THERE was a point in the 1980s when Scotland stomped its Dr Martens all over the charts. With a whiff of hits in the air, record companies dispatched their talent scouts north of the Border to snap up the next slice of Caledonian cool.

It worked. With too many to list here, bands who were all Scottish or had a largely Scottish contingent featured in record collections across the globe – Simple Minds, Deacon Blue, Ultravox, Eurythmics, Wet Wet Wet, Hue and Cry, Altered Images, Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, The Associates, Aztec Camera, Danny Wilson, Del Amitri, Texas, Fairground Attraction, Hipsway, Big Country, The Proclaimers and many others that might not have troubled the Top of the Pops stage, but had a significant impact. Teenage Fanclub, Cocteau Twins … and we’re not even into the 1990s yet.

Outside of that, Scotland has pioneers – from skiffle pioneer Lonnie Donegan, to dance music superstar Calvin Harris (below), to… we could be here all day.

The National: Calvin Harris

We have always celebrated our musical mastery, most recently in 2018 at the National Museum of Scotland, in Rip it Up: The Story of Scottish Pop, but now our significant contribution, which must have more hits per head of population than many others countries, is being lauded in a city that can legitimately claim to be a global centre of pop music.

Opening today at the British Music Experience in Liverpool is Don’t You Forget About Me, an exhibition celebrating all things Scot pop and rock, which runs until the end of September. It’s co-curated by the team at BME and Ronnie Gurr, who was invited by Kevin McManus, head of Unesco City of Music at Culture Liverpool, to bring his knowledge and experience.

A journalist, press officer, A&R man, publisher and music business insider, Gurr is uniquely placed to open up his contacts book and ask Scotland’s best-known musicians if the exhibition can raid wardrobes and memorabilia boxes.

Gurr says the exhibition is on a smaller scale than Rip it Up, but the distance has allowed time to reflect and make some changes. One of those is the name, with Gurr believing that Don’t You Forget About Me is a more positive take than Rip It Up was.

The exhibits range from iconic wardrobe items from everyone from Bay City Roller Eric Faulkner to Biffy Clyro’s Simon Neil, to instruments from Jack Bruce, Stuart Adamson and more, to recordings, posters, flyers and some more unusual but no less iconic items such as Clare Grogan’s shooting script for Gregory’s Girl.

Gurr says: “I’ve built up good relationships with so many people over the years that it was relatively easy to call and ask. For example, I read an interview with Midge Ure where he said he still had the ‘Vienna’ raincoat in the attic somewhere. I could just call him up and the loan agreement happened in a few weeks. We also have the Stratocaster he played at Live Aid and the Ivor Novello Award he won for Do They Know It’s Christmas?”

The National: Sharleen Spiteri, fronts Texas, who will play Delamere Forest in June

The biggest insurance cost has come with the bespoke leather suit made for Sharleen Spiteri’s turn as Elvis in the video for Inner Smile, designed for her by Tom Ford.

One of Gurr’s favourite items is one there was something of a dilemma over – of whether it should be included. Astronaut Laurel Clark was a huge Runrig fan, after hearing the band’s music while she was stationed at Holy Loch.

“Laurel was part of the crew of the Columbia Space Shuttle which, as we know, exploded in 2003,” Gurr says. “She had taken a CD of Runrig’s The Stamping Ground into space with her, and it was recovered among the 50,000 pieces of debris. Her family presented it to the band. Of course, there was a moral dilemma about whether it should be shown, but her family were happy with it being on display. It really it a truly unique piece of not only Scottish music history but history itself.”

The National:

Apart from the exhibition, organisers are putting together a programme of events, Q&As and screenings during the six months of its run. This year, the annual Runrig fan gathering will be held at the BME in August.

The importance of music and what it means to us can never be underestimated, and these items are our new cultural treasures. They evoke memories and signify the key role that music has played in putting Scotland on the global stage.

Gurr has seen that with his own eyes: “When we were doing Rip it Up, I saw women who have handled clothing by historic figures like Mary, Queen of Scots calls and Queen Victoria. They said they were more excited to be dealing with Midge Ure’s raincoat.”

Don’t You Forget About Me opens runs at the British Music Experience in Liverpool’s Cunard Building until September 25. Entry is included in the price of admission. All tickets purchased are valid for 12 months. www.britishmusicexperience.com