In the 1970s, Scotland’s economy and morale were hugely hit by deindustrialisation, resulting in the closure of several coal mines, factories and shipyards. But against a bleak fiscal backdrop of proliferating strike action and rising unemployment, the country’s music industry thrived, with the internationally-successful Bay City Rollers the chief flyers of the Saltire.
Music certainly provided a welcome outlet for Scotland’s disaffected youth and a number of talented artists emerged during the punk rock boom of 1976, all encouraged by the fleeting subculture’s DIY ethos. And, as our countdown reveals, a plethora of acts left a lasting impression in the ensuing decade.