Accrington Web - Jazz Club

Came across these reminiscences about the Jazz club on a jazz-related site which I thought might be of interest to some of you who frequented the old place.

Accrington Jazz Club

Dear Fred,

It's been a while since I contributed, but a recent item on the news page jogged my memory cells (more of that later). This must be of interest to you as a native Accringtonian.

As a teenager in the late 60s, I lived in Blackburn and was made aware that there was a club in Accrington where we daring 17 year olds could safely go to be served alcohol with no questions asked. This turned out to be Accrington Jazz Club, which operated on Saturday and Sunday evenings at the old Accrington Stanley Club at Peel Park.

The resident band on Saturday was usually the Silver Bell Jazz Band, which then was a full 7-piece and included John Rothwell on drums and sometimes bass. I was later to play regularly with John in Southport in the early 80s. The only other members I remember clearly were Keith Moore on clarinet and the late Frank Caunce on trombone. This was my first introduction to New Orleans jazz as opposed to the traddy stuff we were all exposed to on the radio at that time, good as a lot of it was. However, the live music I first heard at Peel Park was a revelation from which I never looked back.

Apart from the music, the club had a great atmosphere of its own. The crowd was a young adult rather than a teenage one, and time may have coloured my judgement, but all the girls were beautiful! The guy who ran the club must have been at least 40, and smoked a huge curved pipe. He used to jive with 2 girls at a time with the pipe in his mouth and I wondered what his secret was. I started smoking a pipe as well but it did not work for me!

The admission cost half a crown, and Duttons Trophy retailed at 1s-9d a pint. At the interval they served pie and peas for a shilling.

On Sunday evenings there was usually a guest band from further afield. However, our A-Level studies, as well as limited finances generally prevented our going there on Sunday as well. I recall two Sunday sessions when I saw Alan Elsdon, and a band from Manchester which included Derek Galloway on trombone.

The one session I truly regret missing was announced as follows:- "Next Sunday, we are presenting a blues pianist and singer from Halifax, called Champion Jack Dupree." We all said, "Never heard of him" and decided to give him a miss. What we did not know was that while he lived in Halifax, he was in fact from New Orleans and was one of the original barrelhouse/boogie style pianists. A year later, when at college I became caught up in the electric blues wave which was current at the time, and heard Champion Jack's sessions with Peter Green's (original) Fleetwood Mac, I realised what I had missed.

Finally, a band from Liverpool appeared once, called the Savoy Jazz Band, and the trombone player was Bart Poole. Twenty years years later, I joined the Mathew St Ragtime Jazz Band of which Bart was (and still is) a member. We reminisced about Accrington Jazz Club, and the main thing Bart remembered were the pies! We both agreed they were in a class of their own. Only one other pie came close. On leaving school, (and Blackburn) I studied at St Martins College in Lancaster, and used to frequent a pub which served an excellent pint of Guinness and a superb pie to go with it. This pub was the Fox and Goose which I see on the News Page is likely to become a jazz venue. So it seems that what goes around comes around in all sorts of ways, and my advice to Les Bull is --make sure they still serve the pies!!

Phil Yates. Yarrow River Jazz Band.
07/12/04

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I used to play at the Accrington Jazz Club at the Accrington Stanley Football Social Club with The Zenith Six. I cannot remember anything about the music but the Steak & Kidney Pudding with Mushy peas were something else. They were homemade by a lady who always saved 6 portions for the band. I think the lady who made the puddings should have been given an OBE.

Mart Rodger
08/12/04

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I feel its high time a mention is made of the Rainy City Jazzband and particularly regards Accrington Jazz Club, R.C.J.B. played there many times in the 60s the line up Bruce Bakewell reeds; myself trumpet; Pete Haslam or Tom Peder trom; Ian McCann banjo; Dave Parr bass and Barry Wilkinson drums. Even though I say it myself this was a "Hot " band. This venue had a terrific atmosphere the crowd fantastic even as I write it conjures up vivid memories. I seem to recall the chap who ran it was named Wilf and at the end of some sessions he invited us back for supper which was a new fangled dish called Currie (new in the 60s anyway) The R.C.J.B. played all over the Northwest and beyond throughout the 60s does anyone out there have memories to share? Also does anyone know the whereabouts of Barry Wilkinson and Pete Haslam? I think Pete is in the West of England .

Harold Roberts