In many areas worldwide the mention of the Mafia strikes fear and unease. However one exception to this is the West Glasgow suburb of Milngavie where the same word sparks a very happy reaction. This is because in that area the initials M.A.F.I.A. stood for the Milngavie Accordion, Fiddle and Instrumental Associates which was a thriving Box and Fiddle Club for about 30 years. It was founded by the well-known Milngavie fiddler and hairdresser Bobby Harvey.
The first Accordion Club was started in ‘The Hole in the Wa’ in Dumfries in 1965 by the accordionist Max Houliston. He and Bobby were close musical associates and after playing together in a touring show in England Max asked Bobby to be his first fiddle guest at ‘The Hole in the Wa’. This inspired Bobby to start his own Club in 1968 (making it one of the earliest). The opening meeting was held in the rather small upstairs room in the Milngavie ‘Black Bull Hotel’ with Bobby’s fellow musicians Lex Keith, John Carmichael and Ivor Britton assisting. Not surprisingly the guest musician for the evening was Max Houliston.
The popularity of the Club went sky high with musician and listeners coming considerable distances and with the number attending peaking at around the 140 mark. This necessitated moving downstairs to the major function suite in the ‘Black Bull’ and later to the Ellan Gowan Masonic Hall. A shield was presented annually to the most improved player of the year.
The Mafia’s success had a down side in that a number of the musicians attending started their own local Accordion and Fiddle Clubs which saw a decline in numbers at Milngavie. By the 90’s the membership had dropped to an unacceptable level which made the financing of guest artistes a major problem, so sadly the Club had to be closed down . During it’s 30 year span it had several presidents the original one, Bobby Harvey, being known as ‘the Godfather’.
Norrie Williams (in conjunction with Bobby Harvey, Ivor Britton and Max Houliston)
14/02/2013
The first Accordion Club was started in ‘The Hole in the Wa’ in Dumfries in 1965 by the accordionist Max Houliston. He and Bobby were close musical associates and after playing together in a touring show in England Max asked Bobby to be his first fiddle guest at ‘The Hole in the Wa’. This inspired Bobby to start his own Club in 1968 (making it one of the earliest). The opening meeting was held in the rather small upstairs room in the Milngavie ‘Black Bull Hotel’ with Bobby’s fellow musicians Lex Keith, John Carmichael and Ivor Britton assisting. Not surprisingly the guest musician for the evening was Max Houliston.
The popularity of the Club went sky high with musician and listeners coming considerable distances and with the number attending peaking at around the 140 mark. This necessitated moving downstairs to the major function suite in the ‘Black Bull’ and later to the Ellan Gowan Masonic Hall. A shield was presented annually to the most improved player of the year.
The Mafia’s success had a down side in that a number of the musicians attending started their own local Accordion and Fiddle Clubs which saw a decline in numbers at Milngavie. By the 90’s the membership had dropped to an unacceptable level which made the financing of guest artistes a major problem, so sadly the Club had to be closed down . During it’s 30 year span it had several presidents the original one, Bobby Harvey, being known as ‘the Godfather’.
Norrie Williams (in conjunction with Bobby Harvey, Ivor Britton and Max Houliston)
14/02/2013