No Stopping Scottish Folk Singer

Last spring, Scottish folk singer-songwriter Dougie (pronounced Doo-gie) MacLean was set to perform at Cal State Northridge as one of the first stops on a North American tour. But just before the concert date, the tour was canceled when American government officials stopped MacLean at the border.

“It was a crazy situation, some problem with my visa,” MacLean said by phone from his home in Scotland. “It was approved, but somehow the bureaucracy got in a knot.”

With his visa problems now unknotted, MacLean will perform at CSUN tonight.

MacLean has been at the forefront of the Scottish music scene for the last two decades, scoring six gold records in Scotland as a solo act, and his songs have been hits recorded by other artists. His tune “Caledonia” is considered the unofficial national anthem of Scotland and was chosen recently by the Scottish National Party to be played at the historic opening of the first Scottish Parliament in several hundred years. A 1992 recording of the tune by Frankie Miller hit No. 1 on the Scottish music charts.

MacLean composed music for the 1992 film “The Last of the Mohicans,” starring Daniel Day Lewis and Madeline Stowe. American country singer Kathy Mattea has recorded some of MacLean’s songs, and MacLean co-produced some tracks on her “Time Passes By” album. He’s written music for the BBC-TV show “A Mug’s Game” and he has been the subject of two documentaries.

While his music is rooted in traditional folk, MacLean acknowledges his modern influences.

“My mother and father both played [traditional folk]--music was a big part of my culture, the Highlands Gaelic culture,” he said. “Still, my mom would turn the radio on listening to Elvis. I grew up with the Beatles. So I got the best of all things, and it reflects in my music.”

MacLean, who plays guitar and fiddle, began his musical career with the Tannahill Weavers, a Celtic folk group, and later performed with Silly Wizard, a Scottish music group. In 1978, he embarked on a solo career.

He still lives in his hometown, Butterstone and Dunkeld in Perthshire, Scotland, where he has a recording studio and runs his record label (Dunkeld Records) and publishing company (Limetree Arts and Music). Earlier this year, Los Angeles-based Blix Records reissued some of MacLean’s recordings in North America, including 1997’s “Riof,” 1995’s “Tribute,” 1994’s “Marching Mystery” and 1983’s “Craigue Dhu.”

His latest CD, “Perthshire Amber,” was released in June and represents a change of musical direction for MacLean. Commissioned by Scotland’s Perth Festival of the Arts, “Perthshire Amber” is an instrumental suite in four movements utilizing traditional Celtic music and dance elements with a classical music form. The ambitious piece is the realization of a long-held dream, but MacLean still considers himself a singer-songwriter.

BE THERE

Dougie MacLean performs at 8 tonight at Cal State Northridge’s Performing Arts Center, 18111 Nordhoff St. $10-$24. (818) 677-2488.