Obituary: Joe Gordon, Scottish entertainer who was a stalwart of the White Heather Club

Joe Gordon and Sally Logan in the Harleqin Rooms in the Mount Royal Hotel, Edinburgh

Scottish entertainer Joe Gordon, who has died in Ayr at the age of 85, enjoyed a showbusiness career spanning half a century. He made his name with the Joe Gordon Folk Four in the 1960s before forming a duo with his wife Sally Logan.

After dabbling in traditional jazz and skiffle music, and with encouragement from BBC Scotland’s head of light entertainment Iain MacFadyen, he formed the Joe Gordon Folk Four comprising three guitars and double bass. Their upbeat treatment gave a new lease of life to old Scots favourites such as “The Bonnie Lass o’ Fyvie,” “Johnnie Lad,” and “Ma Big Kilmarnock Bonnet” and several of their records appeared in the Top 20 Scottish sales charts.

Their popularity earned them a resident spot on the weekly BBC TV programme The White Heather Club alongside Andy Stewart, Jimmy Shand’s Band, dancer Dixie Ingram and singers Moira Anderson and James Urquhart. Joe was the last surviving member of the Folk Four

Sally was an established stage singer before they married and teamed up as a duo in 1966. They went on to make more than 400 television appearances singing country flavour songs as well as Scottish material. They were on the bill at two Royal performances attended by the Queen and Princess Margaret and made several overseas tours with Andy Stewart and others. They performed in the United States, including at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Italy, Turkey, Greece and Russia.

They made their first record during a visit to New Zealand and had seven albums to their credit.

Following the decline in live variety entertainment and the closure of theatres in Scotland, Joe and Sally made appearances at churches across Scotland under the title An Evening with Joe Gordon and Sally Logan.

Joe never lost his interest in jazz – his last recordings were of ragtime banjo music – and he performed at the Edinburgh International Jazz Festival for 10 years.

Away from the stage he practised as a clinical psychologist in Glasgow for more than 20 years, giving advice on psychological problems, but kept his profession separate from his showbusiness career.

In retirement the pair lived in Galston, Ayrshire and in January they were among the mourners at the funeral of another stalwart of Scottish entertainment, Tom Alexander, the accordionist half of the Alexander Brothers.

Joe is survived by Sally and their son Scott, who is a noted Scottish dance band member.

Bill Neish