| Description | Tape 1 Side A JAMES CAY LYON born 10 May 1941 Aberdeen. Background to names. Paternal grandfather director Northern Cooperative Society. Details re him. They lived in Torry. Father missed schooling through bronchitis, worked with NCS, became grocer. He was in Royal Army Medical Corps in Cairo during war, worked with Professor Logie Baird. Later father bought grocery business. He had wanted to be a doctor. Details re his death from Asian flu, attitude of doctor. Mentions other Asian flu deaths in Aberdeen. Father treated for wrong thing. Aged c15 at time. Mother kept shop going. Recalls becoming man of family. Describes father. Recalls his return from war, relationship with him. Maternal grandmother from Yorkshire. Describes her. She was widowed early on, took in lodgers. Recalls first cat's whiskers radio, holidays in Scotland. Describes mother. She wanted to be a schoolteacher. Details re her schooling. She worked at Co-op, did books etc. She had damaged eye through forceps delivery. She had to give up shop at Causewayend because of compulsory purchase order, dual carriageway. She suddenly went blind. Details re her health, plastic heart valve. She lived in sheltered house, never complained. Recalls role of church in childhood, being choirboy in Episcopal Church, cathedral. Details re church, choir activities. Reference to sister. Details re blind organist, Mr Pugh, massed choirs, St Andrew's cathedral, controversy over consecration of bishops, connection between Aberdeen and Connecticut. Father-in-law a Canon in St Andrew's cathedral. Details re friendship with Canon Doug Kennedy from Hertford, Connecticut, cathedral. Still involved with church. Explains. Describes Aberdeen pre-oil, its reputation. Gives example of English ignorance re Scotland.
Tape 1 Side B Further typical example of English ignorance re Scotland in 1970s when working as architect. Reason Aberdeen became oil capital was airport - the oil industry flies everywhere. Otherwise Aberdeen largely unknown. Details re childhood, schooling, love of sport. Great local interest in schoolboy sport. Recalls being goalkeeper, playing against Denis Law, future Scotland player who was never picked up by Aberdeen. When driving taxi as student, worked with Law's brother. Comments on lack of vision, entrepreneurial spirit in Aberdeen when oil came. Mentions rise in house prices after oil came, own lack of foresight, typical of North East character. Aberdonians not mean - examples of charities - but frightened to take a gamble. Reference to 'Scotland the What' show. Compares Aberdonians with Edinburghers, Glasgwegians. After leaving school had no intention to be an architect. Explains inclinations then, involvement in cadets, interest in flying, subjects taken. Applied, when 18, to join Air Force as pilot. Got close but told too big. Recalls disappointment. Had wrong subjects for university. Circumstances leading to decision to take up architecture. Joined Allan, Ross & Allan, Architects, did day-release study. Describes Davy Ross, Schools Architect. Recalls wages, equipment, parsimonious attitude in office. Recalls role as goalie in football, story of life. Explains. Recalls playing rugby. Recalls last game when collarbone broken, move to hockey - easy game, allocation to fullback position, other positions. Was captain of side at School of Architecture. Explains move to goalie position. Mentions 1967 purchase of ruined house in Sutherland, doing it up. Further details re hockey career.
Tape 2 Side A Comments on pattern of never playing (in sport) where wanted to play. Played goalie in Scottish hockey trial. Details. Disappointment at never getting Scottish cap. Mentions Civil Service team. Explains unfair process of choosing Scottish team, disadvantage coming from Aberdeen. Power-base in central belt. Surprised northern North Sea not serviced by centre further south. Effect of Aberdeen having an airport. Comments on role of goalie to prevent disaster, lonely spot being hero or idiot. Explains psychological aspect of game, technique when defending penalty, watching angle of opponent's stick, using peripheral references. Comments on parallel need to relate planes, angles in architecture. Recalls time at Scott Sutherland School of Architecture, not impressed by teachers. Explains. More inspired by Sir Basil Spence, Coventry Cathedral. Reference to Corbusier. Describes vacation study trip to France. Details re arrangements, travel by car, stages of trip, cities visited, buildings photographed, accommodation. Spent week drawing buildings in Loire village. Details re trip to south, seeing Corbusier work etc. Importance of trip to own architectural education. Comments on Aberdeen architecture which is based on granite. Marischal College a freak - wrong way to treat granite. Explains. Comments on granite. Not much in training related to granite. Recalls impression of soul-destroying work in granite quarry. Granite a hard material, has flaws in it. Example of a months-long job ruined by a flaw. Now granite imported from China. Recalls work with Allan, Ross & Allan on schools, fire stations, planning mafia in Aberdeen. No competition. Joined Mackie, Ramsay & Taylor 1966. Details re work with smaller clients, diversification. Recalls university geology building collapse, reason for accident.
Tape 2 Side B Reasons for collapse of university geology building (cont'd), effect of wind, fatalities. First awareness of oil industry was Americans in Aberdeen, ten-gallon hats etc. Recalls changes in harbour, need for boats and storage, new terminology. Jim Simpson bought Number 5 Bond, ex-whisky storage. Describes refurbishing work. He leased areas to BP and others. No planning permission. Reaction of Fire Inspector to building. Recalls meeting an apparition - an American from Louisiana. Recalls free drinks at Marcliffe Hotel from a lonely Texan with a yellow Mustang. Jim Simpson was an in-between man. Everybody came through him. He was a sparky (electrician), got away with murder, had Lincoln Continental car. Recalls Charles Skene, property developer. Details re government improvement grants. Big building boom in Tullos, rush for completion. No decent buildings. Shell buildings a dog's breakfast with different architects etc. Resolution to Number 5 Bond fire prevention problems. Marriage 1965. Details re wife, children, names. Son-in-law works in risk assessment in oil industry. Details. Joined Leo Durnin, Minto & Strachan 1971. Alan Minto went to Houston oil show, arranged jobs to be done for Amoco, Sedco, ODS (Offshore Drilling Services). Details. Mentions PR necessary to get jobs. Explains benefit, use of prefabricated office block construction with Aberdeen weather. Reason for shortage of labour in Aberdeen. Recalls different companies, innovations in glass, double glazing. Comments on modest materials used, speed of erection, attitude to quality. Lot of cowboy contractors. Reaction of a builder, local guy made good, to quality control. Reference to Jimmy Milne, Stewart Milne. Story re George Webster. Compares situation of old, new money people in Aberdeen.
Tape 3 Side A Building boom in Aberdeen (cont'd). Bulk of work was oil-related. Spent 2 years doing harbour development plans for Aberdeen Service Company in Peterhead involving reclamation of 6 acres from sea. Reference to Peterhead Prison. Explains Aberdeen harbour situation pre-oil, changes made. Clash of interest there of different shipping forms, congestion, need for another oil base. Technical details re proposed Peterhead development, role of port, geological tests. Reason for impossibility of gravity feed tanks. Details re proposed transport arrangements, reopening of railway. But problem with no government money in North East. Aberdeen got nothing because it was so prosperous. Describes situation for locals with price rises occurring. Few locals worked offshore at start. Infrastructure in North East suffered badly because of lack of investment. Comments on this and national need for oil. Aberdeen was not a commuting society in own childhood. Describes haphazard changes, indiscriminate house-building, lack of bridges. Explains attitude of Jim Wyness, Lord Provost. Mentions formation of own firm JC Lyon, Architect 1976. Recalls impossibility of getting what German firm Deutag Drilling wanted here. Problems in Aberdeen with getting steel, materials (in spite of Offshore Supplies Office pressure). Recalls packaged buildings sent from US to (wrong) Aberdeen. Details re illness from stress in previous job, establishment of home office, dealings with bank, accountant etc. Got good contract with BJ Hughes. Details re company, competition. Job involved building office, warehouse, pipe yard. 'Mrs Smiths' of Aberdeen missed out on getting architects, builders etc. Explains. Did a lot of small work. Likely life of oil company buildings. Describes problems with old buildings when computers etc came.
Tape 3 Side B Comments on conversion of domestic dwellings into offices, problems with fire exits, car parks, conservation requirements, getting appropriate materials, requirement for granite setts (cassies) etc. Reference to Causewayend. Describes 'upstairs-downstairs' situation in Golden Square etc. Recalls building of Westhill House, open-plan offices for Aberdeenshire Council, St Nicholas House - total disaster. Comments on development of malls. Union Street was wonderful shopping street, before malls developed. Describes teenage Union Street party game. Recalls cinemas in earlier times, cheap Saturday entertainment, George St, tramcars, shop cash-conveyor systems. Recalls former position of Queen Victoria statue, a rendezvous like Monkey House on corner of Union Terrace. First big oil company building built before IT came in, had no false floors. Problems cause by this. After the oil, industrial estates will be knocked down. Mentions book by Dobson & Chapman re master plan for Aberdeen, most not implemented. Details of bad schemes that were followed. Aberdeen poorly served by councillors who took easy option. Comments on compulsory purchasing, compares with situation in China. Too many do-gooders in Aberdeen. Problems with 5-year plans, infrastructure, transport. No help from government. Details re developing own business. Worked came from 'Mrs Smith's, oil industry, airport. Details re airport job, measuring and drawing buildings, subsequent work. Explains administration of Airport. Reference to British Airports Authority. Details re involvement with work on, alterations to new terminal, airport buildings, hangars etc. Recalls builders sailing close to the wind financially. No time, money for decent architecture. Everything cheap, quick. Neither own firm nor other architects made big money. Explains financial situation. Reference to Thatcher, free competition.
Tape 4 Side A Architects' fees (cont'd). Many practices (in Aberdeen) grew considerably. Details. Tremendous turnover of young architects. Describes volatility of profession. Worst clients were committees. Explains. Not aware of work-enabling cliques in architectural field. Joined Aberdeen Conservative Club, Royal Northern University Club for business purposes. Recalls building industry shutting down for July Trades Fortnight, unlike shambles now. Played hockey 45 years, took up golf. Had time for family. Details re home office. Finished with staff of 5. Explains evolution of firm to Lyon & McPherson. Mentions presidency of Aberdeen Society of Architects. Details re home. Recalls Piper Alpha disaster - it was the way industry was going. Explains. Problem with engineers who didn't make good managers/administrators. Recalls involvement with Bristows Helicopters. Details re planning nuclear bunker. Recalls anomalies. Expensive building, never used. Mentions locations of bunkers. Comments on lack of permanent signs of oil industry in Aberdeen. Impact of oil industry on service industries, its dependence on them. Next phase will be cleaning up after (oil/gas) industry. Describes impact of industry in early days and more recently. Recalls visit by Falkland Island people to see impact of industry in Aberdeen. Compares Norwegian approach to oil with Britain's, Shetland's. Money still not spent in Aberdeen, North East. Compares with hockey situation. Retired in 1996. Explains decision. Architecture had lost its sparkle, pals were dying. Travels every year. Recently won competition for holiday in Dubai in Press & Journal. Reference to presidency of Aberdeen Grammar School Former Pupils' Club. Has stopped designing. Explains. Reference to computer design, nonsensical regulations, European Community. Recalls fungus in fingers caused by graphite pencil dust.
|