Rock night at the museum: Gigs and shows will accompany Rip It Up exhibition at National Museum

Stars such as Simple Minds, Midge Ure, and Shirley Manson have provided their own artefacts for the show, which the museum (NMS) expect to attract a "healthy five figure audience" next year.

The NMS has held Fringe events before but not rock gigs to accompany exhibitions.

The Herald was allowed a peak at some of the 300 exhibits which will form the exhibition, at the NMS's huge store in Granton, north Edinburgh.

Rip It Up will take in many bands and musical movements, from Lonnie Donegan to Mogwai, from Lulu to Lau, from dancehall to pop, the 1960s, 70s and the New Wave of the early 1980s, and will feature influential record labels like Postcard, Fast Product and Chemikal Underground.

The show, curated by Stephen Allen, will come right up to date, and will feature the 2018 Scottish Album of the Year winner, as well as modern bands such as Young Fathers.

Items included in the show will include Midge Ure's overcoat from his famous Vienna video, early band posters from Simple Minds, one of the late Stuart Adamson's Fender guitars, as well as original recording tapes of The Associates, gold discs and other pop and rock paraphernalia.

The NMS is also planning live music events to accompany the show, with details to be released in the New Year.

There will be a limit on the volume allowed for the gigs, however, to protect the other parts of the collection.

The story will be told in sections: the 1960s, the global reach of Scottish acts, modern times, and the Scottish diaspora.

Mr Allen said he has been contacting bands and artists for more than a year to gather material for the show, which will also focus on fandom, as well as the bands and music.

He said: "One my very favourite bands when I was growing up was [Scottish punk band] The Rezillos, and I had no idea where they were from.

"So it is a great thrill that the PVC jumpsuit that Eugene Reynolds wore on Top of the Pops is in the show, it is in our mind the kind of thing we would like to show.

"Almost without exception the bands we have contacted have been very helpful.

"Some of them have literally opened suitcases they have not for more than thirty years - and the smell of old copies of the New Musical Express is a distinctive one.

"There are some objects that are intriguing and surprising, and some that will have a wow factor for visitors."

Artists featuring in the show will include Gerry Rafferty, the Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Lulu, The Rezillos, Midge Ure, Simple Minds, Garbage and Franz Ferdinand and Young Fathers.

A three-part BBC TV series will accompany the show, as well as a book.

However Mr Allen warned fans that "it is not an encyclopedic exhibition" and the choice of bands and artists covered may cause debate.

Asked whether Scottish-born artists such as David Byrne from Talking Heads or the members of AC/DC will be included, he said the Scottish diaspora will be addressed.

"There won't be every single Scottish band, but we will be encouraging debate on social media, in talks and events that will accompany the exhibition," he said.

"There is a large number of singers and artists that have Scottish roots - Johnny Cash, for example. We will be addressing the diaspora."

Asked why the exhibition is being staged now, the curator said it had in part been prompted by the landmark show in London's V&A of David Bowie's memorabilia.

The show attracted 312,000 visitors to the museum in 2013.

Mr Allen said: "Why now? It's a good question. We are in the decade where there are the 40th and 50th anniversaries of many things.

"We are beginning to see that what we once regarded perhaps as throwaway, disposable culture, is now the bedrock of a lot of the culture that we grew up with.

"The gap between high and, inverted comma, 'low art', is narrower, these days."

Midge Ure, who is lending items to the exhibition including material related to both Live Aid and hit single ‘Vienna’, said: "For its size, Scotland really punches above its weight in terms of the global artists it has produced.

"With the recent interest in museum exhibitions like the ones about David Bowie and Pink Floyd, I think it’s right that Scotland should showcase its own achievements like this. Although, I never thought I’d see that day that I’d become a museum exhibit myself.”

Shirley Manson, who is lending material including clothes, awards and magazines from her time as lead singer with both Garbage and Goodbye Mr Mackenzie said: "While music is universal, and Garbage are an international band, being Scottish is a large part of who I am and has had a huge bearing on my work and our career.

"I’m honoured to be included in the exhibition alongside my peers and many of the artists who influenced and moulded my own musical identity. I must admit that I’m actually very much looking forward to seeing the exhibition myself.”

Examples of items in the Rip It Up show at the National Museum of Scotland next year:

*A hand made Simple Minds poster from 1978, advertising a gig at the Grafton Bar, Glasgow. Donated by the band.

Curator Stephen Allen: "This is in the era before they really became big, and were playing gigs almost every night. It is typical of its time, handmade and simple. You can see the cellotape marks at the corners where it was fastened. In this period, the band were really cutting their teeth - a lot of people claim to have seen them live, at this time, before they developed into a big stadium band."

*Bay City Rollers Gold Disc, marking £250,000 worth of sales of their album Rollin' (Bell records) from 1975.

Mr Allen said: "They were an accomplished Edinburgh band before they were taken and hit the big time. This shows their success. They had such a connection with their fans, and the whole exhibition will be looking at the interaction between bands and their fans. The Bay City Rollers in particular had a real connection."

*'I Found It at Bruce's' paper bag from the Bruce's record store.

The paper bag could be from anywhere between 1967 and the 1980s, Mr Allen said. "It is not a unique item, but it is important. For many people this was part of the experience of buying records, and their introduction to pop music. For many people, a bag like this with a record in would been how their experience with music started."

*Mastertapes for The Associates album Sulk, Polydor.

Fascinating original tapes of The Associates - known for their hit Party Fears Two and the extraordinary voice of singer Billy Mackenzie - provided to the exhibition by a collector. The breakdown of the tracks on the album of great interest to fans.

"Visually, these tapes are less spectacular, but if you view them as a fan, they are fascinating."

*Stuart Adamson's yellow/gold Fender Stratocaster guitar (early 1980s)

A beautiful, if a little battered, guitar played often by the late Big Country guitarist (who died in 2001), and donated by his family.

"He is such an iconic figure. This guitar dates from the early days - although we are not sure he played in while in The Skids - and a favourite of his. It is a well played guitar. He is such an iconic figure."