Matt McGinn (Scottish songwriter)

[1] Born in Glasgow in 1928, McGinn was a prolific songwriter and is recognised as an influential figure in the British folk music revival of the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Matt McGinn received a degree from Ruskin College, Oxford, which focuses on providing education for working-class individuals, and awarded him a diploma in economics and political science.

The song was also featured in the 2011 Franco-German film Goodbye First Love (French: Un amour de jeunesse) directed by Mia Hansen-Løve.

Well known recordings of McGinn include "Loch Lomond", ″The Rolling Hills of the Border″, ″I have seen the Highlands″, ″The Jeely Piece Song″ (written by another stalwart of Glasgow music, Adam McNaughtan), ″The Big Effen Bee″, ″Skinny Malinky Longlegs″, ″The Red Yo Yo″, ″Gallowgate Calypso″, ″The Ibrox Disaster″ and ″The Wee Kirkcudbright Centipede″.

McGinn's songs have been recorded by Pete Seeger, The Weavers, Theodore Bikel, The Corries, Luke Kelly, The Chinese Man, The Ian Campbell Folk Group, Barry Dransfield & Rachel Unthank and the Winterset, among others.

In Jim Hosking's 2018 movie An Evening with Beverly Luff Linn, McGinn's songs "Little Ticks of Time" and "The Footba' Referee" are sung by Craig Robinson, performing alongside Matt Berry.

McGinn died on 5 January 1977 of smoke inhalation, aged 48 (12 days short of his 49th birthday), after falling asleep with a lit cigarette in his hand.