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By Alastair HamiltonMay 27th 2014
Alastair Hamilton

Long-standing friends Barbara Dickson and Rab Noakes, popular on the Scottish musical scene for four decades, will play Mareel in Lerwick on 8 June.

Barbara and Rab have been friends since they were teenagers, singing and playing in venues around Scotland. As separate acts, they often found themselves performing alongside each other and they have sung on each other's records and remained friends for over 40 years. Both have diverse careers and have won awards and praise for their solo work in many fields. Now, they've reunited to perform a wonderful blend of folk songs, classic pop influences and self-written favourites. Rab's continuing reputation as one of Scotland's finest singer-songwriters and Barbara's skills as an interpreter of new and traditional songs provide an enviable platform for this unique show.

From her folk scene roots to mainstream chart success with hits including I Know Him So Well, Another Suitcase In Another Hall and January, February, Barbara Dickson has long since cemented her status as one of the UK's best-loved performers. As Scotland's best-selling female album artist she has earned 6 platinum, 11 gold and 7 silver albums. Barbara was awarded an OBE by Her Majesty the Queen in the 2002 New Year's Honours for her services to music and drama. You can see her performing Four Strong Winds in this YouTube video.

Rab Noakes has enjoyed a varied and illustrious musical life. He was a member of Stealers Wheel, wrote songs for hit-makers Lindisfarne and made regular appearances on shows such as John Peel's radio programme and BBC2's The Old Grey Whistle Test. Rab has a vast body of recorded work, often involving interesting collaborations, and continues to tour and make regular TV, radio and live appearances. In this YouTube video, he sings No More Time, a song written in tribute to the late Gerry Rafferty.