Why did......

[scotsboy]

Country Dances disappear? No more nights in the Ross Institute Halkirk, Drill Hall Castletown, Canisby, Mey etc? How are the youth of today meant to find out about their country cousins?

[cherokee]

That's a Blast from the Past !!

I mind Country Dances very well indeed !!! Used to wear my "Kicker" boots and jeans with a T-Shirt and with a wee slap o' make-up was all ready to go oot about half past ten !!!!

Colorado - now that was a band, they would have the place absolutlely packed when it was advertised that they were playing; standing room at the door only!!

You'd sort of "mosey" around the hall (both guys and girls!) and "check out the talent". If you "scored", well in my experience - you'd get this shrug of shoulders from said "piece of talent" and a "nod" towards the dance floor - no words were exchanged -you just took it that "he" was interested and that would just make your night!!!

Well, from when I remember it certainly used to make my night,; a "sneck" roond the back o' e' hall and then a massive slap if it got too "frisky" !!

I always mind walking home with my very first "boyfriend" from a Country Dance (we'd only kissed twice in the hall and I was about 15 !!) and we were sat in the kitchen, talking.
Well, my Dad came through the house like a raging tornado and absolutely blasted me for "Taking home a strange man to the house" - poor guy left in such a hurry he must have wondered what had hit him!!! I never did that again !!!


Aye, aye, mind 'at Country Dances wi' much fondest ! ;);)

Gosh simpler times............

[Kodiak]

Colorado now that is going back 30 years. I remember them well as I lived in Golspie then, as they did. They were very good and a pleasure to watch and listen to as they did not only play C&W but Rock n' Roll as well, very versatile they were. :D

[poppett]

Colorado, Rhythm Four, Dynamos showband, Debonaires and the Newmen were all favourites in my dancing days. Thought nothing of traipsing all over the country to a good dance, including Portgower hall when they had a dance til dawn same as Rosealis hall on the black isle. The New Country sound used to travel to Caithness to play Dounreay club in Wick and Viewfirth in Thurso.....they were from Dingwall and the Ross brothers+1 from Perth who came under a different name every time they came north of Golspie were popular too.

Happy days indeed. We had so many dances to choose from we were out Thursday until Sunday nights every weekend.

When I worked in Inverness I came home every night for a fortnight to the dance for the tourists in the Rosebank Hotel. Drove up straight from work and went back to Inverness straight after, catching 40 winks at the big lay by at the top of the Ord. Couldn`t do that after i went to work in Craig Dunain as it was all shifts.............. Yes I did say work, though reading back the post I could have been there as a "case".

Thanks for the memories.

[cherokee]

Colorado now that is going back 30 years. :D


Cheers Kodiak !!!

I'm not quite that old yet ! ;)

What I mind was roughly about 25 years ago...... - Good Grief that sounds just as bad!!!

I'm obviously no longer the "wee bairn" that I want to be :~(

[captain chaos]

Yep... The old Canisbay Hall was always filled to capacity in the early 80s when Colorado played, with Andrew and Har as bouncers at the door.

Now that brings back a few memories....

[Dadie]

Yes
Health and safety have a lot to answer for:(

[carlominno]

And there were the Barn Dances at Thurdistoft, Thura and Georgemas - what a nightmare trying to get a taxi home from them!! No such things as mobile phones and not a phone box for miles................ how did we manage??

[Amy-Winehouse]

And there were the Barn Dances at Thurdistoft, Thura and Georgemas - what a nightmare trying to get a taxi home from them!! No such things as mobile phones and not a phone box for miles................ how did we manage??


The barn dances were great , the older you got the funnier it was watchin all the kids fall about the place absolutely hammered but managing to not spill a drop of their drink & some eejet in the corner with his shirt ripped off his back shouting "Im no givin a :Razz"
There were loads o young lassies in their best gear which by the morning was wrecked coz they got so drunk an fell into gutters(sheep dung ?) or even into ditches!!
I think it all ended when the poor lad from castletown or Thurso died after the Thurdistoft dance (rip) but Health & safety would have definitley finished them off. There was usually a fight between the Wickers & everyone else in some place like Lybster or Thurdistoft- we couldnt go on our own to them places for our own safety [lol] As the years progressed it got better and more relaxed but there were some laughs as Im sure some of you will remember