I made these photographs during a couple of short visits some 45 years ago. At that time Glasgow had a fearsome reputation for street violence. In refined teashops serving coffee and Kunzle cakes you would see a poster urging motorists to retract their car ariels lest they be broken off and used to administer a beating. I had, at that time, an ambition to make photographs of life on the street, a procedure that requires a certain confidence. I felt that if I could cope in Glasgow I could cope anywhere. I remember most clearly making the series of pictures of the neatly dressed little boy. He appeared round a corner next to a canoodling couple, saw and smiled and then for some reason walked backwards out of sight again. he reappeared at a smart trot and led me on a short tour of his city, stopping on ocassion to touch a wall or greet a passer by. Eventually he turned a corner and I left him. He seemed the spirit of the city. The first photograph is almost the first one I made. I noticed a man leaning on post at the end of a short alleyway. He looked tough and familiar with violence. I felt this this was a challenge I had to accept, I walked towards him down the deserted street raised the camera and made a couple of exposures, he made no response . Looking at the picture now he i find him beautiful but bruised, like the city itself.