Strawberry Switchblade.. Billy Sloan's Greatest Scottish Albums - Strawberry Switchblade

For even by the low expectations of breakfast television, Mike Smith’s line of questioning still left a lot to be desired.

“Don’t you get to the point where you think … I wish to God we’d adopted a tracksuit look?” he said.

Perched on the BBC Breakfast Time sofa – alongside co-hosts Selina Scott and Nick Ross – the DJ appeared fixated by Strawberry Switchblade’s distinctive polka dot and bows fashion style.

“It’s almost seems a stupid question to ask, but did you set out to be really different?” he added.

Had Smith done his homework, he’d have realised just how wide of the mark he was.

For several years, Bryson and McDowall had injected some much needed colour into the Glasgow music scene.

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I’d see them hanging out at venues like Maestro’s, Satellite City or The Mars Bar in all their finery, long before they’d even contemplated forming a band. There was nobody else quite like them.

“The look was pretty much right there from the beginning. We had a real aesthetic going,” recalled Jill.

“We’d buy Fifties style dresses with full skirts from second hand shops and they’d often have polka dot designs.

“We also loved Spanish dolls. Rose managed to find a flamenco dress, which looked amazing – I think it was in a child’s size – in Paddy’s Market.

“I’d got a loan of a sewing machine and made my own clothes with fabric bought from Remnant Kings and Mandors, next to Glasgow School of Art.

“By the time we’d decided to form a band, while our look got us noticed, it never detracted from the songs.”

Bryson and McDowall first met at a punk club in the Silver Thread Hotel in Paisley, run by a local DJ called Disco Harry, in 1977.

Soon they were part of a crowd who’d attend early gigs by The Nu Sonics, who became Orange Juice, and TV Art, later known as Josef K.

McDowall was first to lay down a musical marker. In 1981, she formed The Poems who released the single, Achieving Unity on Polka Records with a catalogue number Dot 1.

The local music scene which also included The Pastels, The French Impressionists and Aztec Camera further energised the pair.

“I liked the whole energy and simplicity of punk. It was very accessible and women were more involved in it,” said Jill.

“There were people like The Slits, Siouxsie Sioux, Gaye Advert and Tina Weymouth. Until then it had felt like something that was barred to you as a woman. So that really spoke to me.”

Bryson and McDowall were encouraged to cement their friendship musically.

They formed Strawberry Switchblade with Janice Goodlett on bass and Carole McGowan on drums.

The name came from a fanzine by James Kirk, guitarist with Orange Juice.

Bryson taught herself some basic guitar chords by reading Bert Weedon’s tutorial guide, Play In A Day, first published in 1957.

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“I had no musical experience whatsoever. I’d never played an instrument or attempted to write a song,” revealed Jill.

“To begin with, I’d sing a melody and record it on a cassette tape. Then pass it on to Rose so she could write some lyrics. It was as basic as that.

“We had a ridiculous naivety. But that was what was so great about punk.

“Anybody could get up and play something or shout into a microphone. You didn’t have to spend years learning an instrument.”

Strawberry Switchblade made their debut at The Spaghetti Factory, just before Christmas ’81.

“We booked the gig then thought, I suppose we’d better write some songs,” said Jill.

“We had six new songs by the time we played. There was heavy snow and nobody could get out of the house. So we ended up playing to the members of Orange Juice who’d turned up to support us, and the restaurant staff.

“I was really nervous, but just the fact you were on a wee stage singing through a microphone with a guitar plugged in felt great.”

During the next 12 months, they recorded demos at The Hellfire Club and gigged as often as possible, picking up positive reviews in the music press. Then they got their first big break.

The line-up, now trimmed to a duo after Goodlett and McGowan had dropped out, were offered a coveted John Peel Session on Radio One.

“I don’t think he’d even heard our demo,” recalled Jill.

“Suddenly we were in this proper 24-track studio instead of the little four track we’d been used to at the Hellfire. It was amazing even though you had to record the songs really quickly.

“We also taped a session for David Jensen three days later.”

Bill Drummond, the Scots pop maverick behind The Teardrop Explodes, took over their management.

Their impressive first single, Trees And Flowers was released on 92 Happy Customers, a larun by Will Sergeant of Echo And The Bunnymen, in July 1983.

Drummond later signed the group to Korova Records and work began on their debut album with producer David Motion in London.

The 11-track LP included the single Since Yesterday – which reached No. 5 in the UK charts - and key songs such as 10 James Orr Street and Who Knows What Love Is?

Reaction was instant. They were cover stars in Smash Hits and embraced in Japan, where female fans identified with their unique style.

But non-stop demands from their record label to fulfil promo commitments proved to be their undoing.

They entered an exhausting period later described by Bryson as when “everything music and business wise went drastically wrong”.

“Success happened so quickly and it puts a massive amount of pressure on you,” admitted Jill.

“I guess the record label wanted a return for their investment, shall we say. So you began to feel like a commodity. I struggled with that.

“If you go into it with the attitude, I’m gonna be in showbusiness and I’ll do whatever it takes … great. But we weren’t like that. We both had more of an indie sensibility.”

Two more singles – Let Her Go and Who Knows What Love Is? – failed to chart.

A spirited cover of Jolene – Dolly Parton’s classic 1973 hit – peaked at a lowly No. 53.

For a 12-month period Bryson and McDowall were arguably the hardest working women in pop, but a punishing schedule took its toll.

“The things the label were asking us to do became more difficult,” revealed Jill.

“You weren’t allowed to say no if we didn’t want to be interviewed by Playboy magazine.

“It was also really weird to be pushed into doing stuff like The Rod Hull and Emu Show. It didn’t seem the right thing for us.

“There wasn’t any nurturing being done. It was more a case of, get the hits and make loads of

money. It didn’t feel like there was any consideration for us.

“They were constantly trying to iron us out or soften us up to make us more palatable.

“Bands like The Cocteau Twins or The Cure weren’t being pushed to compromise. But all they wanted to do with us was get rid of our rough edges and put us in a category we didn’t belong in.”

Not surprisingly, their friendship also suffered.

“Rose and I didn’t really know each other that well, so it did affect our relationship,” said Jill.

“It got to the point where were weren’t communicating properly. It wasn’t working. “Neither of us was happy. And nothing is worth that amount of pain.”

Strawberry Switchblade split in 1986. Bryson carried on for a time but realised it wasn’t for her.

“I did a few gigs but couldn’t really hack it. I didn’t want to do it on my own either … I wanted to be part of something,” she said.

“I also didn’t enjoy being a front person. The music industry was a little too cut-throat for me.”

But the music of Strawberry Switchblade lives on.

Next year, Domino Records will release an album featuring a string of previously unreleased tracks with their full approval.

“Strawberry Switchblade was a great time in my life. Despite all the difficulties, I loved it,” said Jill.

“So the general memory I have of the group is a very positive one. I’m proud of what we achieved.”

JILL Bryson confronted her greatest fear on the first ever song written by the group.

Trees And Flowers, was inspired by her years spent suffering from agoraphobia … an anxiety disorder triggered by open spaces.

It reached No. 3 on the indie charts and John Peel listed it in his Festive 50.

“I found the lyrics really difficult. It didn’t come easy. But I thought, I can only write about what I know,” revealed Jill.

“It didn’t conquer my condition. It was always there. I missed out on doing loads of stuff because of it.

“I enjoyed performing even though it was terrifying at times. The condition carried on until I was hitting 40. So it was a miracle I could do anything at all with the band.”

Their biggest hit, Since Yesterday, was another song with a serious message.

“Rose says it’s about nuclear war. I really liked the idea you could have a cheery pop song - a Top 5 hit - which wasn’t just about love,” said Jill.

They promoted Since Yesterday with a surprise appearance on Noel Edmonds’ Live Live Christmas Breakfast Show, one of the most watched programmes of the festive schedule.

“The record company asked us to work on Christmas morning. They told us it would be good for the single,” recalled Jill.

“The show came live from the top of the British Telecom Tower. We later went to Charing Cross Hospital with Kim Wilde to visit the patients. I think we scared the children. It was hilarious.”

Strawberry Switchblade peaked at No. 25 but a follow-up album failed to materialise and the band split.

“We didn’t have another hit single, so that put pressure on us to come up with more songs,” said Jill.

“By that point we weren’t really writing together.

“We did start working on a second album but things had become very difficult. They said why don’t we have one side with Rose on it and you on the other?

“What was the point of that? That’s not a band. I wasn’t interested. If I’d wanted to be a solo artist I’d have done it.

“You had to be strong as a unit to put up with the pressures from a major label. You need to be united. It all just fell apart. It was very sad.”

* THE Billy Sloan Show is on BBC Radio Scotland every Saturday at 10pm.