John Gordon
(1879-1923)
Best known as the composer of the great 2/4 competition march, Leaving Lunga, John Gordon was butler and piper to Colonel MacDougall of Lunga roughly between 1900 and 1908. While there he received instruction from John MacColl. Though not a top prizewinning piper, he performed regularly at the Oban Balls. He was later caterer to the Officers’ Mess at Stirling Castle.
JM, December 2007
-with notes from ‘Notices of Pipers’ in the ‘Piping Times’ May 1969.
This note came to me in April of 2014 on John Gordon:
Unfortunately I have no photo of John Sinclair Gordon however I have some information about him:
JOHN SINCLAIR GORDON
Born May 2,1879 – in Campeltown, Argyll, Scotland
Died June 4, 1923 – in Bridge of Allan, Scotland
He was a butler and piper at Lunga House for the McDougall family, and before WW1, moved south with Major McDougall to Stirling Castle to join the regiment of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, where he was a soldier and a piper.
He composed some pipe music, the best known of which is “Leaving Lunga”.
My father and his father never got to hear his music and I feel blessed to hear it, sheer Joy and I can share it with my brothers and sister and my children and their children as we live Australia Perth Western Australia.
Bless you and your team and Happy Easter,
Mrs Meagan Marshall