In the Green Room: The BordererS
After 30 years, globally-renowned band The BordererS are hanging up their kilts with a farewell gig at The Gov. The special show also celebrates 30 years since the SA-made Celtic, rock and roots band started. Founding member Jim Paterson tells us more about their final bow...
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You’re taking to The Gov stage for your 30th anniversary and final show – what should punters expect?
There’s going to be pipe bands, Irish dancers, Scottish dancers and special guests. It’s a bit of a send-off. We’ve got all the original musicians back, too, so that’ll be fun. When you’ve got hundreds of songs and you can only do maybe 30 of them, it’s really hard to know which ones to do – that’ll be the hard part! I met my wife Alex [Alexander], our lead singer, at The Gov. The date we’re performing is actually when we met so it seemed like a good day to finish!
Why was now the right moment to call time on the group?
It just feels right. There are other things I want to do now – I want to set up homes for homeless people and women over 55 or who’ve experienced domestic violence. I’m also working on a movie in Los Angeles with someone who’s business partners with Dave Stewart from the Eurythmics, so I’ll be there.
In your 30 years, have you had any standout moments from playing at The Gov?
Well, Richard Tonkin [The Gov’s former publican] used to be in The BordererS. He was in the band for ages. We used to busk in the front bar of The Gov before The BordererS did any live shows! We love it there.
Finally, we must ask, is there any meaning behind the capital S in your name?
Ha – it’s not about world peace, it’s all about the big S! Our bass player used to work at The Advertiser and he got his graphic designer to design a logo. It was written in such a way that it had a big B and a big S – it looks a bit silly when you write it normally. Go the big S!
See The BordererS final show at The Gov this February 18. Buy tickets here.
