“You know it could be a canter/If you were just a wee bit less of a wanker/Mare’ than half ae’ the time.” If one lyric encapsulates Gerry Cinnamon it’s that refrain from 2019 single “Canter”—a straight-talking take on the world buoyed by wit and melody. The Glaswegian has become one of the UK’s biggest live draws on little more than word of mouth, refusing to sign with a label and holding firm in the belief that no marketing or publicity department is a match for the power of good songs. And he’s got those in spades: Working with an acoustic guitar, harmonica and his lived-in voice, he crafts honest, vivid portraits of hometown rough-and-tumble (“Diamonds in the Mud”), childhood innocence (“Keysies”) and his enduring disdain for the music industry’s self-serving elements (“Lullaby”). With lyrics that toggle between street-level Glasgow slang and a more universal vernacular, his folky tunes can be as intimate as an arm around the shoulder or as rousing as a last-minute winner.