Jim Crawford (Obituary)
by Jim Berry & John McDonald
B&F August 2007
By Jim Berry
I first met Jim Crawford when I was 16 years old. I had not long started work when I injured my hand. Not being able to work became rather boring so our next door neighbour gave me his old 3-row accordion to keep me amused. Being rather keen on Scottish dance music from an early age, I decided to give it a try and started to teach myself to play. A friend of my father, Davie Reid, heard my playing one night and suggested I might like to meet an accordionist friend of his, namely Jim Crawford, so I was taken to meet Jim and his wife Ella.
Jim asked me to play a few tunes for him and after hearing me play he said he would give me lessons to improve my playing. On that night in 1956 began a friendship that lasted some 50 years. Jim was born near Milnathort on 14th April 1914, the eldest of 9 children. He was born into a musical family, with his father being a versatile musician, who played bagpipes, fiddle and melodeon. Jim’s father kept his melodeon on top of the sideboard and no-one was allowed to touch it when he wasn’t there. But Jim did.
When no-one was around, he would lift the melodeon from the sideboard and soon was able to play a few tunes. However, when his father decided to teach him to play the melodeon, Jim was in a bit of a quandary. He didn’t want his father to find out he had been playing the melodeon already so he had to stumble through a few notes as if he were completely new to the instrument.
Jim left school at 13 years of age to work on a farm, and straight away started to save up so he could buy his own melodeon. When he had enough money, he bought his first melodeon in Kirkcaldy for 19/6d (97p). In 1933, Jim left the land and started work with his father’s haulage business. He worked there for e few years, then joined British Rail, where he was to work until his retirement in 1979. In 1939, he married Ella and went to live in Edentown, near Ladybank. It was during the war years that Jim’s musical career began to take off. He formed his first band at this time and every Saturday night for 5 years they played at Giffordtown Hall, just half a mile from his house. The band proved to be very popular and they were soon playing all over Scotland and parts of England.
In 1954 Jim won the Scottish Accordion Championship at Perth Festival and immediately thereafter passed an audition with his band for the Scottish Dance Music programme on the BBC.
It was a year and a half after this that I met him, and we soon began to have regular meetings at either his house or mine, where we had some great musical sessions.
Like his father before him, Jim was a versatile musician. He played melodeon, 3-row button box and, for a while, a r-row Continental accordion. He was also very ingenious and good with his hands. One example of this ingenuity was seen when I traveled with him to a dance at Friockheim. I was during winter and on the way home Jim said, “I think I’ll switch on the heater”. I didn’t think that a car of that age had a heater, but Jim put his hand under the dashboard and brought it up again, clutching a rag. It turns out that he had built a metal box over the exhaust manifold and attached a pipe to it, which was then fed through the bulkhead and under the dashboard. The rag was the on-off switch; rag in, heater off; rag out, heater on. Clever stuff.
The band broadcast regularly during the 50s and 60s and as Jim grew older he developed another interest, as an artist. He attended art classes given by James Mackintosh Patrick, and subsequently painted some wonderful pictures, one which was of my son Graham at three years old. This held pride of place in our home for many years.
Jim had a serious neck and throat operation a number of years ago which led him to stop playing his Shand Morino. He found it too heavy and uncomfortable on his neck, so he took up the much lighted melodeon once again. This heralded the start of another chapter in his musical career. He became so popular playing his melodeon that he began to be offered Guest Artiste spots at Accordion and fiddle Clubs all over the country. He was often accompanied by his brother John, also a former accordion champion.
At the age of 90, Jim made his first CD, Matured to Perfection. This was recorded after much coaxing and support from Richard and Cathy Allen from Indiana. The CD attracted significant interest, even warranting an appearance on Reporting Scotland, BBC Scotland’s evening news programme. Richard and Cathy were also very kind and helpful to Jim in his final years.
In his last year, Jim became very frail and weak and was admitted to the Adamson Hospital in Cupar a few months ago. Even during his time in hospital, he was still able to play his melodeon on occasion, and to retain a sense of humour. When his nephew Alan came to visit one day he told him that his friend Bruce Lindsay was recovering from a heart bypass operation. “Jings”, said Jim, “That was quick. The Cupar folk will no’ be very pleased though. They’ve been wantin’ a bypass for years!”
Sadly Jim passed away in early June at the age of 93, having been pre-deceased by his wife Ella over 20 years previously. He was a quiet, unassuming man and will be sadly missed by all who knew him. If I hadn’t injured my hand all those years ago, I may not have had the opportunity to meet him. But I’m glad I did.
By John McDonald
On the 14th April, 1914, two major events occurred in Fife; one was a train crash at Burntisland when the overnight express from London crashed into the rear of a goods train, resulting in the death of the driver and fireman of the express and injuring 12 passengers. The other notable event that day was that Jim Crawford was born near Falkland.
Jim was the eldest of a family of 9 and grew up on a farm, where he heard the farm workers going about their daily tasks and whistling of ‘diddling’ Scottish tunes.
Jim started with the melodeon but later progressed to the Shand Morino button-box accordion, and first played in front of an audience when he was around 10 years of age.
He left school when he was 13 and started work on the farm, but when the war broke out in 1939, he left the farm and got a job on the railway with L.N.E.R. at Ladybank. He joined the Home Guard, but as one who kept his thoughts to himself, I don’t think he would ever need to ask ‘Captain Mainwaring’ for ‘permission to speak!’
Jim married Ella in 1939 and they moved to the hamlet of Edentown, near Ladybank, where they spent their lives together.
Jim spent a career as a dance band leader from the war years right through to the mid-70s and played regularly at dances and ceilidhs. Local dances, ceilidhs, Burns Suppers and Harvest Home dances were held regularly in the nearby Giffordtown Hall with Ella and the other ladies providing a vast array of food, including the traditional ‘stovies’. Sadly Ella died in 1985.
During the 50s and 60s, Jim and his band played regularly on the BBC Scottish Home Service for the Scottish Dance Music series.
In 1954, he won the Solo Scottish Championship in the Perth All-Scotland Accordion Championships and, when in his 80s he won the Diatonic Button-key Accordion section at Musselburgh.
Jim, along with his brother John, played regularly at Accordion and Fiddle Clubs, and in recent years they were guests at the Stornoway Club (quite a distance from Edentown, even as the crow flies!)
With the assistance of his many good friends, Jim also attended the local clubs at Newburgh, Collessie, Glenfarg, Ladybank and windygates (Button-Key). He was an Honorary Member of the lattermost club.
He also participated in the annual Sir Jimmy shand Tribute Day concerts at St Andrews, but was unable to attend this year.
Jim was a man who liked everything to be perfect, or to quote his phrase, “It just has to be richt”.
When he was almost 90 years of age, he recorded a CD entitled Matured to Perfection, which says it all!
Jim kept reasonably good health and coped admirably on his own, although he always maintained regular contact with his many close friends and relations.
Sadly, his memory started to deteriorate and he was admitted to the Adamson Hospital in Cupar at the beginning of this year. Anyone visiting Jim would always be entertained by a wee tune on the melodeon and even up to the last few weeks, his music was note perfect. Despite his memory lapses, on a visit at the beginning of April, he clearly remembered his date of birth, his age, and yes, he mentioned the Burntisland train crash!
Jim passed away peacefully in the early hours of Wednesday, 6th June. A large turnout of friends, relatives and musicians paid their last respects at Ladybank Parish Church and thereafter at Kettle Cemetery on Wednesday 13th June.
Jim will be sadly missed by his many relatives, friends and acquaintances, and all who were privileged to know him. Like many others who have passed on in recent years, Jim WILL be remembered – good folk always are!
I first met Jim Crawford when I was 16 years old. I had not long started work when I injured my hand. Not being able to work became rather boring so our next door neighbour gave me his old 3-row accordion to keep me amused. Being rather keen on Scottish dance music from an early age, I decided to give it a try and started to teach myself to play. A friend of my father, Davie Reid, heard my playing one night and suggested I might like to meet an accordionist friend of his, namely Jim Crawford, so I was taken to meet Jim and his wife Ella.
Jim asked me to play a few tunes for him and after hearing me play he said he would give me lessons to improve my playing. On that night in 1956 began a friendship that lasted some 50 years. Jim was born near Milnathort on 14th April 1914, the eldest of 9 children. He was born into a musical family, with his father being a versatile musician, who played bagpipes, fiddle and melodeon. Jim’s father kept his melodeon on top of the sideboard and no-one was allowed to touch it when he wasn’t there. But Jim did.
When no-one was around, he would lift the melodeon from the sideboard and soon was able to play a few tunes. However, when his father decided to teach him to play the melodeon, Jim was in a bit of a quandary. He didn’t want his father to find out he had been playing the melodeon already so he had to stumble through a few notes as if he were completely new to the instrument.
Jim left school at 13 years of age to work on a farm, and straight away started to save up so he could buy his own melodeon. When he had enough money, he bought his first melodeon in Kirkcaldy for 19/6d (97p). In 1933, Jim left the land and started work with his father’s haulage business. He worked there for e few years, then joined British Rail, where he was to work until his retirement in 1979. In 1939, he married Ella and went to live in Edentown, near Ladybank. It was during the war years that Jim’s musical career began to take off. He formed his first band at this time and every Saturday night for 5 years they played at Giffordtown Hall, just half a mile from his house. The band proved to be very popular and they were soon playing all over Scotland and parts of England.
In 1954 Jim won the Scottish Accordion Championship at Perth Festival and immediately thereafter passed an audition with his band for the Scottish Dance Music programme on the BBC.
It was a year and a half after this that I met him, and we soon began to have regular meetings at either his house or mine, where we had some great musical sessions.
Like his father before him, Jim was a versatile musician. He played melodeon, 3-row button box and, for a while, a r-row Continental accordion. He was also very ingenious and good with his hands. One example of this ingenuity was seen when I traveled with him to a dance at Friockheim. I was during winter and on the way home Jim said, “I think I’ll switch on the heater”. I didn’t think that a car of that age had a heater, but Jim put his hand under the dashboard and brought it up again, clutching a rag. It turns out that he had built a metal box over the exhaust manifold and attached a pipe to it, which was then fed through the bulkhead and under the dashboard. The rag was the on-off switch; rag in, heater off; rag out, heater on. Clever stuff.
The band broadcast regularly during the 50s and 60s and as Jim grew older he developed another interest, as an artist. He attended art classes given by James Mackintosh Patrick, and subsequently painted some wonderful pictures, one which was of my son Graham at three years old. This held pride of place in our home for many years.
Jim had a serious neck and throat operation a number of years ago which led him to stop playing his Shand Morino. He found it too heavy and uncomfortable on his neck, so he took up the much lighted melodeon once again. This heralded the start of another chapter in his musical career. He became so popular playing his melodeon that he began to be offered Guest Artiste spots at Accordion and fiddle Clubs all over the country. He was often accompanied by his brother John, also a former accordion champion.
At the age of 90, Jim made his first CD, Matured to Perfection. This was recorded after much coaxing and support from Richard and Cathy Allen from Indiana. The CD attracted significant interest, even warranting an appearance on Reporting Scotland, BBC Scotland’s evening news programme. Richard and Cathy were also very kind and helpful to Jim in his final years.
In his last year, Jim became very frail and weak and was admitted to the Adamson Hospital in Cupar a few months ago. Even during his time in hospital, he was still able to play his melodeon on occasion, and to retain a sense of humour. When his nephew Alan came to visit one day he told him that his friend Bruce Lindsay was recovering from a heart bypass operation. “Jings”, said Jim, “That was quick. The Cupar folk will no’ be very pleased though. They’ve been wantin’ a bypass for years!”
Sadly Jim passed away in early June at the age of 93, having been pre-deceased by his wife Ella over 20 years previously. He was a quiet, unassuming man and will be sadly missed by all who knew him. If I hadn’t injured my hand all those years ago, I may not have had the opportunity to meet him. But I’m glad I did.
By John McDonald
On the 14th April, 1914, two major events occurred in Fife; one was a train crash at Burntisland when the overnight express from London crashed into the rear of a goods train, resulting in the death of the driver and fireman of the express and injuring 12 passengers. The other notable event that day was that Jim Crawford was born near Falkland.
Jim was the eldest of a family of 9 and grew up on a farm, where he heard the farm workers going about their daily tasks and whistling of ‘diddling’ Scottish tunes.
Jim started with the melodeon but later progressed to the Shand Morino button-box accordion, and first played in front of an audience when he was around 10 years of age.
He left school when he was 13 and started work on the farm, but when the war broke out in 1939, he left the farm and got a job on the railway with L.N.E.R. at Ladybank. He joined the Home Guard, but as one who kept his thoughts to himself, I don’t think he would ever need to ask ‘Captain Mainwaring’ for ‘permission to speak!’
Jim married Ella in 1939 and they moved to the hamlet of Edentown, near Ladybank, where they spent their lives together.
Jim spent a career as a dance band leader from the war years right through to the mid-70s and played regularly at dances and ceilidhs. Local dances, ceilidhs, Burns Suppers and Harvest Home dances were held regularly in the nearby Giffordtown Hall with Ella and the other ladies providing a vast array of food, including the traditional ‘stovies’. Sadly Ella died in 1985.
During the 50s and 60s, Jim and his band played regularly on the BBC Scottish Home Service for the Scottish Dance Music series.
In 1954, he won the Solo Scottish Championship in the Perth All-Scotland Accordion Championships and, when in his 80s he won the Diatonic Button-key Accordion section at Musselburgh.
Jim, along with his brother John, played regularly at Accordion and Fiddle Clubs, and in recent years they were guests at the Stornoway Club (quite a distance from Edentown, even as the crow flies!)
With the assistance of his many good friends, Jim also attended the local clubs at Newburgh, Collessie, Glenfarg, Ladybank and windygates (Button-Key). He was an Honorary Member of the lattermost club.
He also participated in the annual Sir Jimmy shand Tribute Day concerts at St Andrews, but was unable to attend this year.
Jim was a man who liked everything to be perfect, or to quote his phrase, “It just has to be richt”.
When he was almost 90 years of age, he recorded a CD entitled Matured to Perfection, which says it all!
Jim kept reasonably good health and coped admirably on his own, although he always maintained regular contact with his many close friends and relations.
Sadly, his memory started to deteriorate and he was admitted to the Adamson Hospital in Cupar at the beginning of this year. Anyone visiting Jim would always be entertained by a wee tune on the melodeon and even up to the last few weeks, his music was note perfect. Despite his memory lapses, on a visit at the beginning of April, he clearly remembered his date of birth, his age, and yes, he mentioned the Burntisland train crash!
Jim passed away peacefully in the early hours of Wednesday, 6th June. A large turnout of friends, relatives and musicians paid their last respects at Ladybank Parish Church and thereafter at Kettle Cemetery on Wednesday 13th June.
Jim will be sadly missed by his many relatives, friends and acquaintances, and all who were privileged to know him. Like many others who have passed on in recent years, Jim WILL be remembered – good folk always are!