Life After Dark

by Dave Haslam

  ‘You weren’t intimidated, you felt comfortable’; Lisa Loud in Garratt, p.109.

  ‘There were these fresh-faced people completely mashed on drugs’; Mark Moore, quoted in Sean Bidder, Pump Up the Volume (Channel 4 Books, 2001), p.102.

  ‘That first night was the defining, life-changing moment of my life’; Helena Marsh, quoted in Garratt, p.114.

  ‘The sound was very much a very heavy black sound’; Ashley Beedle quote here: http://blog.scottsmenswear.com/rip-parties-at-clink-st/.

  ‘A packed club, everyone going absolutely crazy, but it was only like half past nine or something’; Graeme Park in an interview with Raili Haslam.

  Terry Farley talking about Graham Ball in Bidder, p.103.

  ‘It wasn’t like anything you’d ever experienced in a club before’; John McCready, quoted in the Observer, 20 April 2008.

  ‘In one night, everything that went before it was gone, redundant’; Norman Jay, quoted in Garratt, p.122. Later Norman Jay was a prime mover in the ‘High on Hope’ night. On one occasion he put on En Vogue, who played for free as long as it was unannounced. ‘Hold On’ was just about to break. When they performed, the crowd went berserk. Thankfully Norman had hired extra security. En Vogue had to be smuggled out of the back door.

  Paul Staines recalls his first E in Matthew Collin, Altered State: The Story of Ecstasy Culture and Acid House (Serpent’s Tail, 2009), p.105. Staines now runs the Guido Fawkes blog site.

  ‘You won’t find any girls in Dolcis cream stilettoes at an acid house party’; Linda Duff, Daily Mirror, 29 June 1989.

  ‘Idiosyncratic reaction’; quote from the coroner reported in the Daily Mail, 9 December 1989.

  Quote from Mike Pickering about an acid tab and Darren Partington describing the area around the Thunderdome as ‘rough-arsed’ both from Clash magazine, September 2008.

  ‘When we started up the club, we had no idea that these were the sort of people we would have to deal with’; Tony Wilson, quoted in NME, 9 February 1991.

  Chapter Twelve

  ‘There was no need to wear a tie on a Friday, and trainers were quite acceptable’; Mr Matthews, quoted in the Evening Sentinel, 19 June 1992.

  For more on the history of DJing and the rise of the ‘superstar DJs’ see: Ulf Poschardt, DJ Culture (Quartet, 1998); Dave Haslam, Adventures on the Wheels of Steel: the Rise of the Superstar DJs (Fourth Estate, 2001); and Dom Phillips, Superstar DJs Here We Go! (Ebury, 2009).

  The quotes by Stuart Reid in this chapter are from an interview on the http://www.kmag.co.uk website.

  ‘Reprobates’ and other Kath McDermott quotes are from the ‘Queer Noise’ section of the website www.mdmarchive.co.uk.

  Fabio and Storm quotes about Rage from http://www.djmag.com/node/7168.

  James Ballie’s Venus on Stanford Street was housed in a venue formerly known by other names, including the Dungeon, and – during a phase as a gay club – Shades. As Baillie later said, ‘Venus was the place that bridged the gap between the North/South divide and brought the whole Balearic network together’ (interview here: http://dalstonsuperstore.com).

  The Megadog review in Melody Maker, 11 December 1993, credits two reviewers: Zane and Push.

  ‘Substance-fuelled’; Andrew Weatherall an onstage conversation with the author at Beacons festival, August 2014.

  ‘Drugs are cool, that is the problem. At least they are when you are twenty-one and feel indestructible’; Phillips, p.315.

  ‘It became more and more a drug-dealer’s paradise’; Darren Hughes, quoted in Phillips, p.234.

  Chapter Thirteen

  ‘The acid house recession’; Dom Phillips, Superstar DJs Here We Go! (Edbury, 2009), p.353.

  ‘The era of the superstar DJ and so-called superclub has come to a dramatic end’; Evening Standard, 7 November 2002.

  Keith Reilly talking about Fabric and recounting the story of Talvin Singh’s watch from an interview in Jockey Slut in October 2000. Later, Fabric’s owners opened a second venue, a 2,600-capacity music venue, Matter, located at the O2 Arena in Greenwich, but Matter ran into financial trouble and caused a hiccup at Fabric, which was placed in administration for a short while in 2010.

  Alex Needham here: http://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/the-london-dubstep-scene/#_.

  ‘Andrew was the most incredibly hideous dancer’; Virginia Roberts in diary extracts published on http://radaronline.com/.

  ‘The question perhaps, shouldn’t be, did Anna Chapman get to meet a prince’; Olivia Cole writing on the http://www.thedailybeast.com site.

  ‘He did not callously use me for sex’; Sally Anderson, quoted in the Guardian, 19 February 2014.

  ‘Officers have been on the site and the gathering is good humoured though very noisy’; quote from Sussex Police, reported in the Mirror, 26 May 2014.

  ‘It doesn’t bother me one bit’; Daily Telegraph, 26 May 2014.

  After the raids on Garlands, the Lomax and Republik, Chief Superintendent Jon Ward, from Merseyside Police, said the raids and closures were linked, all part of ‘An investigation targeting irresponsible licensed premises where violence and contributory factors, such as drugs and excess alcohol, have caused issues.’

  Mr Bagnall explaining the closure of the Music Box, Manchester Evening News, 28 April 2010.

  Luke Unabomber’s ‘dark corridors with stained walls’ quote is from an interview posted on www.skiddle.com on 24 October 2012.

  ‘The early Club Suicide nights at John Willie Lees reasserted a DIY, John Peel-esque spirit in Manchester’; Bill Campbell quote from www.skiddle.com (posted 13 July 2013).

  The full champagne list at Annabel’s is here: http://www.annabels.co.uk/sites/default/files/food-and-drinks/champagne-menu.pdf.

  Abigail Ward quote from Strange Trees (Switchflicker, 2009), p.2.

  Outro

  The last act to play the Hammersmith Palais were Groove Armada, some six weeks after the Fall.

  ‘We may not have the glossiest leaflets, or the biggest marketing budget’; see the Adelphi website: http://www.theadelphi.com/.

  ‘You just do it any way you can’; Chris Chinchilla quote is from an interview posted on www.wired.com, August 2004.

  ‘Edinburgh’s nightlife has suffered significantly since the millennium’; Kris Walker in The List, 28 February 2012.

  Ian Cape confesses to liberating a chair from Le Phonographique in Leeds on the club’s Facebook page.

  ‘For one of its iconic and historic venues to be demolished to make way for a budget hotel is, quite simply, appalling’; James Ketchell, quoted on the website http://www.mancunianmatters.co.uk/, 3 August 2012.

  ‘We’re facing a war on culture, fuelled by consumerism’; Alan McGee, quoted in NME, 9 February 2015.

  ‘Just a few years ago the Baltic Triangle’; http://independent-liverpool.co.uk/blogs/a-moment-with-baltic-creative/.

  ‘The Club That Changed The World’; Melody Maker, 18 March 1995.

  The words of Councillor Norma Austin Hart reported here: http://www.theedinburghreporter.co.uk (25 November 2014). Subsequently Kris Walker told me the outlook for grassroots culture has improved: ‘Edinburgh, whilst hardly Berlin, has really improved since The List article’; (email to the author, January 2015).

  The top tip for surviving a night at Jesters (Southampton) is in a review carried on the website www.omgmad.com.

  ‘Piled-up passions were exploded on a Saturday night’; Alan Sillitoe, Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (W.H. Allen, 1958), p.9.

  ‘Numbers of people staggering and seeing others lying in the gutter’; Friedrich Engels, The Condition of the Working Class in England (1845: Panther, 1969), p.157.

  Mick Farren wrote that ‘stumbling into Indica was like a ticket to the magic kingdom’; Give The Anarchist a Cigarette (Jonathan Cape, 2001), p.84.

  INDEX

  (venues whose names begin with figures are placed as if spelled out)

  A Certain Ratio, ref1, ref2

  Abadi brothers, ref1, ref2, r
ef3, ref4

  Abbott, Myra, ref1

  ABC (formerly Vice Versa, q.v.), ref1, ref2, ref3

  Abigail’s, Birmingham, ref1

  AC/DC, ref1

  Ace of Clubs, Leeds, ref1

  Ad Lib, London, ref1, ref2

  Adamski, ref1

  Adamson, Barry, ref1

  Adamson, Stuart, ref1

  Adelphi, Hull, ref1

  Adelphi, Leeds, ref1

  Adelphi, West Bromwich, ref1

  Adventures in Lust, Hanley, ref1

  Advert, Gaye, ref1

  Adverts, ref1

  Afghan Whigs, ref1

  Africa Centre, London, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Aitken, Matt, ref1

  Ajanta, Derby, ref1

  Akins, George Jr, ref1

  Akins, George Sr, ref1

  Alan Price Set, ref1

  Albarn, Damon, ref1

  Albert Hall, London, see Royal Albert Hall

  Albert Hall, Manchester, ref1

  Albertine, Viv, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7

  Alex Harvey and His Beat Band, ref1

  Alexander, Scott, ref1

  Alexandra, Manchester, ref1

  Alexandra Music Hall, Canterbury, ref1

  Alexandra Music Hall, Sheffield, ref1

  Alexandra Palace, London, ref1

  Alhambra, Nelson, ref1

  Ali, Muhammad, ref1, ref2

  Alibi, London, ref1

  Alien Sex Fiend, ref1

  All Caribbean Steel Band, ref1

  All Saints Hall, London, ref1

  Allan, Stu, ref1, ref2

  Allen, Fiona, ref1

  Allen, Trevor, ref1

  Almond, Marc, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Altern ref1, ref2

  Ambrose, Bert, ref1

  AMM, ref1

  Amnesia House, Longton, ref1

  Amnesia, Ibiza, ref1

  Anderson, Ian A., ref1

  Anderson, Paul ‘Trouble’, ref1, ref2

  Andrews, Phil, ref1

  Androids, ref1

  Angels, Burnley, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Animals, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10

  Annabel’s, London, ref1, ref2

  Anokha, London, ref1

  Aphex Twin, ref1

  Apocalypse Now, London, ref1

  Arch, Brighton, ref1

  Archway, Manchester, ref1

  Arctic Monkeys, ref1, ref2

  Argent, ref1

  Argyll Rooms, London, ref1

  Art Brut, ref1

  Artery, ref1

  Ashby-De-La-Soul, ref1

  Ashfield, Tony, ref1

  Ashworth, Joe, ref1

  Asprilla, Tino, ref1

  Associates, ref1

  Astley, Rick, ref1

  Astoria, London, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Astoria (aka the Rainbow), Finsbury Park, ref1

  Au Pairs, ref1

  Audio, Brighton, ref1

  Azena Ballroom, Sheffield, ref1

  B-52s, ref1

  Back to Basics, Leeds, ref1

  Back to the Future, London, ref1

  Back to Hell, Manchester, ref1

  Backhouse, Dave, ref1, ref2

  Bagley’s, London, ref1

  Bagnall, Billy, ref1

  Bagnall, John, ref1

  Bailey, James, ref1

  Bailey, Paul, ref1, ref2

  Baker, Arthur, ref1

  Baker, Chet, ref1, ref2

  Baldry, Long John, ref1

  Ball, Graham, ref1

  Balmbra’s, Newcastle, ref1

  Bamboo, Bristol, ref1, ref2

  Bananarama, ref1, ref2

  Banco De Gaia, ref1

  Band of Joy, ref1

  Band on the Wall, Manchester, ref1, ref2

  Bang, London, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Bannerman’s Edinburgh, ref1

  Bannister, Freddy, ref1, ref2

  Barbarella’s, Birmingham, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6

  Barber, Chris, ref1

  Bargeld, Blixa, ref1

  Barker, Ronnie, ref1, ref2

  Barker, Simon, ref1

  Barmy Barry, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Barnum, P.T., ref1

  Barratt, Richard, see Parrot

  Barrel Organ, Digbeth, ref1

  Barrett, Jeff, ref1

  Barrett, Syd, ref1 (see also Pink Floyd)

  Barrie, Jack, ref1

  Barron Knights, ref1

  Barrowland, Glasgow, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6

  Barton, James, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7 passim, ref1

  Batcave, London, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5

  Batchelor, Kid, ref1

  Batt, Fred, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Bay Hotel, Sunderland, ref1

  Beach Boys, ref1

  Beach Club, Manchester, ref1, ref2

  Beastie Boys, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Beat, ref1, ref2

  Beatles (formerly Quarry Men, q.v.), ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10, ref11, ref12, ref13, ref14, ref15, ref16, ref17, ref18

  beatniks, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6

  Beckett, Steve, ref1

  Bed, Leeds, ref1

  Bed, Sheffield, ref1

  Bee Gee, Leeds, ref1

  Beedle, Ashley, ref1

  Beer, Dave, ref1

  Bell, Patti, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Beloved, ref1, ref2

  Beltram, Joey, ref1

  Benson, Ivy, ref1

  Berkmann, Justin, ref1

  Berlin, ref1

  Berlin, Manchester, ref1

  Bermuda, Birmingham, ref1, ref2

  Berrow, Michael, ref1, ref2

  Berrow, Paul, ref1, ref2

  Berrow, Ray, ref1

  Berry, Andrew, ref1

  Berry, Chuck, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5

  Berry, Dave, ref1

  Best, George, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Best, Mona, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Best, Pete, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Bestival, ref1

  Betesh, Danny, ref1, ref2

  Better Books, ref1

  Betts, Leah, ref1

  Bez, ref1

  Big in Japan, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5

  Big Three, ref1, ref2

  Big Youth, ref1

  Bilk, Acker, ref1

  Billy’s, London, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10

  Bin Lid, Dewsbury, ref1

  Bingley Hall, ref1

  Biology, London, ref1

  Birdcage, Portsmouth, ref1

  Birley, Mark, ref1

  Birmingham Odeon, ref1

  Birmingham Sound Reproducers, ref1, ref2

  Birthday Party, ref1, ref2

  Björk, ref1

  Black Bee Soul Club, ref1, ref2

  Black Cat Club, Sheffield, ref1

  Black Market, ref1

  Black Sabbath, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8

  Black Swan, Sheffield, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Black & White Milk Bar, London, ref1

  The Black and White Minstrel Show, ref1

  Blackpool Mecca, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Blake, Cyril, ref1

  Blake, George ‘Happy’, ref1

  Bland, Bobby, ref1

  Blarney Club, London, ref1

  Blast, Chester, ref1

  Bleasdale, Paul, ref1

  Blind Tiger, Brighton, ref1

  Blitz, London, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7

  Blodwyn Pig, ref1

  Blondie, ref1, ref2

  Bloom, John, ref1

  Blue Bell, Hull, ref1

  Blue Lantern, London, ref1

  Blue Moon, Cheltenham, ref1

  Blue Note, London, ref1, ref2

  Blue Note, Manchester, ref1

  Blue Rondo à la Turk, ref1

  Blues Incorporated, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Bluesbreakers, ref1, ref2

  Boardwalk, Manchester, ref1, ref2

  Boardwalk, She
ffield, ref1

  Boat Club, Nottingham, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Bob Marley and the Wailers, ref1, ref2

  Boileroom, Guildford, ref1

  Boland, Derek, ref1

  Bollox, Manchester, ref1, ref2

  Bolton Palais, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Bond, Graham, ref1

  Bond’s, Birmingham, ref1

  Bongo, Edinburgh, ref1, ref2

  Bonham, John, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5 (see also Led Zeppelin)

  Bono, ref1, ref2

  Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, ref1

  Boodle’s, London, ref1

  Boogie’s, Birmingham, ref1

  Book Shop, Edinburgh, ref1

  Boon, Clint, ref1

  Boon, Richard, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8

  Booth, Dave, ref1

  Bootleg Beatles, ref1

  Borderline Club, London, ref1

  Boujis, London, ref1

  Bounce, Nottingham, ref1

  Bow Wow Wow, ref1, ref2

  Bowery, Leigh, ref1

  Bowie, Angie, ref1, ref2

  Bowie, David, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10

  Boy George, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6

  Boyd, Joe, ref1, ref2

  Boyle, Mark, ref1

  Braceland, Jack, ref1

  Bradley, Shanne, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Brain, London, ref1

  Brannigans, Leeds, ref1

  Bread Basket, London, ref1

  Brick, Chris, ref1

  Brighton Essoldo, ref1

  Britannia Panopticon, Glasgow, ref1

  British Queen, London, ref1

  Bromley Contingent, ref1, ref2

  Brooker, Gary, ref1

  Broudie, Ian, ref1, ref2

  Brown, Chris, ref1

  Brown, James, ref1, ref2

  Brown, Joe, ref1

  Brown, Louis, ref1

  Brown, Miquel, ref1

  Brown, Pete, ref1, ref2

  Browne, David, ref1

  Bruce, Lenny, ref1

  Bryant, Bill, ref1

  Budgie, see Clarke, Peter ‘Budgie’

  Bukem, LTJ, ref1

  Bullimore, Lalel, ref1

  Bullimore, Tony, ref1, ref2, ref3

  Bungalow Bar, Paisley, ref1

  Bunn, Thomas, ref1

  Burdon, Eric, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6 (see also Animals)

  Burgess, Guy, ref1

  Burke, Solomon, ref1

  Burn, Colin, ref1

  Burnell, Bern, ref1

  Burns, Pete, ref1, ref2

  Burra, Edward, ref1

  Burroughs, William, ref1, ref2

  Burton, Chris, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4

  Burton, Peter, ref1

  Buster, Prince, ref1

  Buxbaum, Chris, ref1

  Buzzcocks, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6, ref7, ref8, ref9, ref10, ref11, ref12