How a chaotic 1977 gig in Glasgow made Paisley the punk capital of Scotland

Daily Record

19-06-2025

Punk fans from across the country will gather in Glasgow on June 21 for the Punk All Dayer, a one-off festival celebrating the city's punk roots
Punk fans from across the country are descending on Glasgow for a riotous day of music as the city gears up to host a one-off celebration of the rebellious spirit that once scandalised it. The Punk All Dayer, taking place on Saturday, June 21, at Bellahouston Park, will launch this year's Glasgow Summer Sessions with a raucous line-up that reads like a who's who of British punk.
Sex Pistols members Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock will take to the stage alongside vocalist Frank Carter, reviving the anarchic energy that first shocked Britain nearly 50 years ago, Scottish Daily Express reports.
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They'll be joined by fellow punk trailblazers The Stranglers, The Undertones, Buzzcocks, Edinburgh's own The Rezillos, and Dunfermline legends Skids. And for once, punks won't need safety pins to brace against the weather, as the forecast promises sunshine.
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But Glasgow's relationship with punk wasn't always so warm. In 1977, a chaotic gig by The Stranglers at the City Halls led to an outright ban on punk concerts by the city council.
Bruce Findlay of Zoom Records recalled the aftermath to BBC Scotland in 2019: 'Suddenly punk is banned in Glasgow, so the centre of the universe for punk rock in Scotland became Paisley.'
The ban forced fans to travel, fuelling the rise of legendary nights at The Bungalow Bar and The Silver Thread Hotel in Paisley. Clare Grogan of Altered Images was among the young punks who made the pilgrimage.
'There was a huge gang of us that would all end up at the same gigs,' she said. 'I actually had no idea they did that [banned punk in Glasgow]. Somebody told me that and I went, is that why we always went to Paisley and Edinburgh to see gigs?'
Glasgow's clampdown on punk began after the Sex Pistols' planned show at the Apollo in December 1976 was axed.
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The cancellation came in the wake of the band's now-infamous appearance on the Bill Grundy show, where they swore on live television and became a national scandal.
Nonetheless, other punk bands continued to play Glasgow, including The Damned and Television, prompting further backlash from officials such as Tory licensing head Bill Aitken.
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When The Stranglers played at the City Halls in June 1977, council representatives attended to keep an eye on proceedings. They got more than they bargained for.
Mid-set, bassist and vocalist JJ Burnel addressed them directly, saying if they didn't like it, 'they could just f**k off.'
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The crowd surged the stage, the band fled, all except drummer Jet Black, who continued hammering his drums through the chaos. The next day, newspapers reported the gig as a 'riot.'
As detailed by music blog The Barley Boat, stewards struggled to restore order. Fans repeatedly rushed the stage, and as the group tore into their final number "Go Buddy Go," they were joined onstage by dancing punters, the line between performer and audience obliterated in true punk fashion.
June 1977 was the movement's peak, with the Sex Pistols releasing "God Save the Queen" as a blistering anti-establishment anthem during the Silver Jubilee.
The band even performed it from a boat on the Thames, sparking nationwide uproar.