BARRY GORDON recalls the glory days of the early 1980s for Donald Mackenzie and his fellow Caithness breakdancers, and catches up on where the scene is going now.

WHEN IT comes to locating breakdance champions, one of the last places you might think to look is Caithness. Back in the 80s, the American dance craze swept the nation, as kids all across the country popped, locked and spun on their collective backs to the hip hop sounds it was inspired by.

However, breakdancing didnt exactly bypass Caithness, either; between the years 1980 and 1987, the county uncovered over a dozen groups and over a hundred solo dancers who would go on to become the undisputed kings of Scottish breakdancing.

Donald Mackenzie teaching youngsters in Glasgow today

Case in point: Donald Mackenzie. A professional breakdancer and martial arts master, the Thurso athlete was an integral part of Thurso breakdance team The Egyptian Warriors, a group who won over a hundred competitions.

Now approaching his 40th birthday, Mackenzie is still breakdancing; and, with a reunion of old-school breakdancers from Caithness getting together again in the summer, Mackenzie was in upbeat mood when I asked him about breakdancing, which he said was a way of life for many youngsters growing up in Caithness during the 80s.

BARRY GORDON: So, when did breakdancing arrive in Caithness? And how did you become a part of it?

DONALD MACKENZIE: For me, it was when I was 10-years-old in 1980. I was up at the American Base – Id never even heard of breakdancing at this point – and met two guys, a black American called Melvin, and a Hispanic kid called Rueben, who showed me an arm-wave. I instantly thought ‘whoa. It looked like they were double-jointed, it was totally alien to me.

I was instantly hooked on it, and before long Id figured out how to do a hand-spin. I showed it to some of my friends who were also messing around with breakin, and we soon realised we could do similar moves, back-spins and the like. It sort of progressed from there, and in 1981 we formed The Body Mechanics at the Boys Brigade hall. There, I met Willie Miller and we soon formed The Egyptian Warriors.

BARRY GORDON: With Ali Elder, Donnie Williamson, and Robert Bell recruited for the group, The Egyptian Warriors soon became one of the most visible groups in Thurso, dancing on the streets as well as at competitions all around the country. Soon everyone was joining in – groups such as Rock City, The Mini Breakers and the Atomic City Breakers joining up alongside Wick teams to forge a vibrant scene. According to Mackenzie, a lot of the groups were ahead of their time.

DONALD MACKENZIE: Thanks to the Americans influence on our town, some of the first breakdancers in Britain at that time were from Thurso. We really were ahead of our time, coming up with moves that most people hadnt even seen or heard yet. And because there were so few moves to do, you had to innovate and we came up with some awesome routines. Then, before you knew it we were all over Scotland dancing, winning every competition we entered – except for one in Aviemore, which, one of the female judges later told us was rigged.

Donald Mackenzie (in the hood) is part of the breakdance scene in Thurso during the 1980s

We even went to the national championships in Glasgow and we beat everyone put in front of us. We were that good. Back then, breakdancing was all we ever done; we were practicing four or five hours a day: downtown, at the tennis courts, the mall – anywhere where we could get together and dance. Whenever we arrived at a competition, wed have loads of screaming girls waiting for us. It was like being a pop star.

BARRY GORDON: Not everyone was happy to see the breakdancers, though – it may have taken the kids off street corners, but it wasnt always easy when people criticised or ran the dancers down for nothing more than expressing their creativity.

DONALD MACKENZIE: Like a lot of other breakdancers, I took a lot of stick because we liked dancing. Coming from a small town, there were lots of groups – we were in with the punks and those who were into BMX bikes, but constantly we were told nothing good would come of it, that we would achieve nothing. But we had real camaraderie, a real sense of spirit with one another.

I mean, I love Thurso, but it can be a place that crushes creativity. In fact, Ive never come across a place that has so many artistic people, yet because theres so few outlets for creativity, and because people there were and are – so actively discouraged, it can either stop you or push you on. I had a hard upbringing, a difficult start to life, and it could have been easy to end up being an idiot, a waster who didnt do anything with their life. But we didnt care much about anything anyone said about us, that it wasnt cool to be a dancer from Caithness.

In fact, those who gave us a hard time done me a favour. They pushed me to go on and achieve what I did. I kept my face to the sunshine, kept working hard, and became a great dancer. Now I have two Kuk Sool Won martial art schools, over 200 students, earn a really good wage, and have danced for everyone from Tommy Hilfiger and Nike to T in the Park. Had I listened to all those who said I was worthless, I might now be working in a factory in Caithness.

Donald Mackenzie, second from right (front) in the blue suit

BARRY GORDON: Like any craze, inevitably there comes the time it all comes to an end. And end it did; the Caithness breakdance scene wound down around 1987. Was this down to commercialism?

DONALD MACKENZIE: Later on, breakdancing became super-commercial, and like anything mega-popular, it became cheesy. Towards the end of 1986 people drifted away. Some grew out of it, others went onto other things, and some of us kept dancing. I kept dancing until 1992, then started again in 1996 when I moved to Edinburgh when hip hop clubs started up again.

BARRY GORDON: You moved to Edinburgh to study, and went on to set up martial arts schools in Thurso and Edinburgh, and another dance crew, The Lino Pimps, entertaining the public and corporate companies alike. Today, breakdancing is popular once more, but are the new school of breakdancers are a little different to the ones you encountered in your youth?

DONALD MACKENZIE: The new, young breakdancers are coming on quickly. Old breakdancers like me are past our peak, but 19-year-olds often come up to me after Ive been dancing to say ‘nice style. Which is true to an extent, because modern breakdancers are more acrobatic. Its not so much about dancing anymore; its more about flicks, tricks, and blending of gymnastics with art-forms such as capoeira. Ill never sit back and get old – I earn the respect of kids at 19 even though Im nearly 40. Ill never stop.

BARRY GORDON: You hooked up again recently with Willie Miller from The Egyptian Warriors since the 80s, and convinced him to start up breakdance lessons in Wick and Thurso for todays Caithness breakdance stars of tomorrow. However, do you think there will be as much interest in break dancing in Caithness today as there was back in the 80s?

DONALD MACKENZIE: Believe me, kids are desperate to learn. Willie found my email address and dropped me a line a few months back asking how I was doing. I got him down to Glasgow – where I live now – to a breakdance workshop I was holding. He couldnt believe how good it was. He wasnt sure that breakdancing classes in Caithness could work, but I said ‘look, if you start a class, I guarantee youll have a hundred kids joining up.

Donald Mackenzie, second from right wearing war-paint

He didnt believe me, but sure enough, there was. It was great meeting him again, and we picked up from exactly where we left off. He wasnt so much into breakdance over the last decade but hes totally into it again now. Better yet, weve decided to set up a reunion for all the old Caithness breakers, which should happen in the summer.

Hopefully we can set up some video footage from back in the day, plus old photos and get a wee jam together. Who knows, we might even get all The Egyptian Warriors back together. Even if we dont, itll still be a lot of fun, even if its only me and Willie.

BARRY GORDON: That bodes well for future generations of breakdancers – you have both come a long way since dancing on a piece of Grannys lino in Thursos precinct, but it does make me wonder what might have happened had The Egyptian Warriors been around today?

DONALD MACKENZIE: Even today, people still come up to me saying they remember the Warriors. Now, Willies bumping into the parents of kids he teaches who also have fond memories of watching and hanging out with us. Its nice people still remember. Indeed, its incredible when I think of what we achieved as a group; a bunch of lads from Caithness blowing away all the best there was in the country.

If wed grown up in Glasgow at that time, and, if I had the contacts I have now, then, everyone in Britain would have known about us, no question. Today, wed be on X-Factor or Britains Got Talent. Wed be famous. We were the best at what we done, and we proved it over and over again. We might not have had access to the same things in Caithness as everyone else did, but we had camaraderie and some of the greatest times any kid growing up could hope for.

© Barry Gordon, 2010

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