Famous Pipe Bands: Red Hackle Pipes & Drums Part 2

The mid-to-late 1950s was a good period for the Red Hackle. The Queen acceded to the throne in 1952 and at the Braemar Gathering where the band was playing, she presented Pipe Major McLeod with the Braemar Gathering Shield in front of the 31,000 people who attended the games that year to celebrate the start of her reign.

In October 1953 the first Red Hackle BBC radio broadcast took place. Things looked up again in 1954, with the band coming second at the Worlds in Aberdeen behind Edinburgh Police and in front of Muirheads. The Drum Corps won the drumming prize under Drum Sergeant A Ross; a title they won again in 1955. 

By John Barbour

In 1957 the band started twice-weekly practices, but despite that, competition performances continued to be poor, by their high standards, for a number of years. In 1963 Pipe Major Angus McLeod resigned and Donald Murray, ex-Pipe Major of Renfrew Pipe Band, took over but, unfortunately, little in the way of improvement occurred. Pipe Major Murray resigned in 1966.

His band is pictured at the top of this article. The personnel are, l -r standing: P/M Donald Murray, ??, Colin Murray, Robert Stewart, Rab Wallace (214BB and not to be confused with PP Editor Robert Wallace, also a 214 man), Peter Shaw (who became band secretary), George Seymour (214 BB and a D/M with Strathclyde Police), ??, Malky McKenzie (and Chairman of the 108 Glasgow BB ex-members association) , Wilson Shaw (Uddingston Strathclyde), Hamish McLachlan, Jimmy Laird, and Dougie Ferguson, Islay, the well-known solo piper. 

Kneeling l -r: Jim McGinn, Eddie Huntly, Jim Stewart, Jackie Millar (214 BB), George Hunter (214 BB), Aitken Allan. 

As big drummer with the Hackle at that time, George Seymour, won Best Grade 1 Bass Drummer at Cowal. In the pipe band fraternity the winner of this award was universally accorded the accolade of World Champion as there was no equivalent recognition given at the Worlds.

A turnaround in the band’s fortunes can be ascribed to the arrival of John Carlton Weatherston MBE BEM as Pipe Major in 1966. He had won the World Pipe Band Championship in 1962 in Belfast as Pipe Major of the 227 Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders Regiment (Territorial Army) Pipe Band.

Things improved quickly under Weatherston. The band enjoyed several years of competition success and foreign travel, and they made a series of ground-breaking recordings. 1968 involved a visit to Venice with the Scotch Malt Whisky Association.

At the 1969 World Championships at Perth, the band ended up in a three-way tie for first place on points, finishing third overall on ensemble preference. 

1970 saw the release of the ‘The Pride of Scotland’ album and in 1971 it was followed up by ‘The Spirit of Scotland’.

In 1972 the band was the Grade 1 Champion of Champions and played at the first CNE Intercontinental Gathering in Toronto. As someone commented at the time: ‘For those of us on the field when the Red Hackle played the Intercontinental March and had tenors beating, we knew pipe bands were going to change.‘ The next year, 1973, the band took first prize at the same contest.

In 1973 the ‘Red Hackle in Concert’ album was released and two years later John Weatherston retired as Pipe Major at the age of 58. He died of cancer on March 2, 2003.

P/M Weatherston was succeeded as Pipe Major by Malky Mackenzie who had been in the band since 1965. He was the Pipe Sergeant under Weatherston.

In 1975 a new drum corps arrived at the Hackle, essentially the Chivas 100 Pipers Whisky Pipe Band drum corps under Norrie Thomson, augmented by some players from the Grade 2 Kilbarchan Pipe Band and elsewhere.

In 1976 the ‘Blend of Red Hackle’ album was released. This shows the Drum Corps giving full vent to their desire to play on any available piece of kit. The Drum Salute on the album was first played live at Bellahouston Academy that year – standing with toes on the edge of the stage juggling sticks…

The cover photo was taken at the Glengoyne Distillery north of Glasgow. The tunes were: SIDE ONE 1.  4/4 MARCHES (with organ accompaniment): Bessie Weatherston, Silver Threads Among the Gold, 79th Highlanders.

2. SELECTION (with fiddle accompaniment): The Massacre Of Glencoe (slow air), The Jolly Beggarman (hornpipe), Loudon’s Woods And Braes (strathspey), O’er The Bows To Ballindalloch (strathspey), Willie Davie (reel), Mollie on the Shore (reel), Murdo’s Wedding (march).

3. DRUM FANFARE 4. MARCH, STRATHSPEY & REEL: Hugh Kennedy, Bogan Lochan, Loch Carron 5. 3/4 MARCHES: (with organ accompaniment) Mary Grant, Kilcreggan, Red Hackle Pipe Band.

SIDE TWO 1. BURNS SELECTIONS – 2/4 MARCHES (with fiddle accompaniment): My Love She’s But a Lassie Yet, A Man’s a Man, Corn Rigs 2 6/8 MARCHES: Greenwood Drive, Mhairi Ban Og, Hills of Glenorchy, Dundee City Police Pipe Band.

3. SLOW AIRS (with organ accompaniment): Dark Island, Mist Covered Mountains 4. SLOW AIR, JIG & HORNPIPE: Isle of Mull, Minnie Hynd, High Level 5. MEDLEY: Triumph Street Pipe Band, Braes o’ Mar, Strathspey King, Traditional Reel, Kelton’s Reel, John Paterson’s Mare, Calum McErlean, Neil MacInnes 6. MODERN SELECTION: Grand Hotel Theme, My Grandfather’s clock.

Evan Jones took over from Norrie Thomson as Drum Sergeant in 1977 and in 1978 Pipe Major Mackenzie led the band to a fourth place finish at the World Championships at Lanark. Here’s a BBC recording, introduced by the late George McIllwham:

Lanark Grade 1: 1 Dysart & Dundonald 2 Strathclyde Police 3 Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia 4. Red Hackle 5 Lothian & Borders Police 6 Ayr Society. Twenty bands competed.

P/M Mackenzie also led the band to an eighth place at the Worlds in Nottingham in 1979. On that occasion Grade 1 experienced – even by the highly variable standards of the time – some distinctly odd judging.

In 1979 the sponsorship from the Red Hackle ceased as all the original corporate supporters of the band were no longer working in the business. A new sponsorship deal was negotiated with the Pernod Ricard company who owned the Clan Campbell whisky brand and the Clan Campbell Pipe Band was born.

The band was introduced to its new sponsor, Paul Ricard, the CEO of the Group, following a board meeting at their Ayrshire bottling plant. Paul Ricard and other executives were gathered on a balcony for drinks. It was a sunny and windy evening. The band marched round a nearby corner and paraded in front of the executive team. It was a huge success!

Eventually the band became the Britoil Pipe Band prior to disbanding in the 1980s.

• Do you have anything to add to this story of the Red Hackle Pipe Band? If so please email pipingpress@gmail.com. A profile of P/M John Weatherston to follow.