SEVERED ARM APPEARANCES - EARLY 80'S

Recently unearthed photos have surfaced of Dundee alternative band - Severed Arm.

The images all come from around the 1982 period.

Top picture was taken at the Tayside Bar.

Middle shot has the guys striking a pose in the street.

Bottom image is the band on stage at an outdoor festival in Baxter Park.

A reminder of the line-up....Jim Low, vocals - Dave McDonald, guitar - John Anderson, bass - Cass, drums.

And a reminder of their sound....here below is a nifty little number captured at Ardler Community Centre, recorded around the same time as the photos.

A nice bit of chainsaw guitar powering its way through the tune - a song called "Leave Me To My Own Devices".

Big thanks to Dave.

DOWNFIELD GOLF COURSE - EARLY 60'S

Both the photo and the map are from the early 60's period and show the section of Downfield Golf Course that was given over for the Ardler multis to be built on.

ROOFTOP VIEW FROM THE LAW - 1970'S

A moody dusky evening shot looking over the rooftops at the base of the Law.
This was taken around the early/mid 70's, and snapped just at the moment of lighting-up time.
You can see the top section of Kinpurnie Place in the foreground, in the middle distance is St John's school and in the background are the Ardler multis.
The Law Hill area was like a 2nd playground to me when I was a wee schoolboy because my grandparents lived in Byron Street, so when the adults wanted to have a blether, me and my brothers would nip out to play for a while, with the Law being like an extension to their backies!
I also remember mucking about at the Kinpurnie swings because they had a Witches Hat there, something we didn't have at home at the Craigie swings, so that would be the first thing I'd make a beeline for!
If you want to see if you can spot anything else, click onto it to enlarge.

SOME QUICK SPURTS STUFF - 1978

"Dundee's most original New Wave band" - yes that's how The Quick Spurts presented themselves in 1978.

Those involved were Colin Ramsay - Gordon Walker - Forrey Rosscraig - George Barrie - with Gerry Mitchell taking over from Abe McIntosh.

The ticket for the Ardler Community Centre gig with Flux as support, took place on 14th April 1978, and the photos under it were all taken at this gig. You've got to smile at the stepladder being part of the stage decor!

At another Quick Spurts gig in St Andrews University, Gerry was dragged off the stage by some bikers and Colin waded in with his guitar to try rescue him! That's one way for your guitar skills to have an impact on your audience I suppose!!

The band split up soon after, the news cropping up in a fanzine called Kingdom Come, and Colin moved down to London where he joined Afflicted.

Big thanks to Colin Ramsay.

SEVERED ARM - OPEN & CLOSED - 1982

Back to Dundee's post punk days we go and to a band whose sound reflected the era very well, Severed Arm.
The line-up was - JIM LOW, vocals - DAVE McDONALD, guitar - JOHN ANDERSON, bass and CASS on drums.
Severed Arm played locally at venues such as the Tayside Bar, Marryat Hall and even the Baxter Park Fest.
The band also used to play up at Ardler Community Centre, and during one of those sessions, around 1982, they had their tape recorder running and managed to get a few tracks down on cassette. From it, below, is a song called "Open & Closed", a tune which captures that typical early 80's alternative pop template of jangly guitar and youthful angst!
Big thanks to Dave.

ARDLER UNDER CONSTRUCTION - 1960'S

This picture taken in the 60's, shows Ardler still in the process of being built.
Plenty of work to be done yet at this stage by the look of it, with the pipes, cement mixer and so on lying around.
Although the multi's appear to be complete, Turnberry Avenue took many years to finish off, even going through into the 70's. In my 1970 Dundee Directory, Turnberry Ave had reached up to house number 385, but by the time the 1974 Directory was published, the Avenue had extended to number 1255!
And talking of Turnberry Avenue - does anyone remember the Nisbet's at number 21? Well in 1967 quite a few people in Scotland knew of their whereabouts. The slideshow below contains a sound clip from Radio Scotland (still a Pirate Station back then) featuring a request for Margaret Nisbet at #21. It cropped up on the Ben Healy show, who's voice incidentally, resembles Mike Smash from Smashie & Nicey! It's all rather fab & groovy with mentions of Monkees T-shirts and Union Jack T-shirts on offer.
Anyway, there are 3 Ardler shots from the same photo session to accompany the radio clip.
Images from Mike & Laura

70'S AIR SHOT - ARDLER MULTI'S

The last time I was up at Ardler, this is how it looked. I don't think I'd know my way around it now!

The school on the left of the picture is Blackshade Primary School. Around the time this photo was taken, they had a head teacher called Miss Brodie. Not Jean, but Doreen!

The other 2 primary schools nearer the centre of the picture are St Fergus, who's head teacher was J.Kirkwood, and next door was Ardler, who's head teacher was A.M.MacLean.

Get a load of those bare patches on the playing field. These are where the goal posts are. Obviously seen plenty of futba action!

At the back of the multi's is St Mary's, and beyond that you can see Clatto Reservoir.

Click the image to view the large version.

Unfortunately, this is the last picture I have in the set, and sorry if your place didn't crop up on any. Lots more comments have been added to some of the previous 70's air shots I put on in 2009, so still a few more memories to catch up with.

MID 70'S AIR SHOT - ARDLER

Built on a section of the Downfield Golf Course, this photo of Ardler doesn't bear much resemblance to how it looks nowadays. The main streets are still there, but that's about it.
Bottom left has the prefabs running along the length of Harrison Avenue. All appear to be lived in judging by the washing hanging out!
The school in between the white blocks of flats cutting diagonally across the photo, is Blackshade Primary School. The other school in front of the multis is St Fergus.
The image does remind me of how stark the place looked back then, this being how I remember it when visiting relatives who lived in the flats off Turnberry Avenue. In fact, one of the relatives I visited then still lives in Ardler. My Auntie Bette, who this year received Dundee's "Citizen of the Year" award for her work helping transform the area into becoming the award winning Ardler Village as it is now known. A more visually appealing place to live these days, in comparison.

80'S KINGSWAY GRAFFITI - JIMBO

This piece of work is by the AUA (Ardler United Artists).
The fact that it's part of a Kingsway flyover means it would be a pretty tough venue to get this done, having to avoid the volume of passing traffic. A couple of night-time commando raids needed to accomplish it no doubt!
The graffiti was put down around 1984/85, but after all that effort, in the end, the artist got busted for it!
Big thanks to Lyken.

OH FOR FOX SAKE...MORE 80'S GRAFFITI

Still up at the Kingsway flyover - mid 80's - and the Ardler United Artists with Fox On The Run.
"Scarper, it's Vixen of Dock Green!" (an old school joke!)
Thanx to Lyken.