ELVIS LOOKALIKES - EARLY 80'S

 

The first of the local Elvis lookalikes is John Carpenter.

He was a fan and an impersonator.

The cutting is dated 1982 and is a report about John winning an Elvis miming contest at an Elvis Presley convention in Edinburgh.

The second local Elvis lookalike is George Webster.

George wasn't a performer, but was a guy who just happened to look like the legend.

It's true he did have the large sideburns and tinted glasses but this was his everyday look.

He used to drink in the Scout with his mates and go play football down at Riverside, where the photo was taken in 1981.

CAIRD HALL PACKAGE TOURS - 1960'S

 

Back in the 60's, when well known music acts played live, the main attraction would often be accompanied by a bundle of other acts as part of the show, as opposed to just having one supporting act which is how most standard tours turned out from the 70's onwards.
Even when famous names such as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones visited back then, many other acts shared the stage with them on the night, which sometimes included a compere too.
These were known as "Package Tours".
So for example - November 1963, Gerry & The Pacemakers were top of the bill at the Caird Hall, and along with them on the package tour were, Cilla Black, Kathy Kirby, Tommy Quickly, Malcolm Clarke & The Cresters, Tommy Dene & The Tremors, and Mark Peters & The Silhouettes.
In March 1964, singer Joe Brown was the headline act, and with him were, The Crystals, Johnny Kidd & The Pirates, Heinz & The Saints, Daryl Quist, Mike Preston, Manfred Mann, and Kevin Kirk.
March 1965 had Del Shannon as the main act, accompanied by Wayne Fontana & The Mindbenders, Herman's Hermits, Just Four Men, The Dollies, Jerry Stevens, The Soul Savages, and Dodie West.
1966 saw The Walker Brothers hit town as the headline act, and on the show they also had The Troggs, Clodagh Rodgers, The Quotations, Dave Dee Dozy Beaky Mick & Tich, and, The Quotations.
So you can see, music acts did their live thing a bit differently back then when touring the UK.
Seems good value for money obviously, but increasing costs was probably the reason the large package tour concept then fizzled out!

HONG KONG RESTAURANT - SEAGATE

The Hong Kong restaurant was located right next door to the ABC cinema in the Seagate, as I'm sure the majority of you will remember.

Here's a photo of the interior to refresh your memory, which dates from the late 60's.

The boss was Willie Wong, and included are 3 pictures of him on the premises.

It's strange that it was there for years & years and I would have passed by it hundreds of times, yet I don't recall ever having visited it!

Never mind me though - as well as the nosh aspect, they would often provide entertainment to go with it.

The ads under the photos are a wee example - first is dated May 1974 and has Sidney Devine one week and Bert Weedon the next.

Local act, Whistlefield, were the resident band at the time.

The second ad is dated March 1977 and here we have Paul Edison, ex lead singer of 60's pop group, The Ivy League.

Also on the bill, The Vikings.

Dundee act, The Vikings, released a single, but split up in the late 60's. However, band member, Drew Larg, kept the name going for his late 70's version of The Vikings.

The Hong Kong even dabbled in the "alternative" rock music scene for a period in 1981, by putting on post-punk bands!