Musician’s record is a tribute to 'hame' town

Selkirk-born Loudon Temple, who served as a journalist all his working life until retiring in 2018, was once offered a management deal with Seventies’ chart toppers, Mud, and, in the mid-Sixties, won a place in the final of the national MacBeat competition, with The Beatles’ producer George Martin as one of the judges.

In recent years he ran a successful booking agency, Brookfield-Knights, based in Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, bringing many bands to the UK to tour, mostly from America, Canada and Ireland.

When the pandemic blew in and forced him to bring those activities to a halt, he went back to writing, and self-published four books. That, he found, led him to start writing songs, and they began to tumble out with such ease that he now has enough for three albums.

His debut, presented as by the artist Cheery Odin, and called Gan Yer Dinger, is all sung in the auld Hawick tongue.

The record, he says, is his personal tribute to both the town and its customs as well as those he got to know and learn about, many of whom were local heroes.

All eighteen tracks have been uploaded to the Bandcamp website where they can be heard and downloaded in digital form. Actual CDs will be in the shops by mid-May.

But the Borderer, who celebrated his 76th birthday last month, has revealed that the follow-up will focus on his recollections and strong connections with the townof his birth, Selkirk, and should be completed later this year.

“I lived in Selkirk for five years until my family relocated to Hawick – a move connected to my dad’s employment,” he said. “Selkirk’s always been ‘hame’ to me.”

Loudon has teamed up with another Souter, Paul Tasker, of the popular band, Doghouse Roses, and they are currently recording the material.

“We’re kindred spirits,” he said, “and both have the same appreciation, and very strong bond to the town.”

The subjects covered are wide-ranging. Some of the tracks already recorded include “Albert O’ The Fleece,” “Gan Teh The Shows,” “Up The Rig Of A Guid Day,” “Everything’s Changed,”

Meanwhile the Cheery Odin debut has been picking up rave reviews and loads of radio plays, Iain Anderson telling listeners to his BBC Radio Scotland show: “This just might take off!”

One of the songs on that collection celebrates famous names such as rugby commentator Bill McLaren, legendary round-the-world yachtsman Chay Blyth and Isle of Man TT champ, Steve Hyslop.

“When you hear pure Hawick spoken, it’s rich in tone and character,” he said.

“It seemed to me that it’s dying off these days as more and more young people want to sound ‘modern’ and not like their parents or grandparents.

“I’ve always been intrigued and even entertained whenever I encountered the real thing in conversation, and I wanted to mark the fact that in Hawick, they spoke differently to those in other Borders towns.”