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Birmingham Nightclubs of the Past - Memories

  • Thread starter Thread starter mazbeth
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My, this thread brings the memories flooding back.....Many thanks to all.

My first ever gig that I attended was at the Adam & Eve Folk Club in Gas Street in 1969. The band playing on the night that I went to see was the Strawbs.

I was 15 years old and felt all grown up with my half pint of beer sitting at the front table.

This video clip is pretty much like what is was like on the night......And yes, that is Rick Wakeman playing the piano!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlDD3lOSBvg
 
Astonb6 said:
My, this thread brings the memories flooding back.....Many thanks to all.

My first ever gig that I attended was at the Adam & Eve Folk Club in Gas Street in 1969. The band playing on the night that I went to see was the Strawbs.

I was 15 years old and felt all grown up with my half pint of beer sitting at the front table.

This video clip is pretty much like what is was like on the night......And yes, that is Rick Wakeman playing the piano!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlDD3lOSBvg
Click to expand...


Are you sure it was Gas St?
 
Smudger said:
Oh to be young foolish & cool, but kicking someone in the nuts with your footie boots on is definitely a red card. Makes my eyes water just thinking about it!!
Click to expand...
Oh but I was a lover not a fighter so the chances of me actually doing anything other than making a fool of my self were very low!
 
Bill123 said:
Are you sure it was Gas St?
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I thought it was Bill, or close by Gas St anyway? Have I got the name of the club wrong?

It was so long ago it's hard to pinpoint it - My elder brother took me so in time I will ask him. No real matter though, because I do remember it just as in the video and how much I enjoyed being part of my first ever gig.
 
These are great stories, and bring all those memories flying back. Yep, I remember Sam Wellers and the Kalediacope, I do remember being acousted by someone in football boots up the corner for 4 hours !! (ha ha only joking Crashtestdougie!)
What great times, you're right we tought we were the bees knees, and yes the jet set of course :)
 
lindyloo said:
The Adam & Eve that I know of is on the corner of Bradford Street and Warner Street.
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Yes, I goggled it and you are right. Shame really because for all these years I thought that was the name as the folk type gig and the Adam & Eve Folk club went so well together.

Still a most enjoyable evening though wherever the venue was.
 
Tower Ballroom, I was in the pop trio 1970 for about 3 years, the stage revolved and the other half of the stage was Bobby Johnson and his big band, saw a lot of life as a teenager there, happy days!! Also The Night Out, there was the resident compare Grahame Powell who I was with in a band with him (he was the main singer) for a short time, and when me and my mate in another band at the time finished our gig we parked our cars ( full of our gear!) up the road in the back streets and got in free at about midnight. happy days.
 
Did anyone go to The Rainbow Casino ? I worked there for a while, Big Harry, with the Black Rolls Royce owned the place, I went to school, with his son Mac, he preferred to be called David when he finally grew up......
 
Delyawindsor21 said:
Did anyone go to The Rainbow Casino ? I worked there for a while, Big Harry, with the Black Rolls Royce owned the place, I went to school, with his son Mac, he preferred to be called David when he finally grew up......
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There is a member of BHF (hasn`t posted for a while ) whose father owned the Rainbow Casino who i went to school with. What years are you talking about? I went to the casino just once in the late 50`s, & a real eye opener!
 
Delyawindsor21 said:
Did anyone go to The Rainbow Casino ? I worked there for a while, Big Harry, with the Black Rolls Royce owned the place, I went to school, with his son Mac, he preferred to be called David when he finally grew up......
Click to expand...
Back in 1967 I used to collect the duty managers from their home in Brownhills, one worked days whilst the other covered the evening shift. They had the first white Sputnik shaped TV in their kitchen that I had seen, posh or what :)
 
rick said:
Tower Ballroom, I was in the pop trio 1970 for about 3 years, the stage revolved and the other half of the stage was Bobby Johnson and his big band, saw a lot of life as a teenager there, happy days!! Also The Night Out, there was the resident compare Grahame Powell who I was with in a band with him (he was the main singer) for a short time, and when me and my mate in another band at the time finished our gig we parked our cars ( full of our gear!) up the road in the back streets and got in free at about midnight. happy days.
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Also because I worked for Mecca at the Tower Ballroom in the band all musicians had a free pass to the Opposite Lock, so I finished at midnight then went to the Lock to have a good time
 
I went to Slade Road School, in 1954 I worked at the Casino in the mid sixties. I lived in St Thomas Road, off Slade Road.
what school did you go to ?
 
Jennyann,

thank you for the lovely photograph and the Birmingham Mail write-up. I have not been back to B,ham for many years, I live in Devon now. I remember Mr Harry well, he was quite protective of his younger staff and stood no nonsense from his customers with regard to us. I remember a lovely lady with red hair, she was like the supervisor she wore Estée Lauders Youth Dew In those days it was expensive, to my shame, I cannot remember her name. Happy memories, once again, thank you.
Dee
 
Delyawindsor21 said:
I went to Slade Road School, in 1954 I worked at the Casino in the mid sixties. I lived in St Thomas Road, off Slade Road.
what school did you go to ?
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Hi Delyawindsor21, i also went to Slade road school, left in 57 to work for R M Douglas as a wages clerk. I always get St, Thomas & Abbey road mixed up. Used to hang with a couple of lads in one of those roads, Johnny White & Jim Shepard. I was in the same class as someone you probably know from the Rainbow casino. He was Harrys stepson. I remember one of his sons used to carry a monkey around, probably from the days when Harry had a pet business,. ( did you get to take the Rolls home at the end of the day :-}
 
Smugger,

St Thomas Road was the one with the laundrette on the corner, and across the other side was a chemist shop. I remember Jim Sheppard, they lived near us, there was also the Woolaston boys and Johnny Taylor and Morris Carron.
How old are you ? you may have known my brother Mike Windsor ? The chap you were at school with.... did he have red hair ? if so, that was the older son, David was the younger one. He was bought up by his Mum, somewhere near Spagetti Juncion, Gravelly Hill way. I do remember, neither of them looked anything like Mr Harry. I was in the swimming team at Slade, still have an old photo with ten of us on it, lads as well.
As to the Roll's.... alas, no, I don't think even today I could drive it, great big old thing it was, very posh and always clean.
 
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Morning Smugger,
I have sent the reply again, Max was the brother I went to school with, sorry to hear he passed away. I,m sixty six, so Maxs was quite young to pass on. My brother Mike would be 75 if was alive, he died when he was 32.... cancer. so sad.
I was in Slade swimming team, still have an old photograph of about ten of us... hope you get the previous message, Dee
 
Note: A post has been removed for discussion by the Admin team. Reason for removal - Mention of person or persons, in a potentially derogatory manner.
 
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Does anyone remember the Rainbow Suite ? It was on the top floor of the Co-Op in High Street in Birmingham It had a bar that opened up onto the roof .The atmosphere was lovely, so friendly. Saturday night was always `Rainbow Night`. People used to queue all the way up the stairs (about 4 flights) to get in as they only allowed a certain number of people in. As my friend and I were regulars who couldn`t get there very early due to working hours, one of the ladies on the door gave us passes so that we could get in.Happy Memories !
 
Yes, I used to go to the Rainbow Suite some Saturday nights in 66/67 - maybe you went later than that Sue as I don't think it was open after midnight at that time. We usually used to use the lift to go up, being lazy!

They did used to have some good bands on Tony, I remeber seeing Robert Plant there when he was the vocalist with Listen.
They also used to play good records in between bands - soul and motown stuff.
Was a nice venue.
 
I remember the band Craig playing regular, great mod type band. The drummer Carl Palmer I believe became part of Emerson Lake and Palmer.
 
I used to go to the Rainbow, but I never saw any live bands there. This would have been about 1968. I remember great evenings spent dancing to the sounds of Motown and Reggae music, no live performances. Funny it was called the Rainbow as I remember the entrance as grey and characterless, the bar, quite big and characterless, the outdoor terrace, also very big with a beige, tiled floor and the corridors white/cream! But I loved going there for the music and the dancing. Viv.
 
It was called Rainbow because thats what the Co-op called their social clubs. I also went to one at Yew Tree Yardley co-op called Rainbow.
 
I believe several Co-op shops had function rooms, certainly the one in Yardley did. They ran a "disco" around 1967 called Rainbow club. Bit amateur but somewhere to go.
 
Re: 2 more forgotten clubs

The Mayfair, i had a job there in 1970 i think, collecting the empty glasses until i knocked an Irish chaps beer over, he demanded i get him another one. So i did it which i payed for. I told the manager he then payed me back as we could not find the guy it was so big in that place. I also saw Rod Stewart & the faces playing there. That was my first live gig. Fun memories.
 
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