Stirling Popular Music Archive – Keeping the Stories Alive
The University of Stirling Archives is delighted to be working with local Author/Musician, David Meldrum Lowe, on a new and exciting project to build on his work chronicling the local music scene from the 1950s to the 1980s. David’s book Keeping the Stories Alive and the accompanying research material, collected over a 10-year period for the book, will form the core of the Stirling Popular Music Archive – Keeping the Stories Alive. David’s work will provide the catalyst for the growth of a wider collection of images and memorabilia (both physical and digital) preserving a record of live music in Stirling and the wider Forth Valley area. The Archive will be managed and held by the University of Stirling Archives and will be built upon over time. The project will also focus on the University’s own place within this wider musical history, documenting the bands and artists that played in the Pathfoot building over the years. (May 2025)
SPMA Stories:
As the project progresses we’ll be publishing a range of stories sharing tales from Stirling’s musical history.
In the autumn of 1964, three young women from Stirling and Clackmannanshire formed a folk trio that would soon become a charming fixture in the central Scottish music scene. The Bawbees weren’t just gaining attention for their harmonies and clever lyrics. They were making headlines for a bold decision: a pact to avoid marriage so they wouldn’t break up the band. (Read more…)
To find out more about the project and share your musical memories email us at archives@stir.ac.uk
The Four Heartbeats were a vocal harmony group active in the late 1950s from Cowie and Stirling. Despite their youth, they quickly found success in the Scottish theatre scene, performing in pantomimes, summer shows, and appearing on national television. Their bookings at venues like The Perth Theatre and the Edinburgh Palladium highlight how local talent could access mainstream stages during this time. Their story shows the strong demand for vocal harmony acts in post-war Scottish entertainment.
Formed in Falkirk in 1961, 20th Century Sound grew from several earlier local outfits to become one of the region’s busiest and most in-demand live acts. The group maintained residencies at well-known venues such as Cowdenbeath Palais and the Raith Ballroom in Kirkcaldy, often performing several nights a week. With TV appearances and 7” releases, they exemplify how regional bands could successfully balance popular appeal with steady, working performance schedules in Scotland’s early 1960s music scene.
Friendship was a short-lived but ambitious band based in Falkirk and Denny, and briefly active from 1969-70. They toured extensively across Scotland and even undertook a 16-day tour in Italy under Piper Records, before disbanding soon after signing with Nillson Management. Though their time as a group was brief, members went on to join other notable acts, making Friendship a pivotal moment in the wider story of Central Scotland’s evolving music scene in the early 70s.
Formed in Stirling in the late 1970s, 22 Beaches emerged from the remnants of an earlier group, Alone at Last. The band’s members, many of whom were school friends, combined post-punk and new wave influences with the energy of a local scene. As with many regional acts of the time, 22 Beaches never gained national recognition, but they remain a valuable example of Scotland’s underground music movements during this era for independent bands.
