under the measures needed to contain Covid-19 is taking.

Scott said: “Like everybody else I’ve been stuck indoors during lockdown so I thought that would be a good opportunity to start writing for a new album.

“I had finished doing that when I had an idea for the extra song. I had heard all the stories on the news and the TV of people really suffering with mental health issues and loneliness.

“I thought the only thing I could really do to raise awareness of people going through hardship was to write a song.

“We’re all feeling lonely at the moment, we’re all missing friends and family and we can’t go out to socialise.

“I wanted it to fit with my jazzy, bluesy-type voice so I started writing these bits of ideas down based on what I was doing or what I thought other people were doing from their social media posts.”

Solitary Blues has had a massive impact, entering the iTunes singer-songwriter chart and reaching the top 100 alongside established names such as Damien Rice, Ed Sheeran and Ben Howard.

Scott has also been delighted to receive hundreds of comments about the song online, with many people saying how the lyrics and feel of it chimed with their own experiences of living through Covid-19.

He said: “I can’t believe how well it has done. I’ve had loads of emails coming through and music blogs looking at it and my Instagram shot up.

“I just wanted to get out there how I was feeling and how it relates to other people. It’s tough for everybody.

“People have said it’s a relatable song and the lyrics are true to what’s happening at the moment, which makes me feel like I’ve done something really worthwhile.

“This song is definitely going on the album now.”

Despite the complete upheaval of normal life Scott has managed to turn the time of the pandemic into a creative period, kitting out a studio at home to help him make music.

Not only has he written the songs for the album Ascension, which is currently slated for a a June release, but he has working on songs for Ince musician Alan Gregory’s musical Beyond Wigan Pier about George Orwell’s relationship with the town.

Solitary Blues is also not the first time Scott has responded to current events in music as he teamed up with fellow Wigan talent Olivia Garcia in 2020 to release an EP in aid of the NHS.

The B-side from that, Be There, is one of the tracks on his latest full-length album.

Solitary Blues, by Scott Chapman, is out now and available on YouTube or Spotify.

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