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''''The Beatstalkers''' was a [[Glasgow]] beat group of the late 1960s. The Beatstalkers were sometimes billed as "the Scottish Beatles",<ref>Mike Read ''Major to Minor: The Rise and Fall of the Songwriter'' 2000- Page 181 "Bill knew most people on the thriving group scene in Scotland, including Glasgow outfit The Beatstalkers (who were usually billed as "the Scottish Beatles") and fellow Glaswegian Tommy Scott (born Tommy Kilpatrick in 1940), who was ..."</ref><ref>Simon Berry, Hamish Whyte Glasgow Observed - 0859761894 1987 Page 250 Beatstalkers</ref> and like other Scottish beat groups The Poets, The Athenians and The Pathfinders, specialised in covers of US hits.<ref>Paul H. Scott - Scotland: A Concise Cultural History -1993 Page 192 Scottish beat groups like The Poets, The Beatstalkers, The Athenians and The Pathfinders, specialised in covers of US ..."</ref> ==History== In 1962 [[Alan Mair]] and Eddie Campbell formed the Glasgow band with a lineup included Davie Lennox on vocals, Eddie Campbell on guitar, Alan Mair on bass and ‘Tudge’ Williamson on drums (replaced by [[Jeff Allen]]). Later Ronnie Smith joined the group on rhythm guitar.<ref>{{citation |url=http://tartanrocker.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-beatstalkers.html|title=The Beatstalkers|accessdate=26 August 2015}}</ref> Under the management of Joe Gaffney, the band went on to become Scotland's "top group" at the time. The group came to the attention of [[Decca Records]] in London after a near riot at a free concert in [[George Square, Glasgow]].<ref>Geoff Holder ''The Little Book of Glasgow'' 2011 0750953950 "In 1965 The Beatstalkers, performing a free show in George Square, were overwhelmed by the crowd numbers and two of ..."</ref> However the band were unable to translate success in Scotland into success in England.<ref>Hamilton Harvey ''Franz Ferdinand: And the Pop Renaissance'' 2005 Page 60 1905287003 - "The following day, the Beatstalkers were all over the papers and the near disaster turned into a publicity triumph. Signed to Decca, the band now faced the same challenge as so many other Glasgow bands, trying to translate local acclaim into ..."</ref><ref>Martin Kielty ''SAHB Story: The Tale of The Sensational Alex Harvey Band'' 1906476764 Page 21 "Whereas the Beatstalkers, who were arguably more popular in Glasgow, couldn't make it at all down south."</ref> They decided to split in 1969 after their van was stolen with all their equipment in it. [[Alan Mair]] went on to play with [[The Only Ones]] and drummer [[Jeff Allen]] played with [[East of Eden (band)|East of Eden]].<ref>Nicholas Rombes A Cultural Dictionary of Punk: 1974-1982 1441105050 2010 Perrett had been in a group called England's Glory (the great song “Peter and the Pets” is from that era), and bassist Alan Mair, from Glasgow, had been in the Beatstalkers. [[Mike Kellie]] was in Spooky Tooth, while John Perry played in the Rats.</ref> The Beatstalkers played a reunion concert On 23 December 2005 in Glasgow.<ref name=beat>{{citation |url= http://www.rockingscots.co.uk/bstalk.htm|title=The Beatstalkers|accessdate=26 August 2015}}</ref> ==Discography== everybody's talkin' bout my baby / mr disappointed *"Left Right Left" / "You'd Better Get A Better Hold On", both written by [[Tommy Scott (Scottish musician)|Tommy Scott]] 1966 a love like yours / base line my one chance to make it / ain't no soul left in these old shoes silver treetop school for boys / sugar chocolate machine rain coloured roses / everything is you little boy / when im five *"[[Silver Tree Top School for Boys]]", with writer David Bowie on backing vocals 1967 ==References== {{reflist}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Beatstalkers, The}} [[Category:Scottish musical groups]] {{Band-stub}}'