Jim won’t forget about Paisley...
I hope you have got through the last few weeks of the lockdown unscathed.
We are all following the rules of social distancing but, remember, it is distancing - not social exclusion.
Keep in touch through social media or phone your loved ones.
I’ve seen local musicians play outside their houses to entertain everyone in their street.
One of my friends, Robert Steel, stood at his driveway and played Happy Birthday for his neighbour.
I’ve enjoyed the live or recorded posts on Facebook from Zoe Tait and Cameron McIlwham.
Crawford Carlyle came up trumps with another cracking set of live music last Friday night. Check him out tonight on his Facebook page.
There are ways of making contact and helping people combat the misery of isolation.
Some of my friends have revisited some of their old albums, found new music on YouTube and written new tunes.
Others have been learning to play an instrument.
Following on from the story of The Bungalow last week, there is no doubt the venue played a huge part in the history of punk music in Scotland.
In Paisley, another venue shared the glory for a while.
Do you remember when local authorities across the country got nervous after The Sex Pistols’ infamous and shocking interview on Bill Grundy’s Today went out live at tea-time?
Glasgow District Council put pressure on the owners of The Apollo to cancel The Pistols’ upcoming show, which was two weeks later as part of their Anarchy in The UK tour.
Paisley had no such restrictions and that had an explosive impact on its music scene.
The Silver Thread Hotel benefited immensely from the influx of music fans. During the Glasgow ban, a keeneyed local promoter named Disco Harry spotted an opportunity.
He started to bring bands to Paisley to circumvent the problems of bands not being welcome in Glasgow.
The energy of punk that the Thread generated inspired boyhood friends Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill.
They formed a band called Johnny and The Self Abusers.
The group’s legend far outweighed their music ability.
But the Abusers gave them confidence to write songs and go on stage.
When their reputation reached London, the group attracted some record company attention.
They were finally signed by the indie label Chiswick, run by ex-record store boss Ted Caroll.
Shortly after that they became
Simple Minds.
Local artist Caroline Gormley remembers it well.
She said: “My dad was the head chef at The Silver Thread and catered for the punk bands – he used to sneak people in the back door for free.”
The bands who played there were, The Boomtown Rats, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Buzzcocks, Billy Idol and many more.
Disco Harry had taken a block booking, but it didn’t get renewed and that was the end.
After that, the hotel changed hands a few times and was known as the Ardgowan and Whitehouse at different points.
Latterly, it was transformed into a care home.
It was eventually closed in March 2014 and was later boarded-up. It still lies empty today.
RIP to the punk rock hotel.