Eales, Alison Caroline (2017) Bunting and blues: A critical history of Glasgow International Jazz

295 Pages·2017·2.59 MB·English

Eales, Alison Caroline (2017) Bunting and blues: A critical history of
Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1987-2015. PhD thesis.

http://theses.gla.ac.uk/8026/

Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author
A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior
permission or charge
This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining
permission in writing from the author
The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or
medium without the formal permission of the author
When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title,
awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given

Enlighten:Theses
http://theses.gla.ac.uk/
[email protected]
Bunting and Blues:
A critical history of Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1987-2015

Alison Caroline Eales, MLitt MA
Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements
for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy

School of Culture and Creative Studies
College of Arts
University of Glasgow

© Alison Caroline Eales, March 2017
Abstract
Glasgow International Jazz Festival first took place in 1987 and has run every year
since, making it the city's longest-running cultural event. One of the company's
stated aims at its inception was to 'establish [Glasgow] as a major European jazz
centre' (Williams, 1986b).

Through a single, historical case study, the thesis attempts first to ascertain the
extent to which this aim has been achieved, and second to determine the enabling
and limiting factors acting upon the Festival in its attempts to effect change in its
host city. The thesis finds that urban music festivals can, under the right
circumstances, contribute to positive and lasting changes to the environment in
which they exist. In the case of Glasgow Jazz Festival, this is evident in terms of
both the physical infrastructure and educational opportunities which would be
unlikely to exist today had the Festival not been their champion. A festival's ability
to effect such change, however, can be severely curtailed by fluctuating levels of
commitment from local and national authorities.

2
Contents
List of Figures ................................................................................................... 5
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................. 6
Author's Declaration ............................................................................................ 7
Abbreviations used in this thesis ............................................................................ 8
Chapter One: Introduction .................................................................................... 9
About the Festival ......................................................................................... 11
The Festival's relationships with Glasgow ............................................................ 15
Orientation and scope of this study .................................................................... 21
Structure of this thesis ................................................................................... 23
Chapter Two: Literature Review .......................................................................... 27
Definitions: Glasgow ....................................................................................... 27
Definitions: Jazz ........................................................................................... 28
Definitions: Festival ....................................................................................... 30
Festival studies ............................................................................................. 31
Research questions ........................................................................................ 41
Chapter Three: Research Methods ........................................................................ 45
Considerations of research ethics and objectivity .................................................. 45
Archive study ............................................................................................... 46
Interviews ................................................................................................... 54
Participant observation at Glasgow Jazz Festival ................................................... 55
Participant observation at other jazz festivals ...................................................... 58
Application of research methods to the research questions ...................................... 59
Chapter Four: The Way Up (1986-1993) ................................................................. 63
Creating a new future for Glasgow ..................................................................... 64
Jazz in Glasgow ............................................................................................ 72
Establishing Glasgow Jazz Festival: who, when and why .......................................... 78
Jazz festivals in the UK ................................................................................... 83
Glasgow Jazz Festival is born ........................................................................... 86
Developments relating to live jazz in Scotland ...................................................... 92
GIJF as part of Glasgow's tourist proposition ........................................................ 100
Programming ............................................................................................... 107
Post-1990 ................................................................................................... 112
GIJF's Merchant City land grab ......................................................................... 119
Conclusion .................................................................................................. 134
Chapter Five: Money Jungle (1994-2001) .............................................................. 137
Live music in Glasgow: changes to festivals, venues and legislation ........................... 137
Financial challenges ...................................................................................... 144
Reducing GIJF's expenditure ........................................................................... 148
Increasing GIJF's income ................................................................................ 154
3
Programming ............................................................................................... 164
A new fight for The Old Fruitmarket ................................................................. 173
Conclusion .................................................................................................. 183
Chapter Six: Change of the Century (2002-2006) ..................................................... 185
Developments in Scotland ............................................................................... 185
Venues ...................................................................................................... 188
The RBS era: taking George Square ................................................................... 191
The post-RBS era .......................................................................................... 199
Visions for GIJF ............................................................................................ 202
Conclusion .................................................................................................. 209
Chapter Seven: The Third Decade (2007-2015) ....................................................... 213
Developments in Glasgow and Edinburgh ............................................................ 213
Further blues .............................................................................................. 216
(International) Jazz Festival ............................................................................ 221
(International) Jazz (etc.) Festival .................................................................... 225
Whens and wheres ........................................................................................ 228
Conclusion .................................................................................................. 231
Chapter Eight: Conclusion .................................................................................. 234
Revisiting the research questions ..................................................................... 234
Places and spaces ......................................................................................... 238
Implications for future research ....................................................................... 241
Appendix A: The Composer-in-Residence initiative .................................................. 243
Appendix B: A diary of live jazz in Glasgow, 2013 .................................................... 246
2013-09-07, Ubiquitous Chip, Ashton Lane (West End) ........................................... 246
2013-10-12, Avant Garde, King Street (Merchant City) ........................................... 247
2013-10-19, Halt Bar, Woodlands Road (West End) ............................................... 248
2013-10-20, Three Judges, Byres Road (West End) ............................................... 249
2013-10-21, St Enoch Centre, Argyle Street (City Centre) ....................................... 249
2013-11-03, The 78, Kelvinhaugh Street (West End) ............................................. 251
2013-11-10, Òran Mór, Byres Road (West End) ..................................................... 252
2013-12-17, Slouch, Bath Street (City Centre) ..................................................... 252
Bibliography ................................................................................................... 254
Interviews ..................................................................................................... 294
4
List of Figures
Fig 1: Council tax collection rates in Glasgow and surrounding local authority areas, 2011-2016
(Anon. 2016b) .................................................................................................. 27
Fig 2: 'Glasgow's Miles Better' mural, Sauchiehall Lane, Glasgow (photo credit: Alison Eales) .... 68
Fig 3: Scotland-based repeat performers by gender and primary instrument, 1987-2011 ........ 111
Fig 4: Venues used by GIJF in 1991 ........................................................................ 132
Fig 5: Venues used by GIJF in 1995 ........................................................................ 133
Fig 6: Expenditure on Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1997-1998 (Rodger, 2000) ........... 150
Fig 7: Income from Glasgow International Jazz Festival, 1997-1998 (ibid) .......................... 151
Fig 8: Financial position of GIJF Ltd., 1997-1998 (ibid) ................................................. 151
Fig 9: Box office receipts compared with number of events, 1999-2005 ............................ 198
Fig 10: Locations of O2 ABC and the City Halls / Old Fruitmarket complex ......................... 233

5
Acknowledgements
Sincere thanks are due to Robert Anderson, Claire Armstrong, Tom Attah, Thelma
Barron, Peter Booth, Matt Brennan, Keith Bruce, Paige Campbell, James Clark,
Martin Cloonan, Katy Cooper, Ailsa Crum, John Cumming, Stephen Duffy, Joan,
Geoff, Steve and Beth Eales, George Falconer, Eddie Friel, Heather Gibson, Rachel
Grimes-Carmichael, Stuart Gulliver, Iain Hamilton, Michael Harker, Björn Heile,
Iain Hepburn, Mollie Hinshelwood, Lauren Hulstedt, Steve Inch, Nod Knowles, Pat
Lally, James Livingston, Keith Loxam, Heather Macintosh, Sheena McDonald,
Jennifer McGlone, David McGuinness, George McKay, Louise Mitchell, Richard
Muir, Jonathan Muirhead, Neil Murray, Alison Mussett, Amy Pearce, Cathie Rae,
Mark Robb, Adam Robinson, Janis Roddie, Jill Rodger, Philip Schlesinger, Sebastian
Scotney, Adam Scott, Ronnie Scott (no relation), Ian Shaw, Grahame Skinner, Bill
Sweeney, Emma Webster, Adam Welsh, Jonathan White, John Williamson, Dino
Willox and Raymond Wilson. Your help and patience will not be forgotten.

I am also indebted to the Arts and Humanities Research Council, who have
supported me in my Masters and Doctoral study.
6
Author's Declaration
I declare that, except where explicit reference is made to the contribution of
others, this dissertation is the result of my own work and has not been submitted
for any other degree at the University of Glasgow or any other institution.

Signature:

Printed name: Alison Eales

7
Abbreviations used in this thesis
GCC Glasgow City Council
GDA Glasgow Development Agency
GDC Glasgow District Council
GGTB Greater Glasgow Tourist Board
GIJF Glasgow International Jazz Festival Ltd. (i.e. the company; the event
itself is referred to as 'the Festival' throughout)
MU Musicians' Union
NYJOS National Youth Jazz Orchestra of Scotland
RBS Royal Bank of Scotland
SAC Scottish Arts Council
SDA Scottish Development Agency
SJF Scottish Jazz Federation
SJN Scottish Jazz Network
SRC Strathclyde Regional Council
SYJO Strathclyde Youth Jazz Orchestra
TSYJO Tommy Smith Youth Jazz Orchestra

8
Chapter One: Introduction
Glasgow is Scotland's most populous city. Built on the banks of the River Clyde, it
was a powerhouse of Victorian trade and manufacturing. Its shipbuilding industry,
in particular, gave it a powerful reputation as the 'second city of the [British]
Empire'. By the 1970s, however, unemployment and its associated social
challenges were on the rise, and the city gained a reputation as being dirty and
unsafe. Eddie Friel became the first Chair of Greater Glasgow Tourist Board in
1983. At that time, as he told me, the word 'Glasgow' did not appear in any
literature produced by the Scottish Tourist Board. He elaborated on the impact
this had on the people of the city:

Glaswegians were people who built great liners that sailed the
world's oceans, and they believed that to be Clyde-built was a mark
of excellence, and they were very, very proud of that history and
that heritage. To suddenly lose all of that industry … eventually
that sense of civic pride and self-confidence was gone, and there
wasn't any kind of light at the end of the tunnel - other than the
oncoming train! And the difficulty was, how do you reinvent this
place, and give it back to its citizens first, as a place that they can
be proud of again, rather than apologise for, and give it back to
Scotland as a great Scottish city, and then to Europe as a great
European city, and eventually once more to build it into a great,
global trading city. That was the challenge we faced, like any other
post-industrial city in Europe, or like any rust belt city in the United
States. (Friel, 2015)

9