RETRO ADVERT ARCHIVES

I've put dozens & dozens of local ads up on Retro over the years which have been really useful when referring to a place I don't have any photos of.

There are quite a lot of old publications you can find ads from the past in, obvious ones like a Courier, Tele, football programme, What's On mag, theatre programme, school mag and so on, but the 2 sources I have probably raided the most are Gladmags and Official Dundee Guides.

Above are a sample of some of the 60's to 80's ones I've been dipping into.

WELLGATE LIBRARY IN THE 80'S

No idea if the Wellgate Library still looks the same these days, but this is how things were back in the 1980's.

Top image is of the Childrens Library - and judging by the pencil case setting, I think the kids may have been having "The Borrowers" read out to them at the time!

The other photo is a view of the general lending area, which I remember had a brilliant book of Picasso Linocuts that I kept going back to over and over again. Must see if I can buy a copy now that this has jogged my memory.

The advert is dated 1988 and is for the Video Libary, located in the main foyer.

Membership was free and for over 18's only. The content consisted of Hollywood blockbusters, TV shows, music, documentary, old Dundee and hobbies, with prices ranging from 50p to £2 per night.

ANTI BULLYING AD - 1966

Some of you may remember ads like this cropping up in boys comics such as Rover, Tiger and so on, back in the 60's. They always depicted men rather than boys in them - another one for example was the body building ads for Bullworker. I think they were trying to make sure us boys grew up big and strong so we were able to defend ourselves when the occasion arose.

This one above is dated 1966 and was for a variety of books containing different courses to try out - things like Ju Jitsu, Self Defence, Karate, and a few others in that territory.

However, there are also a couple of courses in there that has got me wondering how they can help you when you are being bullied - books on Stamps and Typing?!!

Then again, I suppose if you chucked your Olivetti typewriter at your assailants noggin, it could do a bit of damage!!

THE DUNDEE MUSIC BOOK

As the recent music theme on Retro nears an end, this is the perfect time to inform you of a new book that's about to hit the shelves, on the same subject.
It goes under the funky title of "Take It To The Bridge" and covers the history of Dundee's music scene from the 1960's to the present.
It documents quite a broad spectrum - for example, the various styles of music the locals indulged in - pop, rock, soul, punk, jazz, alternative, folk and so on, with plenty of name-checks, interviews and anecdotes from some of the musicians involved. It also gives the lowdown on the variety of venues around town, as well as touching on other aspects such as the record shops and music stores. The book will also provide lots of images and memorabilia too - all part of the local infotainment!
Those of you who fancy a copy, better take note of the official release date - 12th October 2011.
There will no doubt be ample publicity about it nearer the time, so keep your peepers on the local press and book shops.
Those of you who want to avoid the mad rush or now live out of town, can get the book via the usual Internet outlets - Amazon, EBay etc.
Well worth grabbing a copy, and you should be able to pick one up for around a tenner.
You'll also be pleased to know the book was written by someone who knows what they are doing - Lorraine Wilson, who has been connected to all things journalistic for the past 25 years or so.
As well as an author, she has also been an editor, radio broadcaster, scriptwriter, lecturer, to name just a few.
Music has also played a major part in her life, from working on teen music magazines, to being one of the Beaver Sisters, up to more recent projects such as organising the Beatles Weekends in Dundee.

VIEWS FROM URBAN DWELLINGS - 1983

A dip into Dundee's underground publishing now, courtesy of Aagapublications.

This book called "Views From Urban Dwellings" came out in 1983 and was the 2nd volume of the title.

Aagaproductions is credited as being Mike Kane & Steve Grimmond, who also make an appearance as contributors.

The others who submitted material for vol 2 were - Kevin Dyer, Ray Flood, Pete Horobin, Charles Lear, Craig Methven, Bob Philips and Steve Sneyd.

The content of the book was a mixture of poems, short stories, photos, musings, art, short plays, bits & pieces like that.

In fact I've already featured the graphics of Pete Horobin from the book, so this time I thought I'd focus on the writing and have plucked out an example of Ray Flood's poetry.

This one titled "The Meaning Of Life" deals with the routine and boredom of being stuck in a mundane job.

He mentions he gets the 1B into the city centre to work at "JM".

John Menzies? Could be..!

Anyway, big thanks to Craig.

MYSTERY AUTHOR - 1980's

I'm going to have to rely on your assistance for this one.

The Bear sent me these photos of an author taken in Dundee around the mid/late 80's period, but he no longer has the details of who he is.
All the info I have is that he has a connection with local historian, Graeme Smith, and he has been featured in the Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
Anybody recognise him?

A-Z OF THE HILLTOWN - 1989

"This is a local book, for local people!" could have been the phrase used when this publication came out - an A-Z Of The Hilltown, published in 1989.

There were a few contributors involved but Niall McA Robertson is the chap getting the credit on the front cover.

I've put the index up on view to give you an idea of the variety of content inside its 50 pages - history, trade, buildings, characters, photos, pubs etc - just in case some of you fancy tracking down a copy, because it's a very useful reference source.

It was even produced locally within the Hulltoon boundaries, by the Grey Lodge Urban Printers.

GOW'S FISHING BOOK - 1962

Not sure if yesterdays location was a place to go fishing but in 1962, Gow's in Union Street, brought out this catalogue showcasing the fishing equipment they had available at their shop.

The book had the full range of gear you'd expect - rods, reels, flies, waders, and so on, plus they also had a few gift items such as tankards, wallets, cigarette cases etc.

There was a brand of fishing equipment on the go at the time called the "Tayside" range, which included the Tayside Fly Rod, Spinning Rod, Artificial Bait, Sprat & Prawn Tackle, Cast Book, and the example shown here being the Tayside Bag.

While I was at it, I thought I'd stick on the Tayside Fly Rod section because it had an amusing error, detailing a "19ft" rod, when it should have been 10ft.

19ft?....what a whopper!

At the back of the book they list all the nearby rivers and lochs you could visit to indulge in the sport.

The book was also published locally - by David Winter.

THE HANDY HANDBOOK

I wonder how many of you kept these wee books?

They were called The Handy Handbook and were given away free with the Evening Telegraph.

As well as the calendar inside, they also had bits & pieces of general information about Dundee such as local services, holiday dates, football fixtures and so on, with an occasional household hint thrown in.

Each one also had a view of the city on the back page, a variety of which are on display above.

The books in shot date from the 2nd half of the 50's, right through to 1969. I'm not too sure if this was the end of the line or if they kept it going in the 70's, but they do make for a very nice collection when grouped together.

Big thanks to Bridie.

THE WEE RED BOOK - 1973

They still do the Wee Red Book every year as far as I know, but here is one I kept from the 1973 season. It's stuffed with all things to do with Scottish football, but I reckon the reason most people buy one is because they have the forthcoming season's fixtures list.
Why I still have this one as a souvenir is because '73 was the year Dundee FC won the Scottish League Cup. It's fair to say though, I've had no need to keep any since!
The 2 Scottish football legends on the cover also have Dundee links.
Jimmy Johnstone, who was absolutely brilliant for Celtic, joined Dundee in the mid/late 70's. He was however past his peak by then and only played a couple of games for the Dee.
The other Johnstone is Derek, who was actually brought up in Dundee and went on to become a bit of a Rangers superstar. He supported Dundee United as a kid and even had a short stint at Tannadice in the mid 80's. Like wee Jinky though, his best years were behind him by then.

THE "ARE YE DANCIN'?" BOOK

Following on from yesterday's post - here's a great wee book that embraces the same subject, called "Are Ye Dancin'?".
It came out at the tail end of last year, and although it covers the full historical span of Scottish dancefloor action, it's the 60's, 70's & 80's which uses up the largest chunk of the book, hence me bringing it to your attention.
Here's a descriptive paragraph from the book itself to give you a flavour of the content -
*"Are Ye Dancin'?" is the unique inside story of "the dancin'" in Scotland in the 20th Century. It's a frank, hilarious account with anecdotes from the people who lived it - the bands, cashiers, stewards, promoters, entertainers, managers and the dancers themselves.*
Needless to say, Dundee struts it's stuff and gets a good mention, which also includes material from the Retro Dundee archives.
It was written by Eddie Tobin & Martin Kielty and is great insight into our own jiggin' years, with plenty of laughs along the way.
So boogie on down to your local book shop and go grab a copy for a tenner...before it becomes an expensive collectors item!

THE SEEVIN WEEKIES POEM - 1972

Here's a neat little poem on the subject of school holidays called "Seevin Weekies", written by local journalist & author David Phillips. He used to write using the Dundee tongue in publications such as Peoples Journal and Scots Magazine. DP also published a few books in his time, with this poem taken from a 1972 book of his titled "Oor Dundee".

7 witty verses to make you smile.

You should be able to read it ok as it is, but if you're you're struggling, click on the image to ENLARGE.

PETE HOROBIN ARTWORK

You may recall I put a piece up on Retro in Feb this year about Pete Horobin's "DATA" project, so I won't bother repeating his background details, you could check that out yourself if you need a reminder.

I do have more of his work though.

The top image is a postcard designed by Pete and was published in 1978. Called "One In A Million" - it's kind of romantic, but without being soppy!

He kept the black, white & dab of red look going well into his DATA project with the second items, a couple of pages taken from the 1983 Dundee book - "View From Urban Dwellings - 2".

If you look to the bottom right of the hand, you'll see what appears to be, another heart (or 2) too!

So I'll use this opportunity to include another audio track of Pete's - this time under the name of Principle Player.

The title is "The Weight Of Your Work" and it has a simple, yet catchy, minimal synth loop over which Pete talks in and out of in a repetitive loop along the way.

ART GALLERY CATALOGUE & POSTCARD - 70'S

This 180 page catalogue (top image) is the official log of all the works of art Dundee City Art Gallery had in its possession at the time of its publication - 1973.

Every painting, sculpture and drawing in their entire collection is listed. Even the artworks on loan to the gallery have made the inventory.

This also, is only the 2nd catalogue of its kind to be printed in the gallery's history, the 1st & original catalogue appearing in 1926. By the time they did this 2nd edition in '73, their collection had tripled in size!

The cover portrait is of local surgeon, John Crichton, who Crichton Street is named after.

I must admit, I always preferred their modern art collection to their old paintings, but there was one old style artwork I used to enjoy going over to view, this one above by Thomas Faed called "A visit of the patron and patroness to the village school". It was a good laugh seeing all the wee lads mucking about in class behind the backs of the elders. Nothing changes! The pupils were also all dressed in rags, while a mysterious black kid is dressed like a prince, and appears to be the only youngster there with a bit of self esteem.

This painting isn't listed in the catalogue though, because the gallery didn't acquire it until 1975.

I bought this postcard of it probably around the late 70's.

THE GREAT SCOTS MUSICOGRAPHY BOOK

This is a fairly recent book, published in 2002.

Written by Martin C Strong, the chunky encyclopedia does it's best to cover the entire history of Scottish music & performers, ranging from Rabbie Burns to Rave, and every music genre in-between.

All the artists are in alphabetical order, and where possible, gives the town of origin, band line-up and discography.

So for Retro Dundee purposes, I'll just give a couple of wee examples from the 60's, 70's & 80's.

For instance, the obvious big hitters like Average White Band, Michael Marra, Danny Wilson etc get substantial coverage. A few of the smaller bands such as Poor Souls, Rokotto, Scrotum Poles, Wilderness Children and so on, also get a mention.

Although the book is presented in an encyclopedic format, the content isn't too formal, for example, it describes Gerils as sounding like "Sonic Youth having a fight with The Fall!". It's loaded with wee quips like that.

A select few are also represented in caricature, these being the work of Stuart Murray. Above is an excellent one of Billy Mackenzie, showing his look, his whippets and his town.

Check out the top notch book cover!!

An added bonus is that there are also many pages on the output of Scotland's record labels.

John Peel described the book as an "Extraordinary work of scholarship".

Well worth looking out for.

DATA - DHSS INTERVIEW - 1980'S

DATA was the brainchild of Dundee artist, Pete Horobin. It stands for - Daily Active Time Archive. The concept behind it was to document 10 years of his life on a daily basis, from 1st January 1980 to 31st December 1989, using art, films, audio recordings, journals, photography and a few other methods. A rather hefty project to undertake! He was based at 37 Union Street, with his living quarters & studio known as "The Attic", which was also open to like-minded artists who he collaborated with. A couple of examples of DATA output here - The image above is his introduction page from a book published by AAGA Productions called "Views From Urban Dwellings - 2" dated 1983. PH was one of 9 contributors to the book, containing poetry, stories, observations, graphics etc. Below is an audio recording he made during an interview with the DHSS using the name DATA DD1 4BS. A great piece of work using layers of cut up loops, similar in style to Steve Reich. The repetitiveness of certain sections is a good reminder of what it's like signing on over & over again, a situation that feels like you're trapped in a never ending cycle, and one that could possibly drive you crazy!! It lasts 7 minutes, so you've been warned..!!

 

BOOKS FOR GIRLS - CHRISTMAS 1973

This advert for DC Thomson products appeared in the Sunday Post on 16th December 1973.
The four 1974 annuals are - DIANA - BUNTY - MANDY - JUDY.
And I didn't get any of these in my stocking that Christmas!

GARNET WILSON'S MEMORY BOOK - 1970

This is the 500th item posted on Retro Dundee, and with the idea of RD being about looking back at the past, I thought I'd mark the occasion by dipping into a book by Garnet Wilson called "Overspill" which is his second memory book of anecdotes and activity. It came out in 1970 and was printed by Winter's in Dundee. As you can see, mine is a signed copy!

I suppose GW could be seen as being a bit of a bigwig in the city, what with his family's department store G.L. Wilson, his roll in local government, his stint as Lord Provost, was also President of University College, and not to mention being the main player in attracting NCR to Dundee.

He was quite elderly when he did this book but lived to the ripe old age of 90, dying in 1975.

So, nicking one of his quotes from the book, this one above about a persons memory, I'm rather fond of, and kind of suits Retro Dundee.

DON PATERSON - CREATIVE ALL-ROUNDER

Son of Russ Paterson (see previous post), multi-talented Don has been involved in the creative arts straight from leaving school in the 70's when he had a stint working on the Commando comics. From there he embarked on a career in music, and after getting a fair bit of experience playing guitar around the social clubs in Dundee, he went on to lead a trio in the 80's which included Nico Bruce (nephew of Jack). Next up was a group called Restless Natives, a free-improvising collective that included fellow Dundonian, Ken Hyder on drums. Ken, who had his own 70's jazz-folk band, Talisker, still operating, got Don to join them in 1984, with a line-up that included King Crimson violinist, David Cross. When Talisker split a while later, Don formed the successful Celtic-jazz outfit, Lammas, with well known saxophonist Tim Garland, and recorded numerous albums over the next few years with them.
By this time, Don's other talents were flourishing, most notably writing poetry and plays. He has won many important awards for his books of poetry, and his plays have been broadcast on radio as well as performed live on stage, including "Land of Cakes" at Dundee Rep.
And if that wasn't enough, he is also editor for a publishing company, a journalist and teaches at St Andrews University. Phew!!
His own personal website is currently under construction, but you can read about his career in more detail on various literature and poetry related sites on the net, not to mention a general overview available on Wikipedia.
Oh yeah, nearly forgot, add O.B.E. to his name too!!

JIM WILKIE - ACROSS THE GREAT DIVIDE

The cover photo of the 2nd Jim Wilkie book informs you that the content is about the 2 Dundee teams. It see-saws from Dundee FC to Dundee United in equal measure as it delves into the history of both clubs in tandem. Year by year bites of interesting information on and off the field of play. So you get accounts of matches - player performances- transfer details and all the goings on behind the scenes. In between all the retro football facts are occasional reminders of what is happening elsewhere in the world to give you a bit of background knowledge.
The original version came out in 1984 but this one here is the latest revised edition which brings you up to date with events in the new millennium.
Available from most main booksellers.