b. Heather Williamson, 26 December 1950, Crosshouse, Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland. A Scottish ballad singer with a fine, clear voice and a growing reputation. Williamson had always experienced singing around her home, but it was not until hearing an album by Martin Carthy that she started to broaden her musical horizons. She first went to a folk club around 1968, in Irvine, and soon after performed her first floor spot. By now she had also come into contact with the singing of Lizzie Higgins and other Scottish singers. It was to be quite a few years, however, before she started doing bookings in her own right. Initially this was mainly the local clubs of Scotland while in 1970 she married Pete Heywood, editor of The Living Tradition magazine. As a singer, and interpreter of song, her main inspiration is Dick Gaughan. With her first release, Heywood was able to add to her growing reputation, but it was the follow-up, By Yon Castle Wa’, that started to awaken interest further afield in this highly talented singer. Equally at home with traditional or contemporary material, the album included contributions from, among others, Brian McNeill (fiddle, guitar, concertina, bouzouki), Dougie Pincock from the Battlefield Band (highland pipes, whistle, flute, low whistle, soprano saxophone) and Colin Matheson from Ceolbeg (piano). Heywood also sings with the group Quadrille, and in 1993 was voted Artist Of The Year by Glasgow’s Star Club.