Cool! A bit different making a church into a condo, but it's interesting! -- Derek's Place

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Subject:

Cool! A bit different making a church into a condo, but it's interesting!

Author:
Tanya

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Date Posted: 07:31:38 11/21/06 Tue
In reply to: faith 's message, "Here's an article that was in the Scotsman and you might find it interesting. Thanx Barb for sending it to me!" on 09:05:01 11/17/06 Fri

>Holy birthplace of the Rollers ready to undergo
>conversion
>JANE BRADLEY
> (jbradley@edinburghnews.com)
>THEY would go on to sell out venues across the world
>and be mobbed by screaming fans wherever they went.
>
>But it all started very differently for the Edinburgh
>boys destined to become international pin-ups as they
>played to a handful of people in a draughty church
>hall.
>
>The band that would become the Bay City Rollers is
>reputed to have first taken to the stage in Dalry
>Church, where band founders Alan and Derek Longmuir
>were regular members of the congregation, in the
>mid-1960s.
>
>Now a little piece of pop history is set for a new
>lease of life as developers plan to turn the 19th
>century landmark into flats.
>
>The church, on Caledonian Road, Dalry, is to be
>transformed into a development of 14 flats by property
>firm Life PD Homes.
>
>The band, who were best known for songs such as "Bye,
>Bye, Baby", are said to have performed for the first
>time in the church between 1965 and 1967 - while the
>Longmuirs attended the church's Sunday school. The
>band started out as The Saxons, but changed their name
>to the Rollers before they were spotted performing in
>an Edinburgh club and propelled to fame. The United
>Reform church, which attracted congregations of
>400-plus at its peak, remained a place of worship
>until the tiny congregation joined Augustine United
>Church on George IV Bridge around 18 months ago after
>the congregation dwindled to fewer than 15.
>
>Doris Caldwell had been a member of the church since
>she was born 71 years ago and remembered well the band
>forming in the mid-1960s. She said the Longmuir
>brothers had been members of the Sunday school and
>played their first concert in the church at a social
>event.
>
>"I didn't go to the concert myself, as I was busy
>looking after my children, but I remember people
>talking about it," she said.
>
>Mrs Caldwell, who now lives in Corstorphine, added:
>"There will probably be more people in the church now
>that they are to be flats than there were in the
>congregation."
>
>Dalry councillor Kingsley Thomas said: "I had never
>heard that the Bay City Rollers had played there - but
>it's quite a piece of history.
>
>"There were some concerns when the planning
>application for the development first went in, but it
>is better to have a use for the building rather than
>leaving it derelict and falling down."
>
>He added: "The church does have a hall attached to it,
>so it is quite likely that they played there."
>
>The flats, which start at �165,000, will keep a number
>of original features of the church, including restored
>church beams, original arched windows and rooms
>created within the old bell tower and spire.
>
>Life PD Homes also completed a development at nearby
>Dalry House earlier this year.
>
>Matthew Gray, director of property for Pagan Osborne,
>said: "A property of this calibre rarely makes an
>appearance on the market. Dalry Church has a rich
>heritage, fulfilling an important role in the local
>community for decades.
>
>"Its history will live on with many period features
>being retained and lovingly restored to create a truly
>unique property in one of Edinburgh's most
>up-and-coming areas."
>
>The facts
>From their humble beginnings in Edinburgh, the Bay
>City Rollers became a global pop phenomenon.
>
>With their clean-cut image and sing-a-long pop songs,
>"Rollermania" gripped the world with fans mimicking
>their distinctive tartan-trimmed outfits. But the
>band's quick rise to fame was followed by an equally
>spectacular fall from grace which has led to legal
>battles over royalty payments.
>
>The band was formed in 1967 by bassist Alan Longmuir
>and his younger brother, Derek, a drummer, as The
>Saxons.
>
>They later chose a less English-sounding name by
>throwing a dart at a map of the United States. The
>dart landed on the map near the community of Bay City,
>Michigan.
>
>They got their big break when record executive Dick
>Leahy spotted them performing at an Edinburgh club,
>and went on to enjoy a string of hits across the world
>including Shang-a-Lang and Bye, Bye, Baby.
>
>The band sold 120 million records, generating income
>worth �5bn in today's money and becoming, at the time,
>the world's biggest band since the Beatles.

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