Kirkcaldy Bands
The Kirkcaldy Bands of the '80s

Because music like ours shouldn't die

The Gimix

The Brothers Gimix formed the core of the loudest, roughest, most political Punk band in Kirkcaldy.
Margaret Thatcher, watch out!

 

Gimix B&W 1

When we started playing music in Kirkcaldy, the Gimix were already a legend. I used to see their posters around Kirkcaldy High street before I knew how to hold a guitar the right way round.

Gimix Wall Art

Although my memory is really failing me here, I may have seen the Gimix for the first time at a charities show at Balwearie High School, in early 1985.

 

Bill Gimix

And indeed the recently discovered clipping seems to confirm this!

Gimix at school

Gimix george Skittle 1

Having talked it thorough with Ian over the phone at the weekend, I realised that neither us had a clue how long the Gimix had been going by the time we came across them.

Gimix Jamsie Skittle

Bill must have been in his mid '20's when I played in the Surgical Wars with him in 1986, so the Gimix could have been around in the original years of the punk rock explosion, what a thought!

Gimix Poster

I'm grateful to Alan Olding, who was a founder member of the Gimix and played in The Big Now, for this note on the bands beginnings -

Jamsie and JV

"I was a founder member of the Gimix around 1979/80, who for your records originally were called "Necro"....then "The Vizors"....then "The Gimix"

Gimix Extravaganza poster

were:
Bill Gimix, Drums
John Dryborough, Vocals
Andy (Can Can) Donald, Bass (of Fife Flyers fame)
Alan (Oddie) Olding, Guitar

Gimix Bill and Jamsie Skittle 3

This version of the Gimix as far as I can remember never gigged although there were ruff cassette recordings made ...ask Bill aboot the song "Grey Babies for Donald and Sue".....

Gimix party ticket

When I began to know them, which was in mid 2005, the core of The Gimix was Bill Gimix on Bass and Jamsie Gimix on vocals. They used to tell people they were brothers (well, they did have the same second name!), I went through quite a long time actually believing this - they even looked quite similar, but thinking back, I think this was more because they dressed really similarly.

Gimix Fife's number 1 band poster

Bill Gimix has kindly provided me an alternative version of the bands origins -
The Gimix were started By ME BILL GIMIX.......Hence the Name the Gimix!!!! (funnily enough?)....The Beginning.===James Cameron....{real name} and myself were walking from Sound control after i had just Bought my Bass..£175.00 cash!
when i said "now i have the Bass lets form a band" at which point james said "there be Chill! he has a drum kit!!"
So says i "awrite man nice to meet you you got a drum kit?"
Why yes says Chill why?..........Wanna be in a Punk Band? says I
Suppose so chill replies, "me got kit and stiks!"
Groovy i says him gonna sing me on Bass/songwriting/organiser/bottomless pockets and Rover 3.5 V8!!
Wots Band gonna be called? says erstwhile beatkeeper
"The GIMIX of course" says i "as we will be the Ultimate Gimix!!!"
So there you have it..;-
The Gimix were and will always Only Ever BE..====
BUL GIMIX BASS....CHILL COX ,DRUMS.......and J. Cameron,Racket!
I Formed the Band for ONE PURPOSE ,,ONE REASON ONLY.....
THAT is IT!!! *

 

Bill (Back to Camera)

Gimix Benefit gig cutting

In the mid 80's I went to see them often, Davie Wallace played the guitar and Chill was on the drums.

Gimix Bill jamsie george skittle

I have really strong memories of seeing them play at the Abbosthall in September 1985. My friends, the Crucified Brains, were the support act and the MP3's of their performance that night are on this website. The Gimix were quite something, I wish I'd taped that too.

Gimix return for 50p cutting

I can still picture Bill in a huge hooded cloak lunging out of the band area, onto the dance floor, making sweeping circular movements with his bass - scary stuff! The photo below may be from that gig.

Gimix Abbotshall

We really looked up to Gimix, they (especially the brother's Gimix) seemed like genuine punks and (having been only 10 in 1977) I always felt like I was too young to be a genuine punk. Bill and Jamsie had been involved in some radical animal rights campaigning whilst we were still toying with CND - street cred or what?

Gimix Bill Skittle

Jamie and Bill looked the genuine article on stage, Jamise had the cut off black jersey that all the real punks seemed to have, and he had all the right moves, and he sang the songs like he really meant them.

Gimix Skittle Flyer

I may be wrong, but my memory is that the Gimix had been through a lot of guitarists and that Davie Wallace was one of a long line. Johnny Venters (JV) is listed in one of the posters as one of the "original" Gimix, he is also in the pictures with the white suits. We also knew JV well as the guy who worked in Sound Control where we bought our gear, or as much of it as we could ever afford.

Gimix Keeping Time article

When I knew the Gimix, they were getting towards the end of their time as a band and, I think , "Smiley" George McArthur was their guitarist for their last few gigs. Certainly, I remember the article above being about him.

Jamsie and Bill - skittle

As I punk band, I remember they had some idiosyncrasies. Davie had a rhythm guitar style that was quite 1977, but he also tended to enjoy branching out into guitar solo territory.

Chil Gimix

He was a pretty good at these, so that was not really bad thing - but wasn't the guitar solo supposed to go out in Malcolm McClaren's cultural revolution? Bill was also a far better bass player than your average punk rocker. I remember Bill going down to London to meet JJ Burell from the Stranglers! In fact, now I hear the tapes of the Gimix again, Bill sounds like JJ!

Gimix Rock Marathon Cutting

I used to think some of Bill's bass playing was a bit over-elaborated for a punk band, he also had a sound that was more towards the treble end of the scale and used a good few effects. However, now I think about it, these odd things only strengthened the band. It made them more than just identikit punks, and there were plenty of them around. Bill's bass playing on the MP3's below is typical of the more unusual arrangements that band would use. Bill's bass pretty much fits into all the songs where rhythm guitar would normally be, with Davie playing lead guitar on top.

Gimix Chill in White Suit

Bill Gimix was an amazing guy. Looking back on it now with 20 years hindsight, it's obvious that it was people like Bill and Scotty (from Nationwide, then the Ghost Train) who really created and shaped the Kirkcaldy music scene in the mid '80's and made it the special thing that it was.

Gimix 7 peice cutting

We were so young at the time, that I doubt if our music would have ever got further than our bedrooms without people like Bill.

Gimix Animal Aid Flyer

Bill, more than anyone would have a right to claim that he was the main player in the music scene in those days. In 1986 he was in three (yes three!) Kirkcaldy bands.

Gimix bill surprises clipping

He was the bass player of the godfather of all the bands, The Gimix, he was also the bass player of Sphincter Control (along with Johnny Venters) and he was the drummer of the Surgical Wars. He organised "workshops" at the St Clair Tavern, where young bands who couldn't get a gig in their own right could test out their live act and play a few songs.

Bill and Jamsie Skittle 2

Bill supplied the backline and his own disco. These workshop sessions were great. I remember one in early March 1986 where Bill played in every one of his bands on the same night! I was on stage for the very first time at one of these workshops. As the evening began to wear on, and all the acts had been on the stage, various bizarre combinations of bands used to form and play one number - often a blues tune, as they ere easiest for people who had not played together before to play.

Original Gimix are back poster

Having had a traditional hatred of blues, (I especially thought it had no place in any punk / alternative music workshop) when I was part of an improvised band, we just decided "lets make a racket" - you could do that in these days! Glad there is no tape of that one. Bill's punk disco was also seemed to be at every party, he seemed to know everyone and as able to get hold of venues and equipment - no problem.

Gimix Alternative poster

So, having grown into a legend by the mid-80's, my memory is that the Gimix played their last gigs around early 1987. Bill was always talking about moving to London at this time, so that may have brought on a split. There are various pictures of, what could be, their last gig, scattered around this page.

Gimix jamsie and george skittle

The Gimix Microwave set stuck in my mind all these years! I think this must have been 1987 or 1988.They also used to occasionally have three girl backing singers (Suzie,Nicola and Carol) that I remember them using more towards the end.

Gimix with white suits 2

Thanks a lot to Davey Wallace, I've been able to hear the Gimix for the first time in 20 years.

Gimix Strathern poster

Davey says: "It was recorded at an old house attached to a church in a graveyard in the Weymss by a guy called Lou Nesbitt. Myself on guitar, James, Bill and Chill, with Nicola Crighton and her pal."

Gimix live fife press cutting

These recordings have survived pretty well for 20 years - there is some distortion caused by tape crease evident on Track 4, but apart from that the quality is pretty excellent.

Gimix Jamsie and George Skittle 2

Gimix Track 1

Gimix Animal Aid Poster

Gimix Track 2

Gimix George Skittle

Gimix Track3

Gimix plus patro flyer

Gimix Track 4

 

 

Gimix Animal aid bands list

The following tracks are all from a Gimix practice at the Skittle in 1985. The quality is variable, sounds like it was recorded on a ghetto blaster (or equivalent), there is also some distortion due to what sounds like tape crease. - but the tape is great to have all the same. The set they are rehersing sounds pretty much what they played at the Abbotshall when I say them there back in 1985.Thanks to Hunter for getting the tape from Chil (former Gimix Drummer) and Ian for audio restoration and digitisation.

01 Gimix Skittle Track 01

02 Gimix Skittle Track 02

03 Gimix Skittle Track 03

04 Gimix Skittle Track 04

05 Gimix Skittle Track 05

06 Gimix Skittle Track 06

07 Gimix Skittle Track 07

08 Gimix Skittle Track 08

09 Gimix Skittle Track 09

Download all the tracks in one ZIP file:

Gimix Skittle

 

 

* The curator of Kirkcaldy Bands has made one or two edits to this section, to protect the site from any potential lawsuits...........