scottish wedding piper

Someone buy this guy a pint!

Bagpipes, Music, pints!, Piper, Wedding, Wedding music

If you’ve not seen it yet there’s a story that popped up over the weekend of an angry bride demanding a refund after calling him unprofessional for drinking a pint. That was bought for him by the best man. That was blackcurrant and lemonade.
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It’s pretty crazy and understandably the piper, Craig Lawrie, a Scottish wedding piper that’s been doing this for a while was having none of it. I know if I see a piper at a wedding I’ve no problem with him having a cheeky pint of juice to cool down. For Craig it’s probably a happy ending, he’s ended up getting a fair bit of free publicity out of the argument, you can find the story from the Daily Record here. To be fair it’s a wee overreaction by the bride and I’m sure when she thinks about it in the future the event will have in no way had a negative impact on her big day, she even went out of her way to praise the piper initially before requesting a refund!

My question to you reader is simple, would you by a Scottish piper a pint whilst he was playing bagpipes at your pals wedding? Let us know in the comments below! Maybe buy Stuart a pint too if you see him!

5 modern(ish) songs covered on Bagpipes

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So you’ve hired a piper for your wedding or event but you’re worried that you’re not going to know any of the music. You don’t mind a few classics but you’d like a few numbers with a bit more of a modern spin on them, worry not! Help is at hand as we offer an exhaustive exploration of modern(ish) chart hits covered on the bagpipes.

Taylor Swift – Shake it off

Not sure what makes this guy the “Official” Taylor Swift bagpipe cover artist (hint: his imagination) but here he is covering this insanely catchy hit from last year. Looking at the guys youtube page few pop starlets escape a cover, your mileage may vary to how successful you find it but theres no doubt he’s putting a unique spin on some of your favourite tracks. Such as…

Katy Perry- Dark Horse

What, no Firework?

Pharrell Williams – Happy

This guys Batman mask is giving us happy flashbacks to the unicycling, fire breathing, Darth Vader that was mentioned here a few weeks ago. You know, this guy:

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(Happy #StarWarsDay everyone!)

Whilst visually he can’t compete with the guy keeping Portland weird he makes a good try of it and at least its a cover of the Pharrell hit from the last couple of years we actually like (i.e. not Blurred Lines.)

John Legend – All of Me

This guy wins points for performing this right next to the Clyde in the centre of Glasgow, we like a hometown boy. Big fans of the original and this cover is well worth a listen if you get the chance!

Metallica – Enter Sandman

Ok this one’s a bit of a cheat, being that the song is coming up to it’s 25th anniversary (way to make us feel old passage of time!) but this is pretty cool. The band are called Dudeldrum, they’re from Russia and their musical genre is described as Bagpipe Folk by Youtube, not the kind of band you come across everyday!

Of course if none of these acts are doing it for you maybe its best to stick with the classics. The Elite Bands piper Stuart is available for all sorts of events and functions and can be found here: http://www.elitebands.co.uk/scottish-piper

Whilst he may not cover Metallica or Taylor Swift he adds a touch of class whatever the occasion.

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Piper Spotlight

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Check out this piper, he’s the Elite Bands Pipe Major, Stuart! This Scottish wedding piper looks the part and is one of the best Pipers we’ve come across in Scotland and is available for weddings, functions and corporate events. Check out this video of Stuart performing solo here:

With a little bit of exploring on YouTube we also found this 10 piece pipe band also available through Elite Bands. This tartan wearing ensemble perform at weddings, functions and corporate events and give an amazingly traditional feel to any Scottish or Scottish themed day or evening. We’re big fans, can you imagine having this at your wedding? It would add a special, prestigious moment to your big day!

Both of the Pipe Major and the 10 piece pipe band can be booked through Elite Bands website, specifically through the band checker which allows the booker to know instantly whether or not the act will be available for the dates they are looking for! Elite Bands can be found here: http://elitebands.co.uk and more details about the Piper can be found here: http://elitebands.co.uk/scottish-piper

What do you guys think? Send us some videos of your favourite pipers in the comments section below.

Alternative ideas for Wedding Pipers

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People may just think booking a piper is just booking a piper, however there are more options than you might realise. If you are in the market for something a little different to a classic piper here are a few options you could take into consideration.

If you are looking for a little showmanship how about the self proclaimed “Badpiper?” This flame throwing, tattooed punk looks like he wandered off the set of Mad Max and has been delighting crowds around the world for over 15 years. He’s just maybe not one for your granny. Search YouTube and you’ll find The Badpiper performing his take on rock standards by AC/DC and Queen as well as his own signature tunes. His bagpipes spit fire in the process, resulting in some awesome visuals that your guests wouldn’t be forgetting anytime soon.

Looking for something a little more surreal? Portland’s Unipiper is the guy that looked at The Badpipers flaming bagpipes and said “I can do more with this.” This video of a man, dressed in Darth Vader cosplay, a kilt, on a unicycle playing the Star Wars theme on his set of fire spitting bagpipes is probably the best thing you’ll see on the internet today….

….unless that is, you’re more of a Game of Thrones fan.

Not sure if he’s available for bookings but he’d certainly bring a memorable amount of of weirdness to the day. Altthough, again, maybe not one for your gran.

Closer to home when speaking about pipers its hard not to mention The Red Hot Chilli Pipers, one of the highest profile pipe bands in the world. They made their name performing a combination of traditional pipe tunes and contemporary pieces, covering music an eclectic mix of music from Deep Purple to Snow Patrol to Gangnam Style (!?)

Would they play at your wedding? You never know, but you’d have to book early. These guys are in high demand having played around the world not to mention a few times at T in the Park too.

Of course if these ideas aren’t for you theres always Elite Bands’ handpicked piper, Stuart looks the part and is one of the best Scottish wedding pipers out there.

Piper 1

Stuart is the pipe major of the elite pipe band, the best sounding pipe band on the planet (if we do say so ourselves!) Depending on what you’re looking for the company Elite Bands can provide you a solo piper or the full pipe band, that will keep you (and your granny) happy. Head here for more details: http://elitebands.co.uk/band/elite-piper

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